South Bend Model 9A Metal Lathe walk through

This is a quick introduction to the 1947 South Bend Model 9A Metalworking Lathe that I recently bought and spent several weeks cleaning and repairing. It is now back in service after what appears to have been many years of storage.

All the major components are identified and described and basic operation is shown in the video.

A metalworking lathe can be used to create all manner of round items such as shafts, flanges, gears, pulleys, washers, and other such components. They can also be used to mill flat surfaces on the face of a metal object, and to cut threads. A machine like this one is capable of precision down to around one thousandth of an inch. It does take some skill and knowledge to use one of these to its full potential, but even a novice can produce useable parts with a bit of practice.

Overall condition of this particular machine is quite good: The ways, gears, screws, and other mechanical components show little to no wear. There was a small amount of surface rust on some components and the whole machine was full of sawdust and dried up lubricants, but it cleaned up pretty well and is now completely functional. The prior owner started to paint it which is why the carriage and tailstock are a different color. The rest of the machine still sports what is left of its original grey paint.

This lathe has a 9" work diameter capacity and a 48" bed. As an "A" model SB9 Lathe, it has a quick change gearbox with 40 ratios and power longitudinal and cross feed capability on the carriage. As it turns out, this unit is an "intermediate bed" SB9 made only during 1947. These can be identified as the gap between the ways on the bed is 2" instead of the more typical 2 3/8". Many components are interchangeable with other contemporary SB's but the major castings (headstock, tail, saddle, steady rests, etc) are likely not.

I purchased this lathe to aid in making parts for my electric vehicle conversion of a 2004 Scion xB. I have already successfully created several parts using this lathe and I have already envisioned many more things I can now accomplish for this project and others.

Видео South Bend Model 9A Metal Lathe walk through канала madderscience