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Sheldon Lathes

Sheldon 15-inch Late Model

Sheldon 1940s 10-inch Lathes   Sheldon 11" & 12" Lathes   Late 13" Lathe

Early 8, 9 & 10-inch Lathes    Sheldon Miller  "Walking Stick" Lathe

Sheldon History & Serial Numbers   Antique Sheldon Woodlathes

Sheldon R-13, VR-13, R-15, VR-15, R-17 & VR-17 Lathes
   
Handbooks, Manuals & Parts Lists are available for most Sheldon Lathes
If you have a fine-condition Sheldon lathe of any type
the writer would be interested in hearing from you 


Sheldon was based, originally, at 4258 North Knox Avenue, Chicago, USA, and made a range of machine tools including millers, shapers and lathes using their own as well as "Sebastian" branding. From the 1940s until the late 1970s, the Sheldon name was used exclusively on the Company's smaller lathes which, during the 1950s, was consolidated into the following types:
10.125" swing (Series L and XL) with 3/4" collet capacity
10.125" swing (Series XL) with 1" collet capacity
11.25" swing (Series S) with 1" collet capacity
13.125" swing (Series M) with 1" collet capacity
The letters "E" or "U" before the Series letter indicated the type of drive system fitted (see below), whilst numerals after a Series letter showed the bed length. The letters "P" or "B" after the bed length told whether the lathe was mounted on a simple, but heavy cast-iron pedestal stand, or a full cabinet with an integral chip tray while Q indicated the fitment of a "quick-change" (i.e. Norton-type) screwcutting and feeds gearbox in place of changewheels.
From the early 1950s onwards, the entire range of Sheldon lathes was available with not only ordinary types of bench-mounted countershafts (jack-shafts) but also on cabinet stands with three distinctly different types of drive mounted within:
- Type "E" had eight hand-switched speeds from a conventional V-belt drive countershaft
- Type "U", also with eight speeds, but with instant changes made by two external levers mounted on the cabinet stand's front face that operated a complex, multi-belt drive unit
- Type "W" with a push-button control - this had the luxury of not only a spindle-speed revolution counter on the headstock but also an electric motor, with chain drive, to move the expanding and contacting pulleys of the variable-speed drive. However, one rather odd variant, the Series-M "Walking Stick" (almost certainly a short-lived, early production example) had manual control of the speed change by a T-shaped handle connected to a long rod that caused a jockey pulley to impinge against a pair of V-belts, the resulting motions being able to open and close the variable-speed pulleys.
Most under-driven lathes had eight speeds of  50, 90, 120, 215, 290, 510, 690 and 1200 rpm. but others were provided with a slightly different range which could also be ordered as a "two-speed" model giving a total of 16 spindle speeds ranging through: 50, 70, 90, 120, 130, 175, 225, 270, 300, 365, 460, 635, 680, 930, 1185 and  1600 r.p.m. As an example, the lathe Model EM56P was a Series M of 131/8" swing with a 56" long bed fitted with the "E" Type drive system and mounted on a pedestal stand.
Although a total of sixteen different models of the ordinary engine or centre lathe was offered, the factory would build a lathe with any combination of features to special order - a situation that has led to a number of machines being discovered with unusual combinations of specifications
Sheldon serial numbers were consecutive from some time before 1938 with, interestingly, the last two digits of the number stamped on the tailstock. This was to ensure that, when a factory or educational establishment ordered a batch of lathes with the same specification, the correct tailstock remained with a lathe after painting.
Of traditional "American" pattern, all Sheldon lathes used a bed with V and flat ways and had a general layout - and indeed certain details of some controls - not dissimilar to other contemporary South Bend, Logan and Rockwell Delta machines.
Whilst the vast majority of twin-tumbler examples are found with the bed supported on bolt-on, cast-iron box-type feet, early models (and a few of the later type)  had the tailstock end supported on a large plate formed with a large spring-load "ball" assembly. This arrangement, to allow some degree of self-alignment, or to prevent bed twist if bolted down to other than a flat surface, was also used in a simpler form by some other makers who employed a single bolt passing through a heavily dished washer sitting in a hemi-spherical housing machined in the underside of the foot.
All the early models (10", 11" and 12") were available either for bench mounting or fitted to underdrive stands with either the "E" or "U" drive system. Whilst the 10" bench model enjoyed the advantages of a modern, eight-speed all-V belt horizontal countershaft unit, the 11" and 12" bench lathes had either an integral overhead, flat-belt drive countershaft unit or one of any number of different drive systems, including rather old-fashioned "fast and loose pulley" units designed for bench, wall or ceiling mounting. A special unit was the "Double-Friction Countershaft", this provided, via a crossed belt and two clutches, a mechanical reversing system. By the early 1940s, the 10-inch had been engineered to accommodate a neat, underdrive countershaft and motor system contained within the cabinet stand, though the same model - a version of the robust and popular "single-tumbler" 10-inch - was also available fitted with a conventional built-on countershaft as used in earlier years.
On twin-tumbler gearbox models, a choice of three headstock spindles was offered: whilst the
Series L had a 11/16" hole through the headstock spindle and a 1.75" diameter, 8 t.p.i spindle thread, the Series XL could be ordered with a spindle having a bore of 13/8, a nose diameter of 2.25" with 8 threads per inch - or the much safer and more rigid American long-nose taper in an L00 size. All versions were available in standard and long-bed types, able to take twenty-six and thirty-six inches between centres respectively. They could be bench mounted with an integral, horizontal motor-drive unit which, in conjunction with backgear, gave eight speeds of  59,  91,  49,  222,  316,  491,  755 and 1195 rpm. By the early 1960s the makers were offering three bed lengths of 38", 46" and 56" and all machines fitted, as standard, with the even more robust and safer American-designed D1-4" Cam Lock spindle nose.
In line with Rockwell Delta machines of the same size, no separate power-shaft was fitted; instead, on all machines with power sliding and surfacing, these were driven by a slotted leadscrew with a key that turned a worm gear within the apron. A quadrant arm on the apron front selected either neutral, sliding or surfacing feeds, which were then engaged through a clutch, operated by (depending upon the year of manufacture), either a screw-in knob or a toggle lever at the base of the apron. Early lathes, with changewheel screwcutting, were fitted with a simple but useful Harrison-like 3-speed box on the headstock-end of the Acme-threaded leadscrew; this provided fine, intermediate and coarse feeds for each setting of the changewheels. The screwcutting-gearbox shafts, headstock pulley and countershaft spindle all ran in grease-lubricated needle bearings. The large cluster gear was balanced and the cluster gears alternated steel with Tufnol; consequently, whether the lathe was running in or out of gear, there was little difference in noise level.
The final Sheldon lathes made were the
15-inch "precision" and a development of that model, the R-Series, the latter built in standard and VR variable-speed, high-precision versions.
The chronology of Sheldon lathes by Sheldon expert John Knox can be found here


