Saturday, January 2, 2010

Obtaining Replacement Factory Parts

Delta does not seem to maintain online information for this lathe. However, it may be possible to obtain parts or service from one of Delta's factory authorized service centers.

Alternatively, online sites such as ToolPartsDirect or Ace Tool Repair appear to have many but by no means all factory authorized replacement parts available online. (Scroll down past the schematics to see the parts price list.)

As you will discover these are by far the most expensive options for those of you who may be trying to restore a vintage lathe. I have personally not had the need to go this route myself, but would be interested in hearing from anyone who has. Please feel free to post a comment to this article.

I have observed that parts, chisel sets, faceplates, and entire lathes do occasionally turn up on auction sites like eBay (that's how I got my lathe, as it happens). When dealing with headstock accessories in particular, it would be wise to ask the seller to provide the Delta part number that is cast into say, the back of the faceplate. That way you can check it against the published parts list to ensure that you're getting one that will actually fit your lathe. Many sellers don't know or have the means to measure the thread pitch of the items they sell.

You may also have luck finding used machines or parts at the Old Woodworking Machines "Bring Out Your Dead" forum. You must first register with owwm.org in order to participate there, however.

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