wrote in message
...

inherited an old lathe, and i know little about them. looks pretty
simple,
but no plate or label anywhere. the lathe pully does say "Craftsman", but
googling around i found nothing similar. the base stand is home made, and
it is a very sturdy workbench and vise set up so its worth keeping, and if
i
can learn and do some turning i think it will be a nice addition to the
garage.


http://i808.photobucket.com/albums/z...g?t=1262541385
http://i808.photobucket.com/albums/z...g?t=1262541385
http://i808.photobucket.com/albums/z...g?t=1262541385
http://i808.photobucket.com/albums/z...g?t=1262541385


questions:

1) the motor is 1725 rpm; is there a guide to know what my rpm will be for
the lathe using the various combinations of the step pullies? the motor
has
a 4-step, lathe a 3 step. i guess i can do the math - equal sizes would
yeild 1725, and then i guess its a matter of factoring in the ratio
difference of the circumferences .......


Wood lathes are pretty simple items. Unless you happen to luck onto the
original manual somewhere, just do the math. Sounds like you already have a
good grasp of it.

2) it is apparently missing a tool rest and the spindle to hold the stock
on
the power end.

The tool rest is pretty straight forward. Nothing special, and you can make
your own easily enough.

(my uncle had it set up with a grinding wheel) will the

??? That I would like to have seen.

spindle look like the one on the idle end?

It looks like there is a tape in the drive end, that may take a press fit
drill chuck, and nothing in the free end or tiny little center.

You will want a drive center on a taper shaft to fit on the drive end and a
free center on the "idle" end.

can i buy one that will fit?

Probably.

any pics of what is missing would help, i can send them to my cousin who
has
access to the shop where this was stored and she can look and see if they
are there.....

Go the the Harbor freight website and punch in center and chuck on the
search box and send her pictures of everything you find that is obviously
for a lathe. Also, maybe look up wood lathe and send her a picture with the
tool rest circled.

3) the motor is mounted on a pipe to swivel, making it very easy to change
pullies, but it this typical? i assume the weight of the motor provides
enough tension?

I have a table saw that just uses spring tension with a heavy spring. It
probably sees a lot more strain than typical use with a wood lathe. If its
not adequate you can always modify it, or tie some weights to the motor.
LOL.

the picture is in the "up" position
http://i808.photobucket.com/albums/z...g?t=1262541385

I hope I was able to help.