07-04-2015, 08:21 PM
Hello. I recently bought a lathe for $160. I could not find any info about it, so I used google images to find one. There is not much info on this lathe. I found out that is called several names with the most common being Cantek, and Birmingham. I joined this forum because a gentleman called johnnyc14 had the same lathe and I needed to contact him regarding the wiring.
![[Image: damagedControlBox.jpg?dl=0]](https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/s/6jxtyeahoekgtry/damagedControlBox.jpg?dl=0)
![[Image: unknownMotor.jpg?dl=0]](https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/s/nb8pmpq6fqtmdxs/unknownMotor.jpg?dl=0)
Anyway, johnnyc14 emailed me with pictures and even the manual, which I have been searching for. Thanks John! Although the lathe looks rusted, a bit of scotchbrite cleans it up pretty well. It was sitting in a factory back room for a couple of years. It was used to face off 3" diameter aluminum and the saddle was locked, so not a lot of way wear has taken place. No threading was ever done with this machine.
![[Image: base.jpg?dl=0]](https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/s/5bnpo6lghgo037n/base.jpg?dl=0)
There is a fair amount of wear on the cross slide lead screw and brass nut as well as the tool slide brass nut (lead screw looks decent). An apron gear looks bad too.
![[Image: wornParts.jpg?dl=0]](https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/s/3e64z4ptcmx5hi0/wornParts.jpg?dl=0)
![[Image: wornApronGear.jpg?dl=0]](https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/s/6y9qtlhwbbn079w/wornApronGear.jpg?dl=0)
My goal is not to make a perfect looking lathe, but to clean everything, fix some parts and make a solid working machine. I'll paint it grey with a brush...
Here are the rest of the pictures I took:
![[Image: apron.jpg?dl=0]](https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/s/r9ns0po2v9ylo1j/apron.jpg?dl=0)
![[Image: frontPanelParts.jpg?dl=0]](https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/s/yp8mxszt6s215l4/frontPanelParts.jpg?dl=0)
![[Image: gearBox.jpg?dl=0]](https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/s/bt9zqanayyy8o1o/gearBox.jpg?dl=0)
![[Image: pulleyCover.jpg?dl=0]](https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/s/f816yk4pettlyx0/pulleyCover.jpg?dl=0)
The lathe was fully assembled when I got it, but I didn't take a picture. I read many forums to help me with a lot of different problems, but have never posted my own project/thread so I guess it's about time to contribute a little. I'll try to make it here once in a while to read the posts and put up more pics, but I'm going to be out in the garage with very black and greasy hands for a while! If anybody knows where to buy parts for this machine just post it here in case anybody else needs the info too. Thanks.
Mark
Anyway, johnnyc14 emailed me with pictures and even the manual, which I have been searching for. Thanks John! Although the lathe looks rusted, a bit of scotchbrite cleans it up pretty well. It was sitting in a factory back room for a couple of years. It was used to face off 3" diameter aluminum and the saddle was locked, so not a lot of way wear has taken place. No threading was ever done with this machine.
There is a fair amount of wear on the cross slide lead screw and brass nut as well as the tool slide brass nut (lead screw looks decent). An apron gear looks bad too.
My goal is not to make a perfect looking lathe, but to clean everything, fix some parts and make a solid working machine. I'll paint it grey with a brush...
Here are the rest of the pictures I took:
The lathe was fully assembled when I got it, but I didn't take a picture. I read many forums to help me with a lot of different problems, but have never posted my own project/thread so I guess it's about time to contribute a little. I'll try to make it here once in a while to read the posts and put up more pics, but I'm going to be out in the garage with very black and greasy hands for a while! If anybody knows where to buy parts for this machine just post it here in case anybody else needs the info too. Thanks.
Mark