This lathe has been given to me by an elderly gentleman who is moving to a retirement village and will not have space for it. He worked for "The Star" - one of our biggest and oldest daily newspapers and the lathe was used in their toolroom. Many years ago, it eventually became redundant and he bought it from them and moved it to his home workshop.

It appears complete but shows signs of neglect and I'm looking forward to the challenge of restoring it to it's former glory. It will be a welcome addition to my "shed". Once restored I'm sure that it will be a better machine than the more modern Taiwanese lathe that I currently own. I have yet to organise transport and collect it from him about 50 Kms. away. These pics were taken when I went to see it yesterday.

It is what is known as a 13" X 6' (meaning that it has a 13" swing and a 6'bed) "Underneath Belt Motor Drive". I called the owner today and he gave me the serial no. M2099 which I have sent to LeBlond (who now hold the records of South Bend Lathes) and am currently awaiting a reply and will hopefully be able to learn more about it.

From searching the Net for information it appears identical to pics I have seen of a 1934 model but the motor housing "cabinet" looks to be from a more modern version. All will be (hopefully) revealed when I get an answer from LeBlond.

Any comments will be appreciated.