d32 wrote in
:

On Tuesday, April 2, 2013 2:11:21 PM UTC-7, Gunner Asch wrote:
I got an email from a pistol smith buddy of mine who is looking for a
ver
y small lathe..something with a footprint under 3 feet: "Hi buddy. Can
you give me your opinion please. Are these junk, or usable for me? Can
I turn 1.5" on them? http://www.ebay.com/itm/350747008678
http://www.ebay.com/itm/250978927093 Or is something this better for
me? http://www.ebay.com/itm/111027293774
http://www.ebay.com/itm/251243228471" Ive had zero experience with the
little ones so dont have a clue as to suitibility of any of them.
Anyone have any comments? Ive been trying to find him a decent small
South Bend or similar with little luck. He has very tight quarters and
only works on pistols Gunner

The best of the lot is the EMCO but 1.5 inch dia is going to stress it
unless it is plastic of AL.
The cheap imports spin fast so threading can be sporty

I found this EMCO 11 X 24 on creag's list and it is realy good lathe.
I had one in our lab and loved it.

http://seattle.craigslist.org/see/tls/3715386389.html

I often see a SB 9 X 18 for sale at around $600. IMHO this would be a
much better lathe.

I have a Super 11, and it is a VERY nice machine. I've done a moderate
bit of gunsmithing on it, and it works great.

I wouldn't bother with anything that doesn't have a big enough spindle to
take 5C collets.

Doug White