Even More Readers Machines
Here is a post 1976 Coronet Consort sent in by Tony.
Tony tells me that he paid £80 for the table and everything on it.   I think that makes it an excellent deal on a classic piece of machinery in great condition.  Nice one Tony!
Next up is a Coronet Imp that has been both rebuilt and redesigned by Ken from Codnor in Derbyshire.  Also posted on the Coronet Imp page.
As soon as I saw this machine I wanted to know exactly what, where and how.  Ken kindly supplied the following details of the materials used and method.

1- Top and bottom wheels 3/4" chipboard with upholstery rubber webbing.  The tyres are super-glued on and fitted with 2 x 32mm x12mm bearing races each.
2- Tension and tracking 3/4 ply block, modified window sash hinge and 1/4 metal plate to support top axle.
3- Cutting height blade guide assembly. 1-1/2"alloy angle with one edge cut down to 1/2"
4- Blade guide assembly nylon blocks easy to tap, bearings zz mini ball races, thrust mini roller race Chinese?
5- Belt guard polished alloy with plywood edges
6- The fitted light is a 99p Led torch
7- Rip fence 1-1/2" alloy angle with nylon block and cam lever arrangement to fixed angle, just lifts off to use full throat depth.  Very handy.
8- Paint.  Aldi dark green metal paint, lightened with white gloss to closely match other machinery.
9- Motor.  No work needed as it runs fine at the moment.
10- 2 new Axminster blades 3/8" and 1/2"
Because I never throw any thing away (Proper workshop talk! Pete Site Admin) most of  materials used  I  have recycled, so total cost about £50 (bearings, blades, paint.)

Thanks Ken.  I'm sure I'm not the only one who will be fascinated to find out exactly how you carried out this refurb and got this classic machine working again.  Hopefully your work will inspire or at least assist people in their own project.  Now re the colour..  Purists might scoff and insist that maroon is the only option but I think that this is clearly not presented as a replica machine.  The belt guard is a bold statement of intent. (You what? Pretentious? Moi? Pete Site Admin)  The blade guide assemblies et al are individual design and build projects that are in no way slavish copies of the Coronet design.  They reflect both Ken's ideas and skills. And also the available materials. Above all the paint closely matches that of his other workshop machinery.  That's why, in my humble opinion, that using available paint in the spirit of individuality is an acceptable option.   In any case whose blooming machine is it anyway?  That's right, It's Kens!  Thanks for sending in the photos and all the details.
Coming next and hopefully soon, Vin Heron's trailer load of Coronet machine parts for restoration.  Your machine could also be here.  Totally free and unconditional.  Make it your New Years Resolution.  Your machine will love you all the more for it.  

And here it is.....Vins's trailer load of classic English woodworking machinery by Coronet.  Some annotation to the gallery to follow...
The restoration will be catalogued and sent in by Vin as it happens.  Thanks Vin for all your efforts and contribution some of which is posted here technical-stuff.php

Next up is a Coronet Major sent in by Stefan of Stockholm, Sweden.  
Now we have a  Coronet Consort rescued and refurbished by Edmund from Blackpool who is a fairly regular contributor to the site.  Superb work.  As Edmund says, it is sad that these machines will never be produced again but he is giving them a new lease of life for future woodworkers.   
Next up is a '62 Minorette owned by Jon White that he bought new in 1962 when he had just started work in a woodworking machine factory in Leicestershire.  In his own words.."Unfortunately it got left in my shed when the wiles of youth and teenage urges took over and has been there ever since! When I finally dug it out 55 years later you can imagine what state it was in as the shed was in those days damp and leaky.  Everything was rusted up and the motor would not even turn by hand. So a really serious job of restoration. I would definitely say this was a extreme case of severe cruelty to a innocent machine. I felt that I owed it some of my time for the neglect that I wrought upon it."  Don't worry Jon, after seeing the photos you are in no danger of being investigated by the RSPCC (Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Coronets)  Jon continues "Looking at the photos I think it was well worth it. All functions as it should and the original Gryphon ( my favourite of electric motors) runs as smooth as silk although now over 55 years old."  Well, what can I add to that?  I think I'll just let the pictures speak for themselves.

