Has anyone had any experience with this lathe and chisel set from Harbor
Freight????

36066-1VGA 14'' x 40'' Lathe WITH 6'' Sander for $99.99

47066-1VGA Windsor Design 8 PC. High Speed Steel Wood Lathe Chisel Set for
$29.99

Thanks Ray

"Ray" wrote in message
...
Has anyone had any experience with this lathe and chisel set from Harbor
Freight????

36066-1VGA 14'' x 40'' Lathe WITH 6'' Sander for $99.99

47066-1VGA Windsor Design 8 PC. High Speed Steel Wood Lathe Chisel Set for
$29.99

Thanks Ray

Ray, Have not used that particular model, but it looks almost the same as
the first lathe I ever purchased.
It was ok for a beginner, just to see if woodturning would interest you...
but the lack of a morse taper on the tailstock (and the headstock off
memory) was very limiting if you wanted to use aftermarket attachments.
1/2HP did bog down a little too when trying to turn a bowl. No swivelling
head either, which can be a pain in the rear if you plan on doing a bit of
bowl turning.

I'd probably spend a bit extra and go up to the basic Jet model or
comparables which is ok for beginners-intermediate if price is a concern.

--
Regards,

Dean Bielanowski
Editor,
Online Tool Reviews
http://www.onlinetoolreviews.com
Over 50 woodworking product reviews online!
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My first set of turning tools were from Harbor Freight. I've upgraded a
couple of time since then but I've still got them, still use them for the
initial turning. They were outstanding, not to mention inexpensive, tools to
learn the ins and outs of sharpening turning tools on.

--
Mike G.

Heirloom Woods
www.heirloom-woods.net
"Ray" wrote in message
...
Has anyone had any experience with this lathe and chisel set from Harbor
Freight????

36066-1VGA 14'' x 40'' Lathe WITH 6'' Sander for $99.99

47066-1VGA Windsor Design 8 PC. High Speed Steel Wood Lathe Chisel Set for
$29.99

Thanks Ray

Ray wrote:
Has anyone had any experience with this lathe and chisel set from Harbor
Freight????
36066-1VGA 14'' x 40'' Lathe WITH 6'' Sander for $99.99
47066-1VGA Windsor Design 8 PC. High Speed Steel Wood Lathe Chisel Set for
$29.99

The $30 set of HF tools is a bargain. They're fair quality and
will teach you to sharpen properly. You'll upgrade them as time
goes by but they'll give you an idea of what you use and what you
don't. The ones you don't can be reground into other shapes as
you wish.

The lathe is a good starter lathe, it doesn't go quite low enough
on the speeds, but for $100 what do you want. AS for the lack of
head rotation, 14" is a big bowl for a beginner, even if it turns
out to be 13" after you're finished. The lighter motor will force
you to make your cuts properly rather than horse the tools
around. The headstock is MT1 or 2, I don't remember, but the
threads aren't standard. Accessories can be bought from HF, but
they'll have to be shipped from out of country, order them
immediately so when you get done figuring out how to do spindles
your stuff for bowls will have arrived. Get LOTS of faceplates,
and a couple of toolrests.

If you ask over at rec.crafts.woodturning you'll get mixed reviews
because a lot of people will recommend spending as much as you can
the first time out rather than buying something cheap to see if
you like turning and then spending the money later. For $100, the
difference is taxes on the expensive lathes, well almost. At that
point it doesn't hurt to spend the extra $100.

Just my 2 cents,
Dave in Fairfax
--
reply-to doesn't work
use:
daveldr at att dot net
American Association of Woodturners
http://www.woodturner.org
Capital Area Woodturners
http://www.capwoodturners.org/

On Thu, 6 May 2004 19:08:15 -0400, "Ray"
wrote:

Has anyone had any experience with this lathe and chisel set from Harbor
Freight????

36066-1VGA 14'' x 40'' Lathe WITH 6'' Sander for $99.99
I can't comment on this lathe.



47066-1VGA Windsor Design 8 PC. High Speed Steel Wood Lathe Chisel Set for
$29.99
these chisels work fine and are a great value. consider these to be
the dividing line where decent turning chisels start. anything lesser
would be more trouble than it's worth.





