SB Lathe Serial #'s

[wa5cab]

Cheeseking,

Links of that sort are in general OK. Restrictions are mostly related to other sites whose owners have explicitly stated that they don't want any links to their site showing up here. Unfriendly folks, in other words.

David,

Thanks. Too bad. Have you (or anyone else) seen any earlier editions of the Serial Number Reference Book...? I did a brief search on eBay but did not turn up anything even remotely related.

Robert D.

 

[old_dave]

Cheeseking,

Links of that sort are in general OK. Restrictions are mostly related to other sites whose owners have explicitly stated that they don't want any links to their site showing up here. Unfriendly folks, in other words.

David,

Thanks. Too bad. Have you (or anyone else) seen any earlier editions of the Serial Number Reference Book...? I did a brief search on eBay but did not turn up anything even remotely related.

Robert D.

The preface of my 11th edition says _Serial Number Reference Book_ was first published in 1955. When I bought this new from the Machinery Dealers National Association they told me they still had some copies of the 10th edition so I bought that too. I just looked on Alibris and Abebooks (as well as ebay" and didn't turn up any copies either. I also don't know that any editions later than the 11th have been published.

David

 

[wa5cab]

Dave, et al,

I just took a look on Amazon and searching for the exact title name turned up four listings. One was 11th and two didn't give the edition, but all three were listed as Not Currently Available. I presume someone bought them and the seller hasn't deleted their ad. The fourth said 7th edition 1974 and said that two were available. When I clicked on that one, the details showed that one of them was the 7th edition but the other one from a different vendor was 4th edition 1969. I bought the latter one and will report the cutoff date (oldest) when it arrives.

Robert D.

 

[wa5cab]

I received the "Serial Number Reference Book for metalworking machinery" 4th edition 1969 today. It covers up through 1967 (assuming that the company was still in business then). It does not include Atlas, Clausing, Colchester, Logan to name a few. The SB entry goes back mostly year by year to 1940 (there are a few skips) and sporadically before that back to 1925.

Robert D.

 

[old_dave]

I received the "Serial Number Reference Book for metalworking machinery" 4th edition 1969 today. It covers up through 1967 (assuming that the company was still in business then). It does not include Atlas, Clausing, Colchester, Logan to name a few. The SB entry goes back mostly year by year to 1940 (there are a few skips) and sporadically before that back to 1925.

Robert D.

Thank you for this description of the 4th edition. Its coverage of South Bend serial numbers sounds like it's the same as in my 10th edition (of course the 10th edition includes years after 1967; goes through 1987).

Again the 11th edition goes back no further than 1950.
David

 

[Grendel]

I need a little bit of help.

I'm trying to date my SB lathe and from researching, I'm THINKING it's a late 30's

Serial number on the end of the bed is 81629

I'm having trouble trying to understand the pictures against my SN.

Thanks!

I too am looking for the exact date on my south bend, Mine is 19101 numbers without suffixes are pre 1947, and were sequential, the best I have found was in the 19510 region dated at 1919 may 10th, so mine is about 500 machines before that, yours would predate mine so pre 1918, apparently according to the south bend website you can order your serial number card, and they will let you know when it was made

 

[finsruskw]

Check out the numbers roster at Wells.
I sent them my numbers and some pic's last spring and they finally got aroiund to adding them a couple months ago.

 

[Grendel]

yes, only just found that page, and have emailed them with my serial number to help them along the way

 

[frankly2]

These serial cards are available thru Grizzly Industrial for SouthBend Lathes. I don’t remember how much, but I found a lot if info thru this method on the history of my machine. All you need to supply is the serial # and their fee.