Colchester Lathe Factory

This topic has 49 replies, 33 voices, and was last updated 1 June 2019 at 09:06 by Roderick Jenkins.

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30 May 2019 at 11:54 #13535
Alan Jackson
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@alanjackson47790
Advert

30 May 2019 at 11:54 #411674
Alan Jackson
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@alanjackson47790
I have just seen this on youtube

Alan
30 May 2019 at 12:25 #411680
Former Member
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@formermember32069
[This posting has been removed]
30 May 2019 at 12:46 #411687
Hopper
Participant
@hopper
Wow. That is a fantastic video on so many levels. Where to begin?

I definitely want one of those white dust coats with Colchester Lathe embroidered on the back.

And all that hand selecting of each and every headstock bearing roller? No wonder they cost mucho hundreds of pounds to buy replacement units.

And laying on the "bog" with six-inch spatulas to smooth out the castings. And hey look, they don't just clean the inside of the headstocks, they paint in there too!

Best part though is cleaning those casting mould boxes by spraying kerosene with a blow gun, then casually lighting a piece of paper from the (very) nearby blowtorch and flashing it all off. LOL. When men were men and WSH inspectors dared not leave Brussels and cross the Channel.

Great view of mid-century automated machining too. Some pretty fancy stuff there for its time.
30 May 2019 at 14:01 #411698
mechman48
Participant
@mechman48
What an excellent video, now try & get one on of those bantams theses days, Ill doubt if you'll find one in good nick never mind what it will cost,

George.
30 May 2019 at 14:14 #411701
Clive Hartland
Participant
@clivehartland94829
I dont knoow how to view the given YouTube address for that film, how do I do it?

Clive
30 May 2019 at 14:44 #411706
gary
Participant
@gary44937
hi clive, i went on to youtube and searched for colchester factory. that worked for me. hows the bees doing. gary.
30 May 2019 at 15:04 #411709
MichaelR
Participant
@michaelr
Clive,

Highlight the address in the post, right click on the highlight and click copy, In Google right click in the search box and click Paste and then click search, you should get the YouTube video.

Just noticed if you right click the address in the post you get the option to search google direct from post.

Mike.

Edited By MichaelR on 30/05/2019 15:11:21
30 May 2019 at 15:37 #411710
Bikepete
Participant
@bikepete
Or some helpful person could just post an active link

**LINK**

or embed it:

Edited By Bikepete on 30/05/2019 15:39:43
30 May 2019 at 16:40 #411721
Stuart Bridger
Participant
@stuartbridger82290
Great watch, were all lathes polished up to that level out of the factory or just those for the film, very shiny!
30 May 2019 at 16:57 #411724
John Duncker 1
Participant
@johnduncker1
In the 80's I worked at Loughborough Technical College. We had workshops with rows of Colchesters mostly Students and they were in almost daily use training apprentices on day release from Rolls Royce Hawker Siddley Brush and the like.

I went back in 2005 and they were all gone and the word Technical dropped from the name.
30 May 2019 at 17:29 #411730
Brian H
Participant
@brianh50089
Many thanks for posting that, fascinating.

Brian
30 May 2019 at 18:41 #411744
Clive Hartland
Participant
@clivehartland94829
Hi Gary, I am now 82 and finding lifting the bee boxes hard going. I still have two hives that I remove the combs individually to get the honey. I lost 3 hives over the Winter and will not replace them.

I still make up hives for the cistomers of the bee shop which is a bit of pocket money. Nobody seems interested in taking on bees anymore around here. Bluntly, the price some of the beekeepers charge for a 1lb. jar is ridiculous (£4.00) Of course the big trend now is to melt out honey from the combs, not spin it out. This evaporates all the esters and essences in the honey and it tastes like sugar water. It is filtered and all the pollen is removed.

Clivve
30 May 2019 at 19:23 #411754
Hollowpoint
Participant
@hollowpoint
The depth of cut on that bell was very impressive. 😯
30 May 2019 at 20:22 #411766
Stuart Bridger
Participant
@stuartbridger82290
Posted by Hollowpoint on 30/05/2019 19:23:10:

The depth of cut on that bell was very impressive. 😯

I thought the same, must work my Chippie harder
30 May 2019 at 20:27 #411767
Mick Henshall
Participant
@mickhenshall99321
And not an Oriental person in sight

Mick 🇬🇧
30 May 2019 at 20:28 #411768
Mick Henshall
Participant
@mickhenshall99321
And not an Oriental person in sight

Mick 🇬🇧
30 May 2019 at 20:29 #411769
Ian McVickers
Participant
@ianmcvickers56553
Great video. Loved the bit with the lamp going on above the box to show what part went where.
30 May 2019 at 20:29 #411770
Mick Henshall
Participant
@mickhenshall99321
Sorry double post,

Mick 🇬🇧
30 May 2019 at 20:35 #411772
the artfull-codger
Participant
@theartfull-codger
Great video,I'll perhaps have a little more respect when using my student now!! sub titles were funny though either they couldn't spell or understand the commentator,made it more amusing.
30 May 2019 at 22:26 #411801
Colin Heseltine
Participant
@colinheseltine48622
Enjoyed watching that. My Colchester Student is the square head version which came after the round head being made in the film. I just need to find a couple of bits to complete the taper turning assembly.

Colin
30 May 2019 at 22:40 #411808
lfoggy
Participant
@lfoggy
Is it even possible to buy a new manual lathe today of this quality?
30 May 2019 at 23:11 #411814
David Standing 1
Participant
@davidstanding1
Yep
31 May 2019 at 03:49 #411829
Hopper
Participant
@hopper
Just a matter of money. If a new Myford is 5,000 quid, what price a shiny new Colchester?
31 May 2019 at 07:06 #411844
DC31k
Participant
@dc31k
Posted by Hopper on 30/05/2019 12:46:45:

Best part though is cleaning those casting mould boxes by spraying kerosene with a blow gun, then casually lighting a piece of paper from the (very) nearby blowtorch and flashing it all off. LOL.

Would it have been kerosene? He says 'spirit carrier', so much more likely alcohol-based. Paraffin ignited in that manner would be rather smoky.

What interests me is all the gold-coloured machines they use to make the lathes. Did they paint them up specially for the film or was every machine in the factory that colour?
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