Rexvalter VF-118 lathe (was: old Myford Ml7)

[DennisCA]

Somebody did buy the other one, I don't know for how much. I'll keep looking, I suppose. Curious as to what set you guys off about the 2nd lathe, any tell tale signs?

 

[Hood]

If you are meaning the last one you posted then the spindle looks small and flimsy with a long overhang and the bore will likely be tiny. The bed is also flimsy looking and looks to be in pretty poor state although that I suppose is hard to tell from the pictures. Seems like Finnish people do not like to take detailed pictures It is also a very old lathe with handles missing. If it was €100 then it may be worth considering as worst comes to the worst it could be weighed in for scrap, at €650 it is not even worth looking at.

 

[Henrik]

I was thinking exactly the same when I saw the spindle tbh

 

[DennisCA]

Someone ID'ed the big lathe for me and it's apparently made in Finland, Lahden Rautateollisuus was the brand, apparently good quality, still too big. I measure the place I could put a lathe and it's 60cm deep and 150cm wide, unless I get rid of the shelves I got, but I don't got anywhere to put them...

 

[Hood]

Someone ID'ed the big lathe for me and it's apparently made in Finland, Lahden Rautateollisuus was the brand, apparently good quality, still too big. .

Thanks, had a search but not really come up with much.

 

[DennisCA]

This popped up last night, swedish Storebro which is a good quality brand, no idea what he wants for it, closeby to me though, I can see it fits on a pallet. Probably more than I can afford.

http://www.findit.fi/sv/1222122.htm

 

[Pete.]

That looks like a good prospect

 

[Hood]

Yes, looks like a decent machine and they are still on the go as well

 

[DennisCA]

Wanted 1900€, unfortunately way more than I can afford... But I did suspect it wouldn't be cheap.

 

[DennisCA]

I offered 1500€ for it but no reply yet. I found this lathe for 1550€ today as well, but it's much farther down and perhaps too large:
https://www.tori.fi/uusimaa/Sorvi_41165719.htm?ca=18&w=3

Looks more worn out than the Storebro, but it's also a Swede, a Köpings, another brand of good repute. Perhaps I could offer a lesser amount of money for it. I would not be able to go see it in person though.

 

[Hood]

I offered 1500€ for it but no reply yet. I found this lathe for 1550€ today as well, but it's much farther down and perhaps too large:
https://www.tori.fi/uusimaa/Sorvi_41165719.htm?ca=18&w=3

Looks more worn out than the Storebro, but it's also a Swede, a Köpings, another brand of good repute. Perhaps I could offer a lesser amount of money for it. I would not be able to go see it in person though.

It looks like a nice solid lathe but as you say you would be bidding blind so it is a risk.

 

[DennisCA]

To be honest, without someone with experience there to help, I could not really do more than turn it on and see if it works anyway, I would not know how to check if the beds are worn and such.

Storebro seller called me up again and he's wililng to go down to 1700. I don't know, I could scrape that together. Fully equipped he says the lathe is, with a 4-jaw chuck as well.

 

[Hood]

Listen for noises in all gears, get the guy to chuck something up and take a test cut and measure it to see if it is stepped/tapered. Look at the bed near the headstock and see if there is a visible wear/step compared to further along the bed. Most lathe work is close to the headstock so that is where the most wear will happen.

Going by the prices you have posted for other lathes in your country that sounds fairly reasonable, assuming of course there is no serious problems.

 

[Richiew]

Take the lid off the headstock gearbox assuming it has one and check for broken teeth inside. Open the side cover and check for the same on the change wheels. Check that all the change wheels are there. If chuck is removable without too much bother it would be worth clocking the spindle using an dial indicator to check for any run out.

 

[slim_boy_fat]

The one in your 2nd link looks to be at least half as big again as the Storebro one [and presumably correspondingly heavy], def wouldn't fit that on a pallet.

The Storebro looks a much better bet if you can get it at an 'acceptable' price - and remember, many of us end up paying more than we planned for machines......

 

[DennisCA]

Yes the storebro looks much nicer, 1700 is as good as I am going to get I think. I believe I found the manual for it too, talks about stuff like fastening the lathe to the floor, then it should be "posted" I think the term is, with iron wedges.

I am not even sure how I am gonna get it off the pallet...

 

[Richiew]

Unbolt the lathe from the base and borrow an engine crane. Should split into two fairly manageable pieces after that. That's how I moved a 300kg lathe. Just two people, three would have been nicer.

 

[slim_boy_fat]

Unbolt the lathe from the base and borrow an engine crane. Should split into two fairly manageable pieces after that. That's how I moved a 300kg lathe. Just two people, three would have been nicer.

If you DO go for the Storebro, just be careful where you place the lifting straps as per @Richiew 's post above ^^ .

 

[Richiew]

Looks like the seller has lifted the lathe in one piece onto the pallet, you could possibly just do the reverse in one go with an engine crane.

 

[Hood]

If you can get delivered on a truck with a Hiab then it should not be too much of a problem, failing that one with a tailift. Once into the workshop they are easy enough to move around with jacks, round bar and a pinch bar. I shifted my Computurn on my own and it weighs 3Tonne or so.
Just remember though that lathes weight is high up so they can fall over if you raise them too high and the fall at one side.