Scoping a Monarch 10ee

Christian,

I'm not sure what a lever collet-closer goes for. There was also a handwheel closer. The D1-3 collet nose that either type uses is pretty rare; they usually go for over $300.

$2500 for a non-running 10EE with no tooling is too high. If it were otherwise in pretty good condition it might be worth as much as $1500. Maybe you should go have a look and see what he has.

Cal
 
Cal, You don't want the 5c collet chuck from CDCO. I buy a lot of stuff from Frank, but you have to be careful what you buy. He told me last year that he wasn't selling the the 5c chucks anymore because he had too many returns. I saw a couple of them that he had. You could see the taper was off center just looking at it. He said he had a new source for them, but I haven't had one in my hands so I couldn't comment on that. The tool posts and holders are decent for the price. Sometimes you have to touch them up a little. As long as you understand that your buying low quality stuff at a cheap price you won't be let down. I've never bought a D1-3 plate from him, but the threaded plates have been good.

Chuck
 
Here are some pics of the Monarch that I'm waiting on a price quote for. The standard tachometer has been replaced by a speed control knob. The guy with the ebay machine (1957) said it doesn't run but he hasn't had anyone look at it. Thinks it might be a tube but can't say for sure. He's about 45 minutes from me (I'm just short on time) and it sounds like a project that could be unpredictable.
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Re: Scoping a Monarch 10ee - RUN AWAY, RUN AWAY FAST!!

Here are some pics of the Monarch that I'm waiting on a price quote for. The standard tachometer has been replaced by a speed control knob. The guy with the ebay machine (1957) said it doesn't run but he hasn't had anyone look at it. Thinks it might be a tube but can't say for sure. He's about 45 minutes from me (I'm just short on time) and it sounds like a project that could be unpredictable.
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I would steer well clear of the machine from the dealer. There are just too many weird things about it. Somebody has changed the drive for the feed belt so that it comes directly off of the spindle motor, instead of off of the spindle, so now the feeds are not directly related to the rotation of the spindle. This was probably done as part of the installation of the lever collet closer, which is not a factory install.

The idea of running wiring through the center cavity of headstock, where the thread gearing is, is one of the most bizarre things that I've ever seen done to a 10EE. It looks like the wiring comes out the back, under the front spindle bearings where the headstock drum switch used to mount. If so, that means that someone drilled a hole in the headstock casting for the wire! YIKES!!:panic:

On top of that, the back-gear appears to have been removed. The shift linkage is gone, so the gearbox is more than likely gone as well. With a 3.5HP AC drive, the machine will be useless for low speed operations like threading.

And that's just what I can see from 3 pictures. I shudder to think was else has been done to the poor machine. This is a Frankenlathe!

I wouldn't give the guy more than $1000, EVEN WITH the taper attachment and collet chuck. That machine may never be a useful machine again, so consider it a parts machine that MAY be useful as a lathe. (Major emphasis on the MAY). Whoever did this conversion to the machine had no clue what they were doing and clearly lacked adult supervision. If it was done by the dealer, then stay the heck away from him because he is totally incompetent!

This is not the machine for you. Be patient and a much better machine will turn up.

See if you can get some photos from the Craigslist guy. Pictures of the front and back of the machine will tell me what the original drive was. Ask him to take the cover off of the right end, under the headstock and take a photo of what's inside.

Cal
 
Thanks for the input. The spindle feed is electronically controlled now by the box with the on/off and for/rev switch. The dealer didn't do any of it. He got it that way. It's probably because I'm new to this but it really seemed smooth and had a nice sound. I wouldn't have known that the gearbox had been removed. This is my first time seeing one in person. So I really appreciate you picking up on the gearbox issues.

He has 2 other 10ee's that weren't powered up but could be. They look to be 1950's square dial versions. I'm in no rush (as no one should be to buy a 3200lb. object.) The dealer looks reputable. He and family has been in business for 70+ years (Boston Machinery Inc.). I could look at the other 2.

I emailed the ebay guy about seeing the lathe in person but so far no response.

Thanks,
Christian
 
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Here are some pics of the $2500 ebay machine. It is not running. The owner is not sure what the problem is. He thinks it's a tube issue but that's just speculation.

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I looked at the other two square dial machines which I thought were a much better prospect. One had a gearbox issue on the dog clutch, the other seemed ok. He was ready to take 5 k for it. I did see it run and it worked fine. I passed and managed to find a HLV H for 2k with some tooling.
The 10 ee is a really nice lathe but make sure you do not underestimate the weight of it
 
I looked at the other two square dial machines which I thought were a much better prospect. One had a gearbox issue on the dog clutch, the other seemed ok. He was ready to take 5 k for it. I did see it run and it worked fine. I passed and managed to find a HLV H for 2k with some tooling.
The 10 ee is a really nice lathe but make sure you do not underestimate the weight of it

What was your impression of Boston Machinery and the guys there? Besides the asthetics of the oddly modified 10ee, did you run it and find any issues with it? It seemed to be a smooth running machine? I'm still trying to get more info from them on it. SInce I'm new to these machines I'm not sure I would pick up on some of the subtle findings. What were the specs on the 5K machine? Seems a bit steep.

C
 
What was your impression of Boston Machinery and the guys there? Besides the asthetics of the oddly modified 10ee, did you run it and find any issues with it? It seemed to be a smooth running machine? I'm still trying to get more info from them on it. SInce I'm new to these machines I'm not sure I would pick up on some of the subtle findings. What were the specs on the 5K machine? Seems a bit steep.

C
They were very helpful. No pressure to buy, if anything quite the reverse, they wanted to make sure the machines were good before selling.
from memory the square dials were consecutive serial no. dial machines with the higher serial no. The better one. They run both of them, issue as described with the lower serial no. one. I offered 2.5k because of the lack of tooling (expensive to find otherwise) which was probably on the high side, but as dealers they were looking for more. There were two better machines for sale in Maine with tooling and one in ny with a sony dro which were better value.
make an offer and move on, something else always comes up in this age of machine.
 
I agree with you. They've been very helpful and not pushy at all. They're actually a bit slow to get back to me with a quote. Nice people. They will sell as is or quote any level of restoration that you desire.
 
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