In article . com,
"woods" wrote:

There are some nice lathes at www.turnrobust.com that are on the level
of Oneway lathes. They offer 18x28 and 25x28 models and have some nice
features like stainless bed ways, big sealed bearings, a sliding
headstock, and a seven year warranty, plus they are made in the USA.
As an option, Robust features a Tilt Away which attaches to the end of
lathe and lets you slide the tailstock onto it and rotate it out of the
way. It is what I categorize as a high end lathe in the 5K price range
and certainly worth looking at.

Boy, oh boy... I don't know about the Robust... Never seen one in
person, but given that price is a wash comparing with Oneway (which is
an inevitable comparison given the design of the Robust), I'd have to
lean toward Oneway for several reasons:

- Lathe weight is a big deal when comparing lathes of like swing
capacities. The Robust 2528 weighs about 625 lbs. vs. the Oneway 2436 at
850 lbs.

- The Oneway leg design appears more stable. The adjustability of the
Robust height introduces sliding parts that will inevitably flex more
than solid/welded joints. (A Oneway height is customizable when ordering
for no additional charge.)

- No through bore on the Robust tailstock.

- Swinging pendant arm on the Oneway would appear to offer better
control placement and better control box security from mishaps. (Too,
the Oneway box is much more refined and finished looking than the Robust
- plus an $80 secondary remote box is available for the Oneway.)

- Consider the following descriptions from Robust's website:
25 x 28: Our top-of-the-line sliding headstock model.

18 x 28: Shares many features of its big brother, the 25x28, only
with a smaller swing.

Sweet 16: The newest Robust lathe... Spindle turners like the 36 between
centers.

.... spindle turners like the 36" between centers. Yes we do, so why
limit their top of the line lathe with 28"? Sure, you can purchase
additional bed extensions, but that adds $645 on top of the $5300 2hp
base price. How much of a Oneway can you buy for $6000? How does top of
the line 3hp, with 17" extension and money to spare for other stuff
strike you? (BTW, the spec sheet pdfs for all the Robust lathes have a
footnote "(2)" at the "Center Distance" item, but I couldn't find what
the footnote marker was referring to...)

These notes are merely observations from my reading and looking over the
pictures. I commend the Robust people for taking a risk in producing the
lathe. Inevitably, in the price range they have chosen, they will be
compared to Oneway, Stubby and even the VB36. It's my opinion the Robust
just doesn't have the "whole-package" engineering or refinement to
compete on this level. I think they'd have a killer lathe if they could
manage to get the price down at least $1000.

--
Owen Lowe

Northwest Woodturners
Pacific Northwest Woodturning Guild
___
Tips fer Turnin': Place a sign, easily seen as you switch on your lathe, warning you to remove any and all rings from your fingers. Called degloving, extended hardware can grab your ring and rip it off your finger. A pic for the strong of stomach: www.itim.nsw.gov.au/go/objectid/2A3AC703-1321-1C29-70B067DC88E16BFC/index.cfm

Besides, rings can easily mar the surface of a turning as you check for finished smoothness.