Manufactured by Gebrüder Saacke, at Eutingen, to the east of Pforzheim in Germany during the early 1950s, the "Saacke" was unusual for a miniature precision lathe in being arranged as a "combination machine". In this respect it was rather like the (far less versatile) British Coronet "Ruby" lathe of a few years earlier in being adaptable, by being set vertically, to be used as a precision milling and drilling machine. With a centre height of 65 mm and a capacity between centres of 220 mm, it was significantly heavier than the traditional 50 mm watchmakers' lathe, though its half-round bed, with a flat top and bevelled edges, was similar to the type found on the heavier Webster-Whitcombe type
Fitted to a cast-iron bench foot, the machine was supplied as a complete centre lathe with a compound slide rest assembly, flip-up toolrest and the (rather large) motor attached to the back of the headstock. The drive was very compact, being by a motor tucked under the bed and facing to the left, a V-belt running over multi-groove pulleys with that on the headstock being overhung on the end of the spindle. This economical arrangement being ideal for small, light non-backgeared lathes as there was no need for the more complicated and expensive arrangement of a pulley between the bearings. Instead, . When set for milling, the compound slide was left in place and the top slide fitted with an angle bracket to which was attached a square table with two T-slots; a screw-driven feed to provided movement on the Y axis. For drilling, the slide rest was removed and replaced by a casting that clamped around the bed and carried a round table with four radial T-slots - the supporting bracket being fitted with a rack-and-pinion drive to provide the necessary vertical travel.
In post-WW2 years the Saacke would have joined a crowded European market with German competitors including the well-established West German firms of G.Boley, Leinen (Boley & Leinen), Lorch, Wolf Jahn (as well as lesser known makers such as Benzinger, Kuhlmann and Scherzinger) together with Schaublin, Habegger, Simonet and Mikron in Switzerland and Smart and Brown in England. East German concerns were also active in the field including, in Leipzig Saupe and, in Dresden, Auerbach.
If you have a Saacke lathe, the writer would be very interested to hear from you.
Wenn Sie eine dieser Maschinen haben, wäre ich daran interessiert, von ihnen zu hören.