Acra Turn Lathe

CatHead · Apr 13, 2006

The boss is looking at one of these...there is so many lathe manufactures out there nowdays I dont even know half of them..anyone had experience with one of these?....any good?...would be a 18 or 21" x 60" were looking at...

CatHead · Apr 13, 2006

also, ive never used a lathe with a foot brake...whats the idea there?..does the spindle freewheel when you shut it off and you have to press the brake to stop it?...that would suck!

SND · Apr 13, 2006

I used an copy of a HLV-H that was made by Acra. It was a pretty nice lathe.

Foot brakes are nice to have. When you hit the foot brake it shuts the motor off and then applies a disk brake. If you just shut the machine off with the lever it usualy still stops fairly quickly.

It's very nice to have that brake when threading It makes stopping close to a shoulder much easier and with a little practice you can use faster rpm's. Also good when using big taps that just turn the spindle even in the lowest gear.

Doozer · Apr 13, 2006

I have an Acra-Turn 1340. I bought it from where I work for cheap. It had some noise in one of the gear ranges, so I knew I would need to fix it up some. Well I took the cover off and found that it needed 4 gears. Some of the teeth were gone. I dunno what happened. Some of the shifting mechanism had been brazed back together, so somebody tried to fix something. Well I contacted Acra in California for the gears. I talked to Hank Su. I faxed him the parts breakdown and indicated the 4 gears that I needed. I recieved them, no problem. 4 gears were $430 total. Not bad at all. I was surprised that I was able to get any gears at all! Try that with a Grizzly lathe. Not likely. Acra makes good stuff. And parts support is there, which is rare for Tiawan lathes. I like my Acra-Turn lathe. --Doozer

g-coder05 · Apr 13, 2006

i have an acra turn 21x120 i had it one month "new" when a co-op student opened the 3 jaw to wide for the ways then turned it on at 18 rpm "15 hp" it twisted the countershaft splines warped the bed knocked the head stock out of align, and cracked the chuck body. But it still runs, you just cant turn anything on it nor change spindle speeds. the problem is getting replacement parts. i will say the two speed tailstock crank is nice for core drilling 2-1/2 diam. price wise it was $19,000 at tinsley tool in knoxville tn.

Doozer · Apr 13, 2006

Acra Machinery Inc.
2050 N. Durfee Ave.
S. El Monte, CA 91733
Tel: (626) 279-9150
Fax: (626) 279-1540
Hank Su

Try for parts here.
--Doozer

CatHead · Apr 14, 2006

anymore input from people that have used these machines,in regard to quality and such, would be greatly appreciated...thanks

CatHead · Apr 14, 2006

CatHead · Apr 16, 2006

jlkunka · Jun 30, 2021

As the latest caretaker of Doozer's lathe, I want to inform him the new gears are in. Had to buy a rt angle snap ring pliers to get on cluster off but basically straightforward disassembly.

cyanidekid · Jun 30, 2021

Well, holy historical hilarity!! a 15 YEAR update, amazing. there is hope for my projects after all, LOL!

dstjohn99 · Dec 1, 2021

New to me 16 x 40

So I just picked up an Acra Turn LS-400, 16 x 40. It's a heavy beast and I have high hopes, though it needs some work. I would love to find a manual for it and I've reached out to Acra and a couple of others. Any leads would be appreciated.

It's a beast of a machine compared to my Southbend 9c! I'm so looking forward to the geared head and feeds/threading quick change!

jtaylor · Dec 9, 2021

That same lathe was also sold under the "Kerrey" nameplate. It was made by the Namseon company out of Gwang-Ju Korea - it was also sometimes branded/labeled as a Namseon lathe or as a Namsun lathe. Using these alternate names you may be able to find more info etc.

kerrey lathe at DuckDuckGo

namsun lathe at DuckDuckGo

namseon lathe at DuckDuckGo

dstjohn99 · Dec 15, 2021

Thanks. I was able to get a parts manual from Acra Machinery. At first they quoted $100 by email. But later I talked with a guy and he emailed me the pdf for free. My lathe is a variation of the manual provided, but it is reasonably close and the manual is helpful to have.

I also purchased a user manual off Ebay that should have the operation, lubrication and adjustment information. If either of these are of use to anyone, send me a PM and I will share.

There are no parts available from Acra, but after I tore the headstock apart all the bearings, seals, etc. are standard and readily available from McMaster or other bearing suppliers. McMaster turned out to be very handy as a reasonably priced one-stop for all the bearings (except spindle), snap-rings, o-rings, key stock, oil, etc. It was on my doorstep the next morning. I expect the spindle bearings any day.

hnnmfg · Jun 8, 2022

@dstjohn99
We have an Acra-Turn LC-1340G and it broke and we are in the process of repairing it right now. One problem is that the key is missing and we couldn't find it when we took it apart. We have no idea what it looks like and we don't have a manual. Does the key have a pin that retains it and keep it from falling out? Do you think I could find the part on McMaster or some other site?
Thanks!

john.k · Jun 8, 2022

if the key slides in the keyway,then its likely retained by headless setscrews that fit in the holes in the boss......simple dog point screws that fit slots in the key ,and locked by locking screws on top of the setscrews?

hnnmfg · Jun 9, 2022

@john.k Our engineer actually figured out there's a tapered pin that fits in. He ended up just making it. Thanks!

dstjohn99 · Jun 14, 2022

hnnmfg said:
@john.k Our engineer actually figured out there's a tapered pin that fits in. He ended up just making it. Thanks!

Glad you figured it out. My 16x40 has a key in the carriage that is in an ID bore for the feed shaft. It is a 1/2 key with an integral pin (all one piece) that engages a hole and the pin is welded from the outside to retain the key. That was a fun one to make / replace.

john.k · Jun 14, 2022

Ive seen a few lathes that have a single loose key inside a sliding sleeve .....IMHO ,its a cheap out in place of a nice six groove spline......although its easy to get the sleeve and shaft nicely fitted and concentric,which isnt so with a spline

Acra Turn Lathe

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