Colchester 1965 Roundhead Lathe Restoration Project

The best way is to measure the diameter and groove width of the shaft. Of course, that requires at least partially removing the shaft from the gearbox.

If you can't do that, first determine whether the machine is inch or metric. Then look at the appropriate tables noting that they are sorted by material diameter. Determine what the nominal material diameter of the old one is. Note that they only come in certain diameters, so determining which yours is should be simple. The tables give both nominal diameters and actual.. Then find a cylinder (a socket set may supply one) that the O-ring just fits without stretching. Measure the OD of the O-ring while on the cylinder and pick the nearest diameter from the section of the table for your material diameter. The flat on the OD of your old one is probably due to wear, so the original OD was probably slightly larger. The actual ID of the O-ring should be a few thou smaller than the ID of the groove so that it is a snug fit and doesn't have to bunch up during assembly.

Parker sells rubber lubricant in small tubes. This will aid in assembly. McMaster won't call it Parker but whatever they have will work.
 
Na, not since I discover that I have couple oil leaks to fix.I did run it alittle while in low speed it runs quite,but took it up few notches and I could hear a peaking noise coming from the head.Which that may be normal,or it may not be but will check that out once I figure out the o-rings.But from that point and for next couple weeks I am working on a bender/shear doing the clean up,primer and paint etc for a very good person which is what is allowing me to invest into my bad habits such as this lathe.So its on hold for a couple weeks or when I hit a stopping point like waiting on some parts.
Techie were you going to go through your lathe,doing a cleaning?
 
Guys I am one happy man,today I discovered the reason why I was leaking oil.Watch the video and I will point out what I forgot to put back in.And on the back side behind the pulley is another shaft plug which I also forgot to install a set screw which was also leaking oil.On the first video it sounds noisy but its not.Sec video I speed up the rpm there is a sound that maybe is coming from the belts which is coated with the leaking oil.So I believe the oil leaks are fix but want to run it some more just to be sure.Any thoughts?Thanks guys----kroll
Edit: Have to wait till I figure out how to post a video
 
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Hi there, I am totally new to this site, only signing up today, an seeing your restauration for the first time, it just looks beautiful.
I have the big brother or sister if you prefer, the Colchester Triumph from 1958, that I restored, but didn't paint, which I regret seeing yours.
These lathes have a history of noisy heads if the belts isn't exactly the same length, you could try removing all but one belt to see if the noise disappears.
 
Thank you Holt,I hate to say it but glad to hear that.Never heard one before so this was my first time,didn't know if the noise was normal.
May I say WELCOME! Fantastic people here.If you get a chance please post some pics,paint/no paint their all good---kroll
 
I might just do that, I have a lot of pictures from the restoration and some upgrades I have made to it, some of the pics have been shown on other fora, and some have not. I have made my own QCTP, home made DRO from TouchDRO software, and I have a set of 5C collets that needs an adapter and drawbar I will be making as well.
Can I use pics from Photobucket, or do I have to upload them to this site? I will of course be making my own thread with all this stuff.
 
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Just wanted to show what you have coming, this is the lathe when I saw it the first time.

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Holt,

It's probably better to upload them here for several reasons. Just be sure to resize to around 200 KB first. Xenforo has no re-sizing capability. And also choose full size, not thumbnail. Some people report extremely slow load times from thumbnail, for reasons we haven't been able to determine. Plus if you load them full size, you can intersperse comments or identification for each photo.
 
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Thank you Robert,my photos are to much in the face pics.Holt that is one nice lathe,if and when you get a chance please do explain your upgrades.Love to hear your story on your restoration,also love the ideal of DRO on a lathe.I know its never to late,this lathe has been one of my biggest projects that I would love to make it better over time.
 
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