MSC 951735 Lathe, 13x40. Opinions?

[umnik]

Found locally MSC 951735 Lathe, 13x40. Retired man decided to sell his lathe. I when today to check it out because I am in search one for myself. It is made in Taiwan, was bought new from MSC around 10 years ago. It was not used all that much. The guy just occasionally made small parts, mostly cutting some not widely available threads. The lathe really does not show much use, minimal. It runs without quirks, feeds and threading works as they should. It's 3 phase motor which he runs out of static phase convertor (included).
As for tooling, just standard set. 6" 3 jaw chuck, 8" 4 jaw chuck (with surface rust), some US made drill chuck, couple dead centers, face plate and steady/follow rests, some cutters and insert holders. Manual and gears. No QCTP.
He asks $2800 and stays firm on the price, I may to try to knock off couple hundered, but that does not make big change. Do you think its worth to buy? Any opinion/experience with such lathe?
Oh, and some pics I made during visit. They are random and in a hurry, but anyway.

 

[Cadillac]

I think it’s a pretty good price. Can you get that machine at that price anywhere else? I wouldn’t think so. Offer him 2500 he won’t refuse.

 

[matthewsx]

Looks a lot like the PM1340GT.

Pretty good deal but not a steal. If I had the money and I was in the market I'd probably go for it.

John

 

[darkzero]

I suppose not bad of a price considering what MSC is charging for them new. My local MSC has one on the show room floor. Looks well made.

They are made in Taiwan. Search Prince lathe for more info. I think it was like Dashin Prince or something like that. Also sold under another brand, Hipo something, I forget. Grizzly also used to sell the same lathe. Considered a toolroom lathe IIRC.

There was talk about those Prince lathes here yrs ago. I remember hearing that the spindle likes to leak oil when ran. I'm also surprised a lathe that size doesn't have a lower low speed, only 100 RPM. My 12x36 has a low speed of 65 RPM & I wish it had an even lower speed.

I don't know anything else about those lathes but I would look for something else for that price. Unless he comes down a bit. If they really do have leaky spindles I'd probably pass if it leaks bad.

 

[darkzero]

Here's one thread that mentions the leaky spindle. Also another thread mentioning the leaky spindle on the "other" forum.

Picked up my *new* engine lathe, today

A little over a week ago, I spotted an import lathe in the back of a warehouse covered with dust, dirt/filth. It is missing the compound dial and handle, the E-Stop flange mount is cracked. The main power On/Off knob is also missing. However, a 3 jaw chuck is mounted on the spindle, it has a...

www.hobby-machinist.com

There's a few threads about this lathe here, here's one below. Looks like it was also sold by Jet & Sharp & a few others. Hipromac was the other name that I could not remember.

Hipromac 1340 lathe

HI All, I recently purchased a used Hipromac 1340 lathe. I'm looking for a source for spare parts. Anybody know anything about these? It also is marked Dashin Prince. I've been seeing some suggestions that these Asian machines are often sold under different labels but are in fact the same...

www.hobby-machinist.com

 

[rock_breaker]

I own a similar lathe under the Enco name. I have had 2 problems with mine. # 1. The tail stock would move when drilling larger than 3/8" holes. Found paint on the bottom side of the ways and the clamp was not machined true. Cured about 90% of the problem by trueing up the flats on the clamp and getting rid of most of the paint. # 2 is chuck alignment ( I am new to the D-1 mounting system) at present I have approximately 0.040" runout on a 1" test bar approximately 6 inches away from the chuck. Just beginning to search for the cause of this problem. A dial indicator shows possibly 0.0003" on the cam housing collar and approximately 0.0001" on the spindle taper. I notice the lathe has a steel gear instead of the large plastic one, this might be a point of discussion. The speed setting indicators on the front panel are a nice feature. Is the chuck mounting a D-1 4 ?
I enjoy running my 13X40, it seams to have plenty of power ( it is connected to 240 VAC single phase. ) the dials are large to read easily. It has metric and imperial scales on the dials. It came new with the attachments you have listed. I have used HSS and carbide cutting tools and know it will make chips in a hurry with carbide. Just playing around it ran 0.125" DOC at 0.006 travers per rev at 300 RPM The chips were hot enough to bur the skin.
Have a good day!
Ray

 

[mmcmdl]

There are a couple of Leblond Regals floating around our area at the moment for about the same price umnik . Frederick , Carlisle etc . They look to be in good shape too . Just a thought .

 

[NCjeeper]

I have the same 13x40 lathe. Bought it in 2004 under Enco. No real issues and works as it should. If you can get that one for 2500 that would be a good deal. Mine was $2000 when I bought it new.

 

[umnik]

Oh, forgot to mention about sound of running machine. Mostly it runs fine and smooth, but occasionally it makes some kind of "knocking" mixed in. I tried to catch it in this video.

 

[mksj]

Doesn't sound too good running, I would expect it to be smoother. Since parts would be a problem and difficult to find (if that) I would pass on it at this price level unless you know what is going on with it mechanically and it is easily fixed.