South Bend 10x18- Value And Suitability?

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Skeet_Man

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Found a SB 10x18 locally for $750. Hard to tell from pics, looks a bit dirty with some missing paint, but can't see any rust or issues (would inspect in person before purchase).

Worth the price? I'm not real proficient in machinery values, and can't find anything for this specific model online.

Primary purpose would be light gunsmithing (including barrel fitting, which can be accomplished using pre-contoured blanks through the headstock with spiders) and general hobby use. In reality, 99.9% of anything I would ever conceive of doing would not be hindered by the short bed.

I picked up a Grizzly benchtop lathe a few weeks ago, but came across this one and it looks like it would be a ton more useful and a huge step up.

Anything I should look out for if I decide to go take a look at it? Weight will be an issue, so hopefully it can quickly/easily be disassembled into some two person manageable pieces.
 
So, what is a SB 10x18? I think the bed has to be a little bit longer than 18 inches...
 
Wow, that's a short bed. :) Looks like an Heavy 10. You could tell for sure if you had the serial number.

Make sure the spindle hole is big enough for what you plan to do. On my lathe I can always grab the work with the chuck and use a steady rest to work on the end but that's not an option for a stubby lathe like that.
 
I've never seen a 10" with only 1 tumbler lever.....mine has 2.
 
IMG_20150106_170912111.jpg IMG_20150429_130502657.jpg Wow, that appears to be a world war II era heavy 10. From what I have learned, they went to the double tumbler gear box in the late forties. I acquired my first lathe this year and it looks the same. The brass tag looks like the one on my lathe that reads "property of the defense plant corporation, an instrumentality of the United States government". I can't tell due to the picture quality, but it sure looks like mine. That would date it somewhere between 1941-1945 as congress disbanded the DPC in 1945. The serial number should be on the tailstock end of the bed. I beleive the tag on the leg indicates it has a " war finish " (less filler, one primer coat two finish coats). In short, barring catastrophic flaws(excessive, sway back bed wear, spindle damage, etc.) I would purchase this lathe if the short bed is not an issue, again assuming no major damage. I paid almost that much for mine and it needed a lot of TLC. It did however have an excellent spindle and a taper attachment. [GALLERY=][GALLERY=][/GALLERY][/GALLERY]
 
Nice clean-up on the lathe Hrolen. Is your lathe a "big bore" aka can you use 5C collets? I've read that with the older Heavy 10's the big spindle bore was an option were later they were almost all big bores.
 
First off thank you for the compliment. I am very new to all of this. These forums have helped me a lot! Yes, my machine is the 1 3/8" bore. The guy I bought it off of was a gun smith. He purchased in the mid sixties for his trade. He quit in the late eighties and loaned it to a friend who was a local welder and general mechanic. There it sat for 25 years until I acquired it. The price was cheap because he knew it wasn't going to be sold for profit. I do beleive the price is right on the op machine. A taper attachment would be sweeter though!
 
Oh I almost forgot, yes my machine can take 5c collets. It came with the holder and an adapter along with a few collets. When I polished the collets clean that DPC number was etched in to most of them. I just wish I had a closer. I guess I will have to make a draw tube!
 
If I'm not mistaken the single tumbler gear box heavy 10 also had a sliding gear for high and low range. This is how my h10 is. The double tumbler did not have that.
 
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