Sheldon 10-inch lathe with single-tumbler screwcutting gearbox as manufactured during the 1940s. A program of constant development resulted in an improved model, distinguished by a twin-tumbler gearbox and many other modifications, as shown below. A manual can be found here


Later model Sheldon 10" lathe Series L and XL with twin-tumbler screwcutting gearbox as manufactured from the late 1940s until the 1960s and fitted with a screwcutting and feeds gearbox and power cross-feed as standard,
This particular machine is a model EXL56B (E type drive system--see picture below-- small-bore headstock and full cabinet stand with roller-sliding drawers). Another common model was the same lathe on a cast-iron stand with a particularly heavy headstock-en plinth to hold the countershaft drive system. All versions were available in standard and long-bed types, able to take twenty-six and  thirty-six inches between centres respectively and could be bench mounted with an integral, horizontal motor-drive unit which, in conjunction with backgear, gave eight speeds of  59,  91,  49,  222,  316,  491,  755 and 1195 rpm.  The correct manual can be found here

A 10-inch Sheldon Series L with the smaller-bore headstock spindle. This particular
example was purchased direct from Sheldon during the factory sale in the 1980s

An early 1940s 10-inch "single-tumbler" lathe fitted with a conventional built-on countershaft unit.

Left and below: the popular and effective Sheldon underdrive countershaft system as used from the early 1940s. This unit was further developed into the ""E", "U" and "W" drives of the 1950s - the "W" providing a convenient, push-button activated ,electrical-control of a variable-speed system using expanding and contracting pulleys.







Below: as fitted to an ELX56B

The rear drive 8-speed countershaft unit was only
used on 10" versions of late model Sheldon lathes.

The E-Drive was a conventional underdrive countershaft assembly designed for the Company's cheaper lathes. With backgear included, either 8 or 16 speeds were available, the latter with a double pulley on the motor and countershaft.

The U-Drive enabled rapid changes of speed to be made whilst the lathe was running.
Twin V belts took the drive from electric motor to the 4-speed countershaft unit - with final drive to the headstock by twin V belts.

Right: the W-Drive of the 1950s was provided with push-button activated ,electrical-control of the variable-speed belt pulleys.
In direct drive speeds ranged form 200 to 2000 rpm and in backgear from 35 to 350 rpm.

Circa 1943-1944 final assembly and checking

1943-1944. Possibly the station at which beds were fitted to cabinet stand and their alignment checked

Finished 12-inch lathes ready for dispatch


Sheldon 15-inch Late Model

Sheldon 1940s 10-inch Lathes   Sheldon 11" & 12" Lathes   Late 13" Lathe

Early 8, 9 & 10-inch Lathes    Sheldon Miller  "Walking Stick" Lathe

Sheldon History & Serial Numbers   Antique Sheldon Woodlathes

Sheldon R-13, VR-13, R-15, VR-15, R-17 & VR-17 Lathes

Handbooks, Manuals & Parts Lists are available for most Sheldon Lathes
If you have a fine-condition Sheldon lathe of any type
the writer would be interested in hearing from you 

Sheldon Lathes

E-MAIL   Tony@lathes.co.uk
Home   Machine Tool Archive   Machine-tools for Sale & Wanted
Machine Tool Manuals   Machine Tool Catalogues   Belts   
Books   Accessories