Anyone have any experience with either of these, in particular the Rikon
is the Model 70-100 mini lathe and the Jet would be 708375. Woodcraft
sells both for $249.99. This weekend they have a 10% off sale on all
tools, with some exceptions. That would bring each to about $225. The
JET comes with a free 5 piece Mini Turning set (value $19.99) plus a $25
mail in rebate. After rebate the Jet would be about $200.

From my research, JET has been around for a while (that's obvious) but
Rikon has been getting good reviews. This particular JET seems to be a
new model (or that is how everyone is selling it). Accessories (bed
extensions, stands, etc) cost the same for both.

Karl

On Jan 12, 2:28*am, Karl wrote:

From my research, JET has been around for a while (that's obvious) but
Rikon has been getting good reviews. *This particular JET seems to be a
new model (or that is how everyone is selling it). *Accessories (bed
extensions, stands, etc) cost the same for both.

Hello, Karl. While not a professional (other than selling Christmas
stuff for some extra scratch) turner, I do turn a lot and have for a
long time. There has been a lot of discussion on these two lathes and
some good comparisons made over at the woodturning newsgroup,

rec.crafts.woodturning

Search that group.

Essentially, just like Jet, Rikon had trouble with their inital
offerings as far as fit, finish, assembly, etc. They seem to have
worked through it and produce a good lathe.

To me, the biggest difference are these:

The Rikon is neither fish nor fowl. It is too big to be a mini/midi
lathe. I f you are going to be packing yours up to take to a club
meeting, moving it off and on a worktable when you use it, or doing
any kind of demo work with it you will find it really heavy and
awkward. Although the finish on Jet tools isn't much to write home
about, it is of constant mediocre quality. Rikon seems to be up and
down, and one of my turning buddies at Woodcraft has noticed that as
well.

On the Jet side, I have two of these and use them a lot. I pack them
in the truck on occasion for different uses, and I am looking at doing
some teaching this year on them. it is small enough to lug around,
but big enough to turn useful projects. It is heavy enough to be
stable, but not enough to be a back breaker. I one of my 1014s has
turned (literally) thousands of finished projects, and a lot of
firewood to boot. (Abandoned hardwood projects are used in the
smoker. In fact, any lathe turning project that ****es me off winds
up there!) I have turned everything from pens to vases on it. It is a
sturdy lathe, and is probably considered the industry standard for
mini/midis, although there are others out there that are just as good
or better. Not at the same price point, though.

The downside of the Jet is the same that you would have with any
small lathe. You will always think, "if this was just a little
larger... just a little...:"

For both lathes, you can buy bed extensions. But with extensions
mounted, it is really a mini/midi, or just a low swing capacity
lathe? I don't know of but one person that has attached extensions on
his mini/midi.

But (see above) I would like to be able to turn a small plate or
platter of some size on my Jet. The Rikon has a 12" diameter swing,
and the Jet 10". If you are going to turn pens, Christmas ornaments,
treenware, small weedpots, boxes, etc., and don't care about the
larger capacity needed for a platter, then the Jet would be my
choice. If you want to turn plates or small platters, then the Rikon
would be the one I would look at.

That being said, you should know too, that just because you can mount
a 12" piece of wood on the Rikon, that doesn't mean it will
successfully spin it. The Rikon will dance a pretty mean jig with a
12" piece of unbalanced wood on it at just a few hundred RPMs, just
like the Jet will with a 10" chunk mounted up.

Both seem to be good pieces of machinery, and my Woodcraft contact
tells me that they don't get the Rikons back any more than they do the
Jets, which is not too often.

If I wasn't going to wag it around or move it, I would get the Rikon.
If I had to move it, I would get the Jet. Think through how you will
be using it before you buy and I don't think you can make a wrong
decision on this.

If you are just getting started and want some really good value tools
to practice on, check out a good set of Benjamin's Best tools from
Penn State Industries. The set that comes with the Jet is almost
completely worthless, and using it will probably cause you to give up
turning altogether.

Robert

On Sat, 12 Jan 2008 03:28:17 -0500, Karl wrote:

Anyone have any experience with either of these, in particular the Rikon
is the Model 70-100 mini lathe and the Jet would be 708375. Woodcraft
sells both for $249.99. This weekend they have a 10% off sale on all
tools, with some exceptions. That would bring each to about $225. The
JET comes with a free 5 piece Mini Turning set (value $19.99) plus a $25
mail in rebate. After rebate the Jet would be about $200.

From my research, JET has been around for a while (that's obvious) but
Rikon has been getting good reviews. This particular JET seems to be a
new model (or that is how everyone is selling it). Accessories (bed
extensions, stands, etc) cost the same for both.

Karl

I've had a Jet mini for years and it's a great lathe...

I've never used the Rikon, but I've been considering one... seems to have nice
features and all.. same price as the Jet..

It weighs a bit more than the jet, but for most folks that's probably a good
thing.. not for me since the mini is my "traveling to shows" lathe..

I can't speak for Rikon, but jet has a very good reputation, AFAIK... I also
have a Jet 1442VS lathe and it's taken a lifetime of abuse in the last 3 or 4
years and still works well..
When my mini was about 6 months old, the motor burned out.. Jet replaced it
free..


mac

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