Jon informs me that he also has a Coronet Sovereign extended bed planer and has sent in pictures (follow the link).  Many thanks for the Minorette images and the background information which always add a bit of interest. Cracking job Jon.  
Some photos of a very early Coronet belt sander arrived from Jon also which are in the gallery below.  I sent them on to Derek Pyatt who dated the attachment from before 1963 as after then the design changed and the sides were enclosed to give the more familiar shape.  I had not seen one this design before so was very pleased to receive the pictures.
Jon has recently acquired a Consort and is currently engaged with its rebuild.  See the gallery below.
NEW FOR 2019

This is a Coronet Minor restoration by Gin.  It has been stored for several years since purchase but she has recently made a start on returning it to a usable condition.  There is a planer attachment lurking around somewhere.
The machine was bought already attached to the sturdy steel frame.
It is stored with the headstock swivelled 90 degrees for easier storage.
Look at the difference between before and after pictures of the tailstock below.
Because of the machine's high quality construction, components such as these will always be able to be brought back to life.
It is worth noting here that Gin has achieved this finish so far without the use of power tools.  She has only used sandpaper, brushes, a drop of 3 in 1 and a large quantity of elbow grease.  It shows that you do not need a fully equipped workshop and a BSc in Machine Restoration and Maintenance (there is literally no such thing).  Keep up the good work Gin and keep the pictures coming.
And so they have.  These before and after pics arrived at the weekend and show restoration to the mitre fence and saw table in a continuing high standard.  Thanks Gin, a real tonic.
Chris from Shropshire bought a Minor manual and sent in a photo of the machine preventing his Mk1 Golf from sheltering in his garage.  Seems reasonable to me.
Next up I heard from Alec Nisbet who owns not only a...
A Coronet Major and...
A Majorette but also...
A Minorette and...
A Coronet Imp!  Impressive eh?  Alec also sent some pics of some of his own modifications that he has fabricated himself to add to his machine's flexibility.  See the gallery below with annotations to find out exactly what is going on. 
About Alec's machines:  He has had the Minor for approx 20 years having bought it locally from a workmate.  Although he has made a lot of things with it, he mainly uses it now for wobble sawing.  It's only niggle is when the Gryphon motor cuts out due to the internal switch becoming choked with dust thereby needing a cleaning.  Later produced motors often had a dust guard fitted to prevent this particular problem.                   
The Major, purchased in Birmingham was brought back to Norfolk in bits in the back of a Fiesta.  At the time it was green (the lathe not the Fiesta) but Alec promptly had some paint mixed and repainted it in the maroon colour you see in the pictures.  As with most vintage lathe purchases there were a couple of bits missing which he duly made himself, the roller fence for the combination table for one.  He also replaced the headstock bronze phosphor bearing.   Alec's machine is an older machine with a newer planer added later. 
After some unintentional close contact with his finger which needed stitches he made the extended guard for the planer out of Perspex.  On the whole he finds that the safest way to use the planer is with a thicknesser fitted.  He uses the Major mostly for turning and sawing.
The Majorette was bought from a seller in Suffolk who thought it was actually a Major.  This machine's main use is for spindle moulding and having bought a modern moulding block he soon realized that he would have to insert a bush for a correct fit to the Majorette spindle which was easy enough.  He has been able to build up a small collection of available cutter blades.
The Imp was bought to replace a Machine Mart (pardon my language) bandsaw that was in Alec's own words "rubbish".  Enough said.
See the gallery below for a view of the bird houses that Alec has made on his machines.
It is always interesting to see what machines people own and how they came to acquire them. And no less than a real treat to see the fabrications that overcome various problems and demonstrate the wealth of ingenuity and talent that lurk behind shed doors all over the UK and abroad.   It's a real pleasure to add it to the site and put it out there for the world to see.  Thanks for a great contribution to the site Alec.

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