$100 CNC lathe

I went to an auction of a closed machine shop today, and was interested to see how little the big CNC machines went for.  They had 2 CNC mills and two lathes, older, large Bridgeport and Mazak machines.  At least 3 of the 4 powered up, and the auctioneer reported that at least one of the mills had recently verified functionality, but the high pressure air system that ran the tool changer (and other systems?) was not up and running, and they were basically impossible to check out in detail.  The bidding reflected this, with the highest bid for the possibly functional mill at $700, and the cheapest lathe going for $100.  

This was crazy to me for machines that were $30k and more when they were new.   A large arbor press there sold for more than any of the CNC machines at $750!  I went for lathe tooling but most of it was specific to the CNC machines and I didn't pick up much of that.  I did buy a couple of cabinets worth of taps, dies, a ladder.. yes, I should stop going to auctions.

Those can be tough sales if the right people aren't there. Most businesses don't want to mess with old machines, they would rather have a running unit that can make chips and $. 
These machines can scare off the home tinkerer, they usually weigh a lot and require riggers to move, they also need 3 phase power which can be a deal breaker. Then if something isn't working you have to fix it which not all people know how to deal with that kind of electrical. 
That said it sounds like a banger of a deal, I wish that was in my back yard and I was there!

I hate you a little bit right now.

I've been shopping a lathe for months but I live in a machinery desert. 30 year old import machines cost the same as brand new import machines here.

-sigh-

My buddy worked at a machine shop that did primarily large ship related parts. They usually sold their big machines at scrap value, which is wild, all things considered. They ended up quite literally crushing a HAAS CNC lathe that he said was 15 ish years old and in service until 6 months before they crushed it in the back of their lot to be able to load it out in their "standard" metal scrap dumpster. Needed some part that would have taken longer to get than a new machine and their contracts have tight deadlines, so a new machine was the play. And after 6 months of trying to sell it for pennies on the dollar in broken condition, to the scrap dumpsters it went. 

ShawnG said:

I hate you a little bit right now.

I've been shopping a lathe for months but I live in a machinery desert. 30 year old import machines cost the same as brand new import machines here.

-sigh-

There was one old conventional lathe there, a big one, and it went for $1600.  Ironic that it brought more than any of the CNC machines.  It was also 3 phase and probably a couple of tons weight.

There's a 14" x six-ish feet Lodge and Shipley from the 19th century for sale, dude wants $2700

A Davron (never heard of it) 9x24 SB copy for $3200 (looks a lot like the Hercus I learned on in school)

A SB 10K with a 32-ish inch bed went for $3k.

I can find lots of gigantic 3-phase machines from the cold war for around $6k but then I have to move them and they're such a space hog in my shop.

I can buy a new, offshore 10" x 22" for $2999 or a new 12" x 36" gearhead with cabinet, taper attachment and QCTP for $6500. 

I think I'm going to suck it up and buy the 12x36 

Kendall Frederick said:

I went to an auction of a closed machine shop today, and was interested to see how little the big CNC machines went for.  They had 2 CNC mills and two lathes, older, large Bridgeport and Mazak machines.

I worked on that stuff for years. By the time it gets to auction there's a pretty good chance they're beat to E36 M3. Most of them live tough lives pumping out parts by the hundreds, if not thousands daily with little maintenance. And if you don't know what you're doing they can be difficult to run, and crazy expensive to repair

In reply to ShawnG :

I looked for a couple years then just ended up buying a Busy Bee lathe and mill. I did get lucky though and bought pre-Covid, on sale. I think those machines are double the price now.

The lathe has seen a lot of work, the mill not so much, but they've been very good.

In reply to Peabody :

This all started because I'm getting a deal on a basically new, 40 year old Bridgeport. 

Now I need a lathe to go with it. I'm looking at the King 12x36 which is pretty much the same unit Busy Bee sells.