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South Bend (Heavy) 10-inch Lathe
Heavy 10 Catalogs

South Bend literature is available


South Bend Lathes pre-1920  South Bend Lathes 1920-30

South Bend Model 5 - Earliest of the 9-inch "Workshop" Lathes

First Ever Model 5 Catalog - the original "mention" of the 9-inch

South Bend 9-inch "Workshop" Lathe  South Bend 9-inch Catalogs

South Bend Lathe Accessories

8-inch & 9-inch Junior & Model R   8-inch and 9-inch Junior Lathes Photographic Essays

Historic, very early 1910 South Bend 10-inch  Series 20 Toolroom Lathe - Superbly Restored

South Bend Heavy Ten - an overview   South Bend Heavy 10 from 1961 and 1991 Models

South Bend Heavy Ten Specification Catalogs   South Bend 10-K Light Ten

South Bend G-26-T   South Bend Silent-chain Drive Lathes

South Bend Lifted-Centre-Height Lathes

Copies and Clones of South Bend Lathes:
Boxford, Ace, Blomqvist, Smart & Brown, Purcell, Sheraton, Hercus, Sanches Blanes


Special Factory Production Machines   South Bend Factory   Making the South Bend

South Bend Users' Group   How old is my South Bend Lathe? The Rarest South Bend Lathe

South Bend Shapers    Rebuilding a 1952 South Bend 13-inch (large PDF)

By the late 1930s South Bend had two 9-inch lathes in production: the lighter 9-inch "Workshop" model introduced in 1934 as the Model 504 and the very much heavier Type R, a lathe also built as an 11-inch model in several versions and whose origins went back to the early 1920s. During 1939, in order to put some distance between the two 9-inch models, the "R" was revised becoming what is believed to have been the Model T (with a 9-inch swing) and then (looking almost identical) as the 10-inch swing "Heavy Ten", a machine that, due to its compactness and useful features, was to prove enormously popular and remain in production (though in a modified form) until the late 1990s (a well-preserved version from 1967 can be seen here)
Thousands of Heavy 10s were exported world-wide and many are still found in UK workshops doing "sterling" service; another version of the lathe, always found with a rear-drive countershaft, was also marketed in Great Britain as the UNITOL. These (and some versions of the Model R) were completely stripped of all South Bend badges, even to chiselling off letters cast into the bed. For the UK a screwcutting gearbox and power cross feed were part of the normal catalogue specification but for the USA, and other markets, the lathe could be had with changewheels for screwcutting and even as a rare "Junior" model with a plain apron and hence no power cross feed - and longitudinal feed by setting the changewheels to a fine-feed compound reduction. Strangely, for a lathe intended for machine-shop and general workshop use, the original screwcutting gearbox had a single tumbler and its threading range was, accordingly, limited; however, in 1949 a much-improved twin-tumbler box was introduced and the threading range greatly expanded. The lathe was available with several different drive systems: for bench mounting with a rear-mounted self-contained motor and countershaft drive; on plain cast-iron legs for drive from a built-on countershaft and motor or equipped for drive from overhead line-shaft or countershaft system. The lathe could also be supplied as a ready-to-run "underdrive" model (in which form it appears to be most common) and fitted to one of two very different underdrive cabinets stands. The more modern of these was a sheet-metal encased affair made from steel tubing with a large chip tray and useful storage drawers whilst the other, with a heavy cast-iron plinth under the headstock and a separate leg under the tailstock end, looked rather old-fashioned even for the late 1930s. The countershafts used in the underdrive models followed the design of that for the 9-inch where a V-belt from the motor passed over a narrow flat pulley on the countershaft, a system confusing to modern eyes but one that works well in practice. Final drive was by flat belt with an enormously powerful over-centre mechanism to tension the belt. Whilst most Heavy 10s were fitted with the extra-cost double-step pulley on motor and countershaft (which gave a high-speed range and doubled the number available) occasionally models are found with the far-less-used single pulley arrangement. Speeds with the standard pulleys ran  through: 50, 79, 129, 277, 434 and 70 r.p.m. and with the high-speed set additional speeds of 97, 153, 248, 535, 837 and 1357 r.p.m. (though these particular figures did differ over the years and were also altered by the use of 1700 r.p.m. motors in the USA and 1425 r.p.m units in the UK).
Manufactured to South Bend's normal high standards, the headstock spindle was hardened and "superfinished" to better than 0.000005" r.m.s. Lubricated by a filtered, circulating oil supply it ran in either bronze or cast-iron bearings with their upper and lower halves separated by special "peel-off" laminated shims that could be arranged to give the correct clearance - these shims are still available (picture below) and can be had from surfwerks@gmail.com An interesting point concerns the spindle nose: this used what appears to be a "short" No. 5 Morse taper - but was actually specified as a proprietary fitting with the same taper rate as a No. 3 Morse (0.602" per foot) but with a "gauge line" of 1.629" diameter. The "proper" No. 5 taper has a rate of 0.6315" per foot, and a gauge line of 1.748" diameter. Although calculations show that a standard (but shortened) No. 5 Morse taper 2.5-inches long would be approximately 0.006" loose at the smaller-diameter end in practice a No. 5 Morse does appear to fit - though there is always the chance that your lathe may be different. The correct sleeve to South Bend's original specification (and it's worth having one) can be obtained from Scot Logan at lathe.com
As was the case with many South Bend models from the early 1930s onwards, both "standard" and "toolroom" versions were offered; there was no difference in production tolerances between the two only a difference in specification with the better equipped toolroom version having (in most years) a taper-turning unit, draw-in collet attachment, collet rack for attachment to the tailstock end of the bed (but no collets), thread-dial indicator, thread-cutting stop, large faceplate a micrometer stop and, the one concession to a genuine toolroom specification, a leadscrew cut to an improved (but undisclosed) degree of precision.
With the ever-increasing need to generate metric pitches it is worth knowing that the metric conversion set for the Heavy 10 included a special forked changewheel bracket to replace the standard single-slot affair. Whilst it is possible to generate metric pitches with the latter in place (and using the correct changewheels) the range is somewhat limited..
             

