Hendey home

[skipd1]

After a lot of work figuring out the logistics of getting a 3000lb machine moved over 200 miles away, its finally in my garage for disassembly, and cleaning.
Going to drain and flush the spindle reservoirs, and the main gear case in the head stock with mineral spirits and diesel fuel. Remove all the machine tags and work at preparing to
pull off the head stock to inspect the lead screw reverse mechanism at the bottom of the head stock gear case.

Skipd1

[Doozer]

All this take apart talk.... Is it functional or needs repair.?
I have been to Hendey in Torrington. Cool place.
My heavy long haul was 9,000 lbs and 660 miles.
A Rockford Planer.

--Doozer

[Richard P Wilson]

Is there a problem with the leadscrew reverse mechanism? If there isn't, then I think I'd leave the headstock just where it is. If there is a problem, and access is only from underneath, then of course, you have no option.

[oxford]

That looks like a nice size machine for the homeshop. What size forklift was that? Sometimes those types of trailers with the fenders aren’t the easiest to get loaded and unloaded.

[vectorwarbirds]

After a lot of work figuring out the logistics of getting a 3000lb machine moved over 200 miles away, its finally in my garage for disassembly, and cleaning.
Going to drain and flush the spindle reservoirs, and the main gear case in the head stock with mineral spirits and diesel fuel. Remove all the machine tags and work at preparing to
pull off the head stock to inspect the lead screw reverse mechanism at the bottom of the head stock gear case.

Skipd1

HA! Try moving a 5000 pound machine from NY to AZ during the height of Covid!

[J Tiers]

All this take apart talk.... Is it functional or needs repair.?
I have been to Hendey in Torrington. Cool place.
My heavy long haul was 9,000 lbs and 660 miles.
A Rockford Planer.

--Doozer

I have yet to buy a machine (used) that does not have at least one crummy and potentially damaging "kludge" in it. Missing parts, wrong parts, assembled wrongly, etc, etc. Well, OK, one machine had really only one fault, and I have never taken it apart very far, just to correct some semi-exterior issues.

It "can" make a lot of sense to disassemble and go through a machine. Depends what you know about the history, if anything, how the machine looks, and what faults you can identify before you consider tearing into it.

That one looks "beat on", and it might be well worth the trouble. Best to leave the wrenches in the box, and investigate first.

[oxford]

I have yet to buy a machine (used) that does not have at least one crummy and potentially damaging "kludge" in it. Missing parts, wrong parts, assembled wrongly, etc, etc. Well, OK, one machine had really only one fault, and I have never taken it apart very far, just to correct some semi-exterior issues.

It "can" make a lot of sense to disassemble and go through a machine. Depends what you know about the history, if anything, how the machine looks, and what faults you can identify before you consider tearing into it.

That one looks "beat on", and it might be well worth the trouble. Best to leave the wrenches in the box, and investigate first.

I completely disassembled my mill when I got it and cleaned everything. There was nothing that indicated that anything was “wrong” with it but I feel it was worth doing.

I actually traded a Pratt & Whitney lathe for that mill to someone on PM. I had got a good deal on it from someone that needed it gone but never used it. I don’t know how far the guy went to tearing into it but he did tell me he found a few things that needed to be addressed that were either damaged or broken. I had no idea about it so taking things apart paid off for him.

I don’t know how far exactly I would go on that lathe, some would depend if it was going to get painted or not.
Very least would be to change the fluids and go from there.

[Bented]

All this take apart talk.... Is it functional or needs repair.?


--Doozer

In the 20 years that I have spent bombing around hobby machinist web forums it appears that many aspire to own old machinery.

Buy it, take it apart, strip and clean it then apply new paint, this often results in a very well appearing piece of equipment.

However actually using such a machine to make parts will blemish, scratch and discolor it thereby rendering the months of work done pointless.

I have often suggested that such people have 2 of every machine, one to admire it's pristine condition and one to use, as one may imagine this idea has been met with considerable derision in the past (-:

[wierdscience]

Got a 14x54 Hendey that same vintage, solid machines and one of the easist lathes to single point thread on. One unique feature it has that I like, are the dual feed worms in the apron. It's designed so that both feeds can be operated independently, or both can be used in unison to generate a 45* bevel.

If it were me, I would get rid of the flaky paint, drain and refill lube and run it a bit first.

[Tundra Twin Track]

That looks like a nice size machine for the homeshop. What size forklift was that? Sometimes those types of trailers with the fenders aren’t the easiest to get loaded and unloaded.

