Texture Paint Identification

[Roderick JenkinsParticipant @roderickjenkins93242]

Hi Folks,

I was fortunate to be able to acquire a Pultra 1770 lathe yesterday. It,s something of a "bitsa". The bed is smooth duck egg blue, the headstock was originally cream but has been overcoated with something that approximates to the bed colour. However, the tailstock and the headstock and tailstock raisers that came with the lathe are in this green textured paint:

I think this is the last livery that Pultras came in but can anybody please identify this type of finish – it's obviously not crackle or wrinkle so what is it called and, if I decided to redo the whole lathe in this finish, where would I buy it?

TIA,

Rod

Edited By Roderick Jenkins on 11/04/2017 14:18:32

[Roderick JenkinsParticipant @roderickjenkins93242]

[KEITH BEAUMONTParticipant @keithbeaumont45476]

Hi Rod,

What you have is a course spatter finish. Not a special paint, just technique. It is a combination of larger spray jet,viscosityand distance of gun from item.Usua;;y about twice nomal distance. For a course finish such as this it is usual to put a flat coat first and when that is tacky apply the spatter.Usually best with non glossy paint. Egg shell is about right.

Any reasonably quick dry paint works fine. It was a very popular industrial finish in the 80sand 90s Might still be but I have lost touch.

Keith

[Roderick JenkinsParticipant @roderickjenkins93242]

Keith,

That makes sense, thank you. Too complicated for me, I'm more of a brush man. Looks like back to the Pultra cream. Myford Rich Cream from Paragon Paints looks pretty close, judging by the colour of the inside of the bed on my S7. I'd only change from green to cream for the tailstock – I can't imagine what I'd ever use the riser blocks for, it's already 70 mm centre height.

Cheers,

Rod

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

Posted by Roderick Jenkins on 11/04/2017 22:41:19:

… I can't imagine what I'd ever use the riser blocks for, it's already 70 mm centre height.

.

Rod,

I can't be certain, but I think the riser blocks were intended to convert a 1750 into a 1770 equivalent.

… The 1770 certainly looks out of proportion with them fitted.

MichaelG.

[mark smith 20Participant @marksmith20]

Michaels right, the riser blocks are for what he mentioned. Are you sure the green paint isnt recent over the original black rough finish ive seen on some pultras.

[Roderick JenkinsParticipant @roderickjenkins93242]

The green paint looks original and the risers look pretty much un-used, as does the tailstock body. The cross slide assembly, with the PulTrA logo has a fine black wrinkle finish. The whole of the tailstock lever assembly seems to be made from bronze castings to which the cream paint has not adhered very well.

Cheers,

Rod

[Anonymous]

Was that the one on Ebay?

If yours is a genuine 1770, so you don't need the riser blocks, I'd be interested in doing a deal. It'll save me hunting for a genuine 1770 so that I can use the 1770 capstan unit I have. I've also got a 1750 capstan unit, but it's a bit limited in the tooling it can use – like no Coventry dieheads or drill chucks.

Andrew

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

An interesting assemblage, Rod

The good news is that Pultras were made sufficiently close-toleranced that this is unlikely to present any problem.

MichaelG.

[Roderick JenkinsParticipant @roderickjenkins93242]

Posted by Michael Gilligan on 12/04/2017 15:43:37:

The good news is that Pultras were made sufficiently close-toleranced that this is unlikely to present any problem.

I was banking on that having read Tony's write up on "LATHES".

Andrew: Sadly, the risers are 40mm thick, not 20mm, as shown here.

Rod

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

Posted by Roderick Jenkins on 12/04/2017 17:04:59:

Andrew: Sadly, the risers are 40mm thick, not 20mm, as shown here.

Rod

.

… In which case, I must acknowledge that my earlier comment was erroneous:

[quote]

… I think the riser blocks were intended to convert a 1750 into a 1770 equivalent

[/quote]

MichaelG.

 

[Neil WyattModerator @neilwyatt]

How could they put such an awful finish on a quality machine? It looks like textured wallpaper.

Neil

[Roderick JenkinsParticipant @roderickjenkins93242]

Posted by Neil Wyatt on 12/04/2017 17:22:11:

How could they put such an awful finish on a quality machine? It looks like textured wallpaper.

Neil

Woodchip – very trendy in the 1980s

Michael, in your defence, the picture of the capstan lathe here seems to show a 20mm riser.

Rod

 

Edited By Roderick Jenkins on 12/04/2017 17:38:12

[Anonymous]

Posted by Roderick Jenkins on 12/04/2017 17:04:59:

Andrew: Sadly, the risers are 40mm thick, not 20mm, as shown here.

Ah well, thanks anyway. I'll have to keep looking for a 1770 headstock. Or make my own riser(s), shouldn't be that difficult.

Andrew

Edited By Andrew Johnston on 12/04/2017 19:56:47

[KEITH BEAUMONTParticipant @keithbeaumont45476]

Hi Rod, To get back to your original question, and as you say you are a"brush man", another way of achieving a similar result is to dip the tips of the bristles of a scrubbing/nail brush into the paint and sharply stroke a thin piece of metal across the bristles.

I suggest you practice on a piece of hardboard first. You might make a "Pollock" of it!

Keith

[Roderick JenkinsParticipant @roderickjenkins93242]

Posted by KEITH BEAUMONT on 14/04/2017 09:22:26:

I suggest you practice on a piece of hardboard first. You might make a "Pollock" of it

Almost certainly and considerably less valuable

Rod

[mark smith 20Participant @marksmith20]

Also has the model P cross /top slide on it. I have a model P with the later lever tailstock like on yours.

[mark smith 20Participant @marksmith20]

Does anyone know why the pultra saddle only has a guide block (gib thingy) underneath on the front side of the ways , its always confused me (the reason behind it) as they do tend to move occasionally without tightening excessively?

[Roderick JenkinsParticipant @roderickjenkins93242]

Andrew,

I've sent you a PM

Rod

[Roderick JenkinsParticipant @roderickjenkins93242]

After some mutually beneficial swaps with Andrew my 1770 is now a 1750 but, with the rising blocks, the potential to be a 1790. It needed a bit of work on the paint: Silver Hammerite daubed on with a masonry brush.

Looks better now

Drive is from a 1/3 hp 2 pole 3 phase motor driven directly to the headstock pulley to give a max speed of 3000rpm through a nice little compact inverter by WEG. Impressed by the WEG device – cheap, made in Brazil and came with very good real English instructions. The motor is made in Portugal – both from Inverter Drive Supermarket. (in real life the colour is more like the lowest photo)

Rod

[Stephen Bunch 1Participant @stephenbunch1]

The Pultra 40mm risers were intended for use with the spherical turning attachment…a rare beast. No doubt they could also be used for those special jobs requiring a larger swing.

[larry PhelanParticipant @larryphelan54019]

Could never see what difference the colour of a machine could make. Machines are made to be used,not looked at.

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

Posted by Stephen Bunch 1 on 18/03/2018 14:28:05:

The Pultra 40mm risers were intended for use with the spherical turning attachment…a rare beast. No doubt they could also be used for those special jobs requiring a larger swing.

.

Thanks, Stephen

That's useful to know.

MichaelG.

[KWILParticipant @kwil]

Larry,

The point is a well kept machine is likely to have been treated with respect, a dodgy bit of kit may have been well used but mayby not used well!

[Author]

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