Early 1950s "10-inch Toolroom Precision". In this configuration a taper-turning attachment and provision to mount and store collets (but not the collets themselves) were standard. This particular machine has the later twin-lever gearbox, which offered a better range of threads and feeds than the earlier single-lever version. Various between-centres capacities were offered, that, over the years included: 14",  15.75",  20.75",  26.75" and 33.75" whilst the spindle bore was a very useful 13/8" - thought a seldom-found small-bore version, the 10R, was also marketed. The twelve spindle speeds ranged between approximately 55 and 1400 r.p.m. A rather unusual feature was the drive from electric motor to countershaft; the motor pulley was a two-step V type which drove, via a V belt, onto a very large-diameter, narrow, flat pulley. This apparently senseless idea (of a V belt working on a flat pulley) actually performs perfectly well - but it has been known for disbelieving owners of used lathes to convert the motor pulley to a narrow flat type - and suffer dreadful slip as a result.

Early 1950s 10-inch South Bend "Quick-Change Gear Precision Bench Lathe". This is the "standard" specification machine without taper turning or collet provision (although both could be added later) and mounted on the "welded-steel bench" with underdrive motor.

The appearance of the compound slide rest was similar on all ten inch and larger South Bend lathes - the tool post illustrated is of the standard "American" pattern. The two tapped holes in the machined face of the saddle were to mount the travelling steady or "following rest".

Layout of the apron controls was identical across the South Bend range, all but the 9-inch "Workshop" lathe having a strong  "double walled" pattern type. The three-position lever (set in neutral in the illustration) selected either power sliding or surfacing. Turning the star shaped knob at the bottom engaged the power-feed clutch.

The essential headstock bearing adjustment shim

South Bend Heavy 10 as manufactured during 1967

Heavy 10 Catalogs   

South Bend (Heavy) 10-inch Lathe
South Bend literature is available


South Bend Lathes pre-1920  South Bend Lathes 1920-30

South Bend Model 5 - Earliest of the 9-inch "Workshop" Lathes

First Ever Model 5 Catalog - the original "mention" of the 9-inch

South Bend 9-inch "Workshop" Lathe  South Bend 9-inch Catalogs

South Bend Lathe Accessories

8-inch & 9-inch Junior & Model R   8-inch and 9-inch Junior Lathes Photographic Essays

Historic, very early 1910 South Bend 10-inch  Series 20 Toolroom Lathe - Superbly Restored

South Bend Heavy Ten - an overview   South Bend Heavy 10 from 1961 and 1991 Models

South Bend Heavy Ten Specification Catalogs   South Bend 10-K Light Ten

South Bend G-26-T   South Bend Silent-chain Drive Lathes

South Bend Lifted-Centre-Height Lathes

Copies and Clones of South Bend Lathes:
Boxford, Ace, Blomqvist, Smart & Brown, Purcell, Sheraton, Hercus, Sanches Blanes


Special Factory Production Machines   South Bend Factory   Making the South Bend

South Bend Users' Group   How old is my South Bend Lathe? The Rarest South Bend Lathe

South Bend Shapers    Rebuilding a 1952 South Bend 13-inch (large PDF)