I've been looking for a lathe, and came across a gentleman with a large South Bend lathe and Induma milling machine. It looks similar to a Bridgeport J head, and uses R8 collets. Best I can tell, Induma is an Italian import, so picking up parts would be next to impossible.
Its a 3 phase machine, which isn't an issue as he can include a 3 phase rotary converter. Bearings sound good when running, and the table moves on all axis without too much trouble. It does have a decent amount of backlash, so I am not too sure how easy it would be to correct. The big issue I have noticed is switching the speeds in the head. I have no idea the correct procedure for switching speeds, but it does have a lever just above the head and on the side for speed adjustment. Of course, I have no idea if its a mechanical issue with something broken, or if its just user/operator error.
It also has a DRO set up, but does not read when moving X or Y...you can zero it, but that is about it. Is this typically just a scale issue on the table?
The machine also has power feed on the X axis, which is hit or miss....sounds like an occasional engagement problem, not sure if this is something easy to fix or not.
I am not too concerned with the DRO or powerfeed, my main concern is the speed adjustment in the head. I know most of this screams "run away", but price is right with the converter (under $1k). Question is, am I potentially jumping into a machine that will be too much of a headache?
Its a 3 phase machine, which isn't an issue as he can include a 3 phase rotary converter. Bearings sound good when running, and the table moves on all axis without too much trouble. It does have a decent amount of backlash, so I am not too sure how easy it would be to correct. The big issue I have noticed is switching the speeds in the head. I have no idea the correct procedure for switching speeds, but it does have a lever just above the head and on the side for speed adjustment. Of course, I have no idea if its a mechanical issue with something broken, or if its just user/operator error.
It also has a DRO set up, but does not read when moving X or Y...you can zero it, but that is about it. Is this typically just a scale issue on the table?
The machine also has power feed on the X axis, which is hit or miss....sounds like an occasional engagement problem, not sure if this is something easy to fix or not.
I am not too concerned with the DRO or powerfeed, my main concern is the speed adjustment in the head. I know most of this screams "run away", but price is right with the converter (under $1k). Question is, am I potentially jumping into a machine that will be too much of a headache?