Nice looking machine skip1, real stout compared to new 12x30 lathes what spindle bore size does it have.

Your right on that oxford,I have similar 14000lb car hauler.When I got my 7000lb Varnamo Mill a 30000lb forklift loaded it on additional timber’s running length way to distribute the weight,he spotted exactly where it needed to be.Getting home I stripped 2000 lbs off Mill and had difficulty sliding it forward to reach it with my 5500lb forklift,once unloaded I noticed one of the Forks got bend in the process.🤬

[Doozer]

In the 20 years that I have spent bombing around hobby machinist web forums it appears that many aspire to own old machinery.

Buy it, take it apart, strip and clean it then apply new paint, this often results in a very well appearing piece of equipment.

However actually using such a machine to make parts will blemish, scratch and discolor it thereby rendering the months of work done pointless.

I have often suggested that such people have 2 of every machine, one to admire it's pristine condition and one to use, as one may imagine this idea has been met with considerable derision in the past (-:

Many times I get a machine that was in unheated storage.
This makes the paint flake and peel after a few years.
I like to scrape the old paint (and dirt) off to the point where
all the remaining paint is secure to the underlying surface,
but it does look like a patchwork quilt. Especially if the machine
has had a few paint jobs. In reality, when I clean my machines
to this point, they are really ready for a half way decent paint
job. But I resist, because they look like a working machine
with a clean and solid surface all around. Dirty and flaking
paint I do not like. Clean and solid old paint I tend to appreciate.

One exception that received a full paint job was my Hendey
T&G lathe. It sat outside in the weather for 4 or 5 years and
was really rusty. I used a needle scaler and took the whole thing
down to bare metal, and kept applying phosphoric acid multiple
times to kill the deep rust. In the needle scaling process, it took
all the Bondo filler out of the castings, and they was fine. I left
it that way. I gave it 3 heavy coats of Rustoliem grey, shot with
the spray gun. The surfaces are not smooth, but they paint is
stuck on there really well. A working lathe's paint job for sure.
But hey, what ever you want. We are all here to make ourselves
happy.

---Doozer

[Doozer]

I have yet to buy a machine (used) that does not have at least one crummy and potentially damaging "kludge" in it. Missing parts, wrong parts, assembled wrongly, etc, etc. Well, OK, one machine had really only one fault, and I have never taken it apart very far, just to correct some semi-exterior issues.

It "can" make a lot of sense to disassemble and go through a machine. Depends what you know about the history, if anything, how the machine looks, and what faults you can identify before you consider tearing into it.

That one looks "beat on", and it might be well worth the trouble. Best to leave the wrenches in the box, and investigate first.

I got lucky on my Rockford planer.
I cleaned off the grease and dirt
and changed the 30 gallons of hydraulic oil
and I was good to go. It originally came
from the Westinghouse motor plant
in Buffalo.

-D

[skipd1]

Thanks for the great comments. I understand your concern about how much to "take apart" is really necessary. Before I purchased this machine I spent all day operating it and testing to be sure everything works as it should. My degree of "take apart" is to flush, clean and refill with new oil in the spindle reservoirs, and head stock gear case, I also will inspect and clean out the quick change gear box. I plan to also remove and clean the drive clutch and check the drive pully bearings. I am also going to remove all the levers and handles, clean and strip them. I will strip all the paint and prime and repaint it. I will remove clean and test the old Westinghouse 3 hp motor. I may open up the apron and clean and inspect that as well.
This particular machine is 83 years old, and the person I bought it from bought two of these from an online auction, sight unseen in Kansas. He kept one for himself and sold the other to me.
I don't know how this machine was treated after it left the Navel Gun Factory in Alexandria Va. where it was commissioned in 1938. Just looking at the oil in spindle reservoirs leads me to check, clean and rubricate everything I can before I start running it in my shop.
As for the head stock issue, I'm not going into the gear case, and not dissembling the quick change gear box. After viewing a utube video by "Motivate Fabrication" showing him removing the head stock and going through the reversing mechanism, it seems prudent to do the same.
I followed this "take apart" procedure when I purchased a 1930 South Bend Model O Heavy 9x48 and after over 10 years of considerable use, that machine still works great and makes pretty accurate parts considering its age and silicone bronze spindle bearing. I just keep it well lubricated and clean.

skipd1

[Bented]

This is a 50+ year old Hardinge turret lathe, surprisingly it works well without fresh paint, go figure.