Harrison L5 mk2 or not

[sean logieParticipant @seanlogie69385]

Picked up lathe yesterday huffed and puffed and finally got the lathe into position in my small workshop (now even less room 😊) . Now, there seems to be a few variants of the L5 and I’m hoping someone can educate me on what variant L5  I have .

[John HaineParticipant @johnhaine32865]

Have you found the lathes.co.uk site?

[Clive FosterParticipant @clivefoster55965]

I’d say thats a late(ish) 1950’s machine. Still has the full circle hand wheels and long gear change lever on the feed selection box used on the older machines. Looks like a non-safety type clutch lever too. Later style bed foot at the headstock end too. Late 1940’s-early 1950’s versions had a sub sided foot, often with Harrison cast in. If the lack of plastic ball handles on the levers is factory rather than shop made replacements for broken balls it would narrow things down even further as this appears to have only been done for a short period. Harrison liked their screw on plastic balls.

Generally a nice solid machine. Simple feed box rather than screw cutting box id spit of s pain for general work as it’s hard to get appropriate feeds for a range of jobs without changing drop gears. Ideal candidate for a (hefty) Electronic Leadscrew System.

I never really got to grips with the snakes’n ladders speed selection diagram on the infrequent times I drove one.

Clive

[Andy StopfordParticipant @andystopford50521]

I’d agree with Clive, mid/late fifties, probably the Mk.3 version.

Although they look a bit crude, I reckon the solid handwheels are better than the spoked type which my 1966 L5 had. I was forever bashing the tip of my thumb on the spokes. It was really quite painful.

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