Bookmark Accounts
Home Articles Forums Gallery Marketplace Videos
200+ woodworking book reviews

WoodCentral Forums

Knowledge You Can Build On — Est. 1998

Fast and affordable laser cutting – so you can make the parts you can’t find anywhere else

I picked up an old Oliver Mach No 51-A

Posts

I picked up an old Oliver Mach No 51-A

#1

I picked up an old Oliver Mach No 51-A

Keith Newton

An old friend was clearing out a warehouse, and had piled a lot of parts out on the loading dock. He said there were some old lathe parts in there if I wanted them. Did I fail to say FREE?

Well, I just got back, and am trying to figure out what I want to do with it. There wasn't any headstock/motor, but does have the bed and cast legs, tailstock and banjo, but no tool rest. This actually can be a pretty good addition to the other lathes in my shop. My big lathe is just a faceplate bowl lathe that I built, with the shaft the same height as my PM. I have moved it out out and positioned it to turn 8' long porch post, but the bed length is shorter than I may need in the future, so I can just drop this 60" long one in between to use just to carry the tool rest. That need may never arise, but if it does, I'll have it. If I need something even longer than that, I'll be calling Dick to get him to dust off that monster he bought a year or two ago. By the way, when are you going to show something you've turned on that thing?

There was also a little 30" long cast bed, and one of those single pipe ones, and also some ShopSmith parts.

Re: I picked up an old Oliver Mach No 51-A

#2

Just didn't take any pictures

Dick Coers

But did two runs of samples for a stair case job. Still haven't heard what the architect said about the samples, but that work paid for half the price of the lathe and shipping. I did find that the adjusters on the copy knives have quite a bit and will require some custom made parts.

I'd start looking at Ebay for parts, a fair number of Oliver machines on there.

Re: I picked up an old Oliver Mach No 51-A

#3

My deal even got better.

Keith Newton

I went back over there to see if I could find the motor / headstock for this lathe in that pile of junk. While I didn't find it, I did find a 15" PM disk sander, and a 12" 3 jaw lathe chuck, with a 2" thread which is what I have on the CCW end of my big lathe. I already had a larger 4 jaw chuck on there, which I've never found a need for, but this one seems in better condition, and the jaws all move together, rather than independently.

Re: I picked up an old Oliver Mach No 51-A

#4

Re: I picked up an old Oliver Mach No 51-A

Roy Girolami

Keith, you mentioned a PM lathe in your entry. I have a PM 3520A and an Oliver 51-K and I have found that the tailstock on the Pm fits the Oliver bed. Since the Oliver cost less than half what an 18" bed extension for the PM costs, I figure I got a good deal. And if you can't find a headstock for your Oliver, the parts you do have fetch a good price, especially the banjo and tailstock.

Roy

Re: I picked up an old Oliver Mach No 51-A

#5

Yes they will interchange,

Keith Newton

The bed gap and the height came out a perfect match to the PM, so I got a 5' extension, with an extra banjo and tailstock. I had already changed my old PM motor up to a 3 hp back when it was my only lathe, and I was trying to turn larger diameters than it had enough power for.

I may check into selling the banjo and tailstock. I cleaned them both up yesterday, and both are working fine.

Although it has dawned on me that I might be able to buy a new PM headstock and motor with a VF drive, which would make this a whole new lathe.