Lorch Lathe

[Karl Burghart]

I just picked this up. 6mm. I believe it is for polishing and jewel settings. Unfortunately, the lathe bed is missing. I’d like to find the correct lathe and know what else may be missing. I’d like to use it for pivoting and polishing. Any help greatly appreciated.

 

[Skutt50]

Wow..... That is a nice set of tools you got there.... I have never seen that before.

I have a 6mm Lorch Lathe that I use all the time. Works great. When looking at your pictures it seems you possibly have some additional asortment of tools for a Lorch Lathe. That is my guess since some of the more basic tools such as a serie of collets is not included, nor is the bed or stand.

I would keep this set safe and look for a basic Lorch 6mm lathe to complement this kit..........
You will be able to do a lot more than just polishing with this. Cutting parts can be a lot of fun and very useful when repairing old watches.

 

[gmorse]

Hi Karl,

Skutt is right, the basic lathe itself is missing, (headstock, foot, bed, tailstock, toolrest and/or cross slide), and the tailstock that is included appears to be for a WW type lathe, so that won't be any use on a 6mm Geneva pattern lathe. How do you know the parts are for a Lorch 6mm? Is it signed anywhere and have you measured the ring chucks at the bottom to see what their shank diameter is?

Regards,

Graham

 

[Skutt50]

Hi Graham

The box of discs in picture 2 could that be some gear cutters?

 

[Brunod]

Hi Graham

The box of discs in picture 2 could that be some gear cutters?

They do not seem to have the right shape to cut teeth.

 

[gmorse]

Hi Skutt,

The box of discs in picture 2 could that be some gear cutters?

No, I agree with Brunod, I think they're slitting saws.

Regards,

Graham

 

[Karl Burghart]

Thanks, the wheel collets are signed Lorch and measure 6mm. I have a cross slide that looks a bit big for this one. I do have the T-rest. The cutters are slitting saws. There were two other WW 8mm lathes in this estate. I'll start looking for a basic lathe.

 

[John Runciman]

The box of discs in picture 2 could that be some gear cutters?

casually from a distance had thought they might be rounding up cutters for a entirely different tool but when you look at them there definitely like small saw blades are not meant for cutting gears it's an interesting assortment. interesting in that for normal metal cutting I think you'd like to have way more teeth on the saw blades

the box is interesting in that at one time it would've been everything. The lathe has been removed and it is somewhere else. The box appears to been modified their stuff on the top normally wouldn't be there. This is now the accessory box for the lathe.

then if you're curious about what all the bits and pieces are here is a good book on watchmakers lathes.

The watchmakers' lathe, its use and abuse; a story of the lathe in its various forms, past and present, its construction and proper uses : Goodrich, Ward L. [from old catalog] : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive

 

[karlmansson]

Luckily for you that lathe is pretty common, at least in europe. It's a Lorch LUD. You should be able to find one with a little patience. The 6mm variety was very common with smaller workshops at the start of the 1900s. They tend to pop up at estate sales and such now. The 6mm went out of fashion to the benefit of the 8mm and so 6mm lathes tend to be pretty cheap. I have one but I don't have the extensive set of accessories you have. Steffen Pahlow has a few videos on youtube showcasing one of the deluxe sets of the Lorch Geneva pattern 6mm lathe.

Lorch Watchmaker's Lathes

Watchmaking, Lorch LUD Drehbänkchen, Small Lathe - YouTube

 

[Randy Beamer]

I just picked this up. 6mm. I believe it is for polishing and jewel settings. Unfortunately, the lathe bed is missing. I’d like to find the correct lathe and know what else may be missing. I’d like to use it for pivoting and polishing. Any help greatly appreciated.

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What a great find.
Here's a link that may assist you in sorting out what you have;

Lorch lathes

German-manufactured Lorch precision lathes. Plain-turning, micro precision, backgeared and screwcutting<br>High-quality german machine tools

www.lathes.co.uk

Best regards,

Randy

 

[pocketsrforwatches]

Karl,

I sent you a PM. I have complete Lorch 6mm lathes and live not too far from you. Let me know if you are interested.

Roger