DIYbanter - View Single Post - Looking for advice for purchasing a wood lathe and tools

Ecnerwal

In article . com,
wrote:

* I tried craigslist (use it all the time here in Colorado
Springs) ... most of the stuff were shopsmith (which I tend to
avoid) ... there was one really old (1950ish) Powermatic that looked
in sad shape ... I even tried the want adds ... which had none for
sale

Well, this week, or today - sometimes patience pays off. If you have to
have it now, dealers (new, and probably also used) await you.

I'd look at the Powermatic in person, if I were you (perhaps you did,
not clear). Depending on price, an old Powermatic and a new set of
spindle bearings (if needed) might be a very good investment. (Just
looked - price somewhat high, but condition looks good to me in the
pictures. Don't expect shiny paint and no rust in 50 year old tooling).
That will be a very solidly built lathe - much moreso than anything in
that price range from the last 20 years. A small amount of rust on the
ways is not a problem - some folks end up piling wet oak shavings on
their shiny new lathes for a few hours to get enough traction that the
tailstock stays put. If not severely worn and dinged up it would be a
good value, though not a low-price gloat. It is three-phase, so budget
in a VFD, and you'll have electronic variable speed and reversing
ability.

* With regard to "As mentioned, 90 is plenty. Anything else
complicates things." can you elaborate on this? ... as it seems all
units now have 360 ...
personally I dont see much use for more than 90 ... or
even 45 ... from my experience

Swiveling is a way to put stuff "outboard" without putting it on the
back of the spindle. Allows turning slightly larger bowls than is
possible over the bed, and means the bed is not in your way. 90 degrees
is about as far as is useful - you're looking straight into the bowl as
you face the lathe. Going further, at 180 you have the bowl at the back
of the lathe, in the traditional outboard position (but with no more
access than you had at 90), and then (270) the bowl behind the lathe,
which is utterly useless, as far as I can tell.

Being used to the bed being there, I'm not bothered much by it, so
non-swiveling works fine by me. I gravitate towards plenty of room over
the bed to turn what I want to turn when shopping, though I do have a
2-1/2 inch outboard spindle that will swing over 6 feet on the Faye and
Scott. Given 20 inch inboard capacity, I have not used it so far,
particularly since I need to machine a custom LH faceplate for the old
non-standard large spindle. But it offers some possibilities in round
tabletop production...

I think the best outboard setup is what (so I understand) One-Way uses -
the outboard end of the spindle is also right-hand-thread, and the motor
reverses.

Ecnerwal - I live 1 block from a Harbor Freight ... and I use it
often ... but never for power tools from past experiences with Chicago
Machinery ... they just dont last

While some folks claim to be happy with them, I was more suggesting that
you be aware of what you were looking at when you went shopping than
suggesting that you buy one - though a Horrible Fright lathe beats none
at all. When cheap enough, it can be a handy way to get a cheesy machine
to dedicate to buffing, or the like, if you have space for that - keeps
the main one free for turning.

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