Shop Tour #6C rare Walker Turner RAM

[lou sansone]

Hello fellow ww's

This is one of my favorite tools in the shop and I hope by showing it to you that for those who have never seen one you will see the good design from walker turner. This model is still made by delta under their label and has a machine model # of 15-126. If you have a delta catalogue it will be on page k-18 and k-19. They are still made and if you want purchase one new they will set you back $10,054.84 ( that was their 2002 price list )

The pictures tell the story so enjoy. At some time this machine was converted from the 8 speeds to 16 speeds. With the 1750 rpm motor that gives the following ranges 175 to 8200 rpm. A pretty broad range.

Some stats .
Ram travel 18"
Raising mechanism 20" range of height
Max distance from column 30"
left and right tilt 45 degrees
Weight about 700 lbs
Main column dia 3.75"
Main column has 38 ball bearings for head rotation and the ram has 8 ball bearing rollers that contact the dovetail ways.

These machines do come up for auction some times and are a real nice addition to a wood shop. That is really what they were made for. They may look like a wimpy bridgeport universal milling machine, but they are much lighter duty.

thanks for looking
lou

[lou sansone]

few more pics

[Alan Turner]

Boy does my DP look like a whimp after seeing your toy. Very nice. There are certainly times when I could use a radial DP. I'll probably have to keep my eyes open for something along those lines.

[Bruce Page]

Very nice Lou. About ten years ago I was assisting an old die shop in Akron, Ohio on a Tech-Transfer program through my work. I remember touring their facility and seeing row upon row of the WT’s and thinking to myself, I would sure love to have one of them!

[Nick Mitchell]

lou, you really have some cool machines, thanks again for sharing.

[Mark Singer]

That is another beauty! I like Walker Turner machines....

[lou sansone]

Boy does my DP look like a whimp after seeing your toy. Very nice. There are certainly times when I could use a radial DP. I'll probably have to keep my eyes open for something along those lines.

hi alan and others who look but don't post

This is one of those tools that are really very usefull in a wood shop. I would say that they show up on ebay once a month. The government also auctions them off every few months. Over the years I have learned that if you set your sights on a particualr machine and do all the research, that if you are patient you can eventually find one at a reasonable price.

I would offer this bit of advise for those thinking about buying one of these. Delta rockwell bought this design from walker turner in the 60's and changed the drilling head to a delta design. That was an improvement over the wt head. If you really want one of these then try to find one with a rockwell delta head. In addition delta had 2 different versions of their head. one had a 4.5" stroke and the other a 6" stroke. keep that in mind..

lou

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Lou another massive, impressive great piece of useful iron! Where as Tim Allen of Tooltime fame was impressed by stricly horsepower, I can see that you are impressed by horsepower, physical size, weight and age! You have a more selective taste in tools! :rolleyes: :D

[Richard Wolf]

Lou, I love the stuff you have. How do you repair and maintain that old iron? Do you do machine work also?

Richard

[Ken Kimbrell]

Being curious, I did a quick Google and the first hit was this one for $1,750.00.
Didn’t realize that a used one could be that cheap …
Of course as Lou said, with a little research a better price could likely be found.
http://www.astratool.com/machines/ph4280.htm

[Bruce Page]

Being curious, I did a quick Google and the first hit was this one for $1,750.00.
Didn’t realize that a used one could be that cheap …
Of course as Lou said, with a little research a better price could likely be found.
http://www.astratool.com/machines/ph4280.htm
Looking around the rest of their site, their prices do seem high.

[lou sansone]

Lou, I love the stuff you have. How do you repair and maintain that old iron? Do you do machine work also?

Richard

hi richard

I do all my own work, if something needs real machining ( new spindle or what ever ) then I have it done at a friends place. I can run most metal working machines, but do not have any at this time. I try not to buy real basket cases though. You will spend so much time rebuilding them that it is not worth it. For those interested in buying old machines the best place to find them is in pattern shops that are selling out or changing machines to more modern ones.

lou

[lou sansone]

Being curious, I did a quick Google and the first hit was this one for $1,750.00.
Didn’t realize that a used one could be that cheap …
Of course as Lou said, with a little research a better price could likely be found.
http://www.astratool.com/machines/ph4280.htm

hi ken
actually one of these just sold on fleabay for about $500. This is why I like old iron so much. Go and get a $500 tiawan made DP and take a look at the quality compared to the old american iron stuff. Seems like a world of difference IMHO.

lou

[Corey Hallagan]

Again, nice stuff Lou. Must be a gas to have great old working equipment like that. What a shop! Thanks again for another look see!
Corey

[Alan Turner]

Hey Lou, take it easy with the tips stuff. I thought it was just you and me that knew of the pattermakers secret.