Thanks Ray

Ray wrote:
Has anyone had any experience with this lathe and chisel set from Harbor
Freight????

36066-1VGA 14'' x 40'' Lathe WITH 6'' Sander for $99.99

47066-1VGA Windsor Design 8 PC. High Speed Steel Wood Lathe Chisel Set for
$29.99

Thanks Ray


I started out on that lathe with that tool set. The are elCheapo, but
not bad for determining if turning is something you really want to do.

The base of the lathe needs to be stiffened. I cut a piece of 3/4"
plywood and slid it into the sheet metal base along the entire length of
the lathe bed. The stiffening definately helped. I am going to lose
the sheet metal base and mount the lathe on a timber later this summer.

Outside of the flimsy base, the only real complaint about the lathe is
that the slowest speed is a bit high. It is a good lathe to learn on
and you will be able to sell it easily if you decide thgat turning is
more than a passing curiosity.

The main advantage of the tool set is that you can practice sharpening
the tools without worry about screwing up expensive tools. Once you get
the hang of properly sharpening the tools, you will certainly want to
upgrade to better tools. By the time you are ready to upgrade the
tools, you ought to have a much better idea about what to look for.

Tim

--
No BoomBoom for me! -

Hi Ray,

I have Harbor Freight's 12'' x 33-3/8'' WOOD LATHE WITH REVERSIBLE HEAD ITEM 34706-5VGA, and have used it for several years. I mostly turn smaller items like pens and bottlestoppers, but I have made a number of wooden mallets, tool handles and spindles for stairs/furniture.

Here's a link to the item on their website:

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...emnumber=34706

I'm very satisified with this lathe. When I bought it, the castings were apparently identical to those used by Jet, although the level of finish (cleaner castings) was actually better on the Harbor Freight unit. Assembly was very easy, as I just had to bolt together the stand and screw on some knobs. I don't know if the motor is in the same class with its more expensive cousins, but mine has held up and I've had a number of days where I've spent a solid 6 hours in front of the lathe.

It is virtually vibration free - I can balance a nickle on edge on it's rails while it is running. This unit has 10 different speeds, which I thought was a useful feature.

Since I saved significant $$$ going with a less expensive lathe, I was able to buy higher quality turning tools (Sorby). I'm by no means an expert wood turner, but it seems to me that as long as a lathe can safely hold the item to be turned in place, and spin it at the right speed without vibration, a lathe is a lathe is a lathe. The critical components are the skill of the turner, and the quality of the turning tools (mostly their ability to hold an edge).

You'll also need other accessories for your lathe like various calibers and a Jacob's chuck - I bought these items from HF and have again been satisfied. When I was shopping for the Jacob's chuck, my local Woodcraft had one for about $30, but the one I bought at HF was only about $10.

I haven't turned any bowls on it yet, but the headstock swivels to accomodate outboard turning.

I have no idea ;-) but I'm kinda in a similar situation. All I can
suggest is decrease your risk even more by using one of the $10 off
$100 purchase!! I get those via email about once a week.

Let us/me know.. sounds like an inexpensive education :-)


On Thu, 6 May 2004 19:08:15 -0400, "Ray"
wrote:

Has anyone had any experience with this lathe and chisel set from Harbor
Freight????

36066-1VGA 14'' x 40'' Lathe WITH 6'' Sander for $99.99

47066-1VGA Windsor Design 8 PC. High Speed Steel Wood Lathe Chisel Set for
$29.99

Thanks Ray

the 36066 is $80 currently

On Mon, 29 Nov 2004 15:11:02 -0700,
wrote:


I have no idea ;-) but I'm kinda in a similar situation. All I can
suggest is decrease your risk even more by using one of the $10 off
$100 purchase!! I get those via email about once a week.

Let us/me know.. sounds like an inexpensive education :-)


On Thu, 6 May 2004 19:08:15 -0400, "Ray"
wrote:

Has anyone had any experience with this lathe and chisel set from Harbor
Freight????

36066-1VGA 14'' x 40'' Lathe WITH 6'' Sander for $99.99

47066-1VGA Windsor Design 8 PC. High Speed Steel Wood Lathe Chisel Set for
$29.99

Thanks Ray