That is a great tip, by the way. The patternmakers did quite precise work, and not in a furniture factory production setting. Much work pride in that trade. So, to get the best results, they were careful with their machines. The stuff I just got out of Lou's back yard (Conn.) was from a pattern shop and I hope I can keep to its maint. schedule. Not a bit of rust or abuse.

[lou sansone]

Again, nice stuff Lou. Must be a gas to have great old working equipment like that. What a shop! Thanks again for another look see!
Corey

dear corey
thanks for the complement. One of the reasons for showing my shop in these installments is to all folks to see how if one is willing to wait, they can put together a nice shop of old iron for not a lot of money ( I paid 400 for the drill !! ), compared to what those pieces would cost new. I do have a bunch of new stuff as well that seemed to make sence to buy new.

I know that there are several creekers who now have combo machines and I would love to see a thread started about the variety of them, and how they life them.
lou

[Rich Tesoroni]

Lou,

Thanks for the pics. The one drawback I thought with both the W-T radial drill and radial arm saw was the arm moves though the column, and neither can be mounted against the wall.

This is primarily why I sold my 10" W-T RAS and picked up a Dewalt GWI: it fit better where I wanted it.

Someday my 16" W-T bandsaw will saw again.

Rich

[Lou Morrissette]

Great looking iron, Lou. Having worked in many a machine shop through the years, I've seen a lot of these work horses, but not in that great a shape. Good find.

Lou

[lou sansone]

Lou,

Thanks for the pics. The one drawback I thought with both the W-T radial drill and radial arm saw was the arm moves though the column, and neither can be mounted against the wall.

This is primarily why I sold my 10" W-T RAS and picked up a Dewalt GWI: it fit better where I wanted it.

Someday my 16" W-T bandsaw will saw again.

Rich

hi rich

that is a good point about the arm needing clearance between the wall and the machine. Dewalt got it right for the RAS. The W-T RAS is too heavy of a design in my opinion. It would wear you out in a hurry. The drill press is another story, because you really do not move the ram in and out all that much. But your point is well taken.

lou

[Chris Padilla]

Lou,

Thanks for the pics. The one drawback I thought with both the W-T radial drill and radial arm saw was the arm moves though the column, and neither can be mounted against the wall.

This is primarily why I sold my 10" W-T RAS and picked up a Dewalt GWI: it fit better where I wanted it.

Someday my 16" W-T bandsaw will saw again.

Rich

Dear old Dad picked one up a little over a year ago! :)

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=8002

[Robert Mahon]

Another thing to consider is a used Pulley type Bridgeport milling machine. The table is a lot smaller but there are a number of attachments that add to versatility. For example; the right-angle adaptor used to convert it for using a horizontal milling cutter.
Years ago I used this set-up and installed a 7-1/4" saw blade to it. Ripped many a sheet of plywood on it (slowly and carefully).

It also makes for a very good drill press.

[Hank Knight]

Lou,

That's a great looking machine. I've been eyeballing them on eBay; but, alas, I don't have room for one of those monsters in my tiny shop. I love Walker Turner machines. I recently bought a 1950s model 1500 (a streamlined Model 500) that I'm rehabbing. Unfortunately, I bought a dog and it is costing me a fortune, but it will be nice when I'm done. I should finish it over the holidays. It looks like a toy compared to your radial.

Hank

[lou sansone]

Lou,

That's a great looking machine. I've been eyeballing them on eBay; but, alas, I don't have room for one of those monsters in my tiny shop. I love Walker Turner machines. I recently bought a 1950s model 1500 (a streamlined Model 500) that I'm rehabbing. Unfortunately, I bought a dog and it is costing me a fortune, but it will be nice when I'm done. I should finish it over the holidays. It looks like a toy compared to your radial.

Hank

hank
the WT's are nice, but the rockwell version with the 6" quill are even better. I would like to someday sell this one and get the rockwell in stead, but for now its sitting there.
best wishes with the wt your working on and post some photos when done

lou

[Gary Curtis]

my friend sold me a benchtop drill press made by Walker Turner. For $35. I spent $200 getting the quill trued up and the motor re-wired. The shop doing the work offered to buy the machine from me, so I knew I had something good.

It weighs a ton. Thanks for sharing your photos of beautiful equipment.

Gary Curtis