Beginner Lathe

[Larry Richardson]

I've been wanting to start turning pens for some time now, and was looking at some of the entry level lathes, when this lathe from Rockler (http://www.rockler.com/product.cfm?page=21439&utm_source=NL&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=V9729&ref_id=6431&ref_t=Z&originid=95214915) came across my email.

I know it is low end, but let me lay out my needs and constraints:
1. no goals of turning outside of pens.
2. Space is already a premium. Small is better. I am working in 2/3 of 1 car !

Any reviews on this ?

[Jeff Nicol]

Larry, That lathe is sold here at our local Menards store and I have looked at it a couple of times. If you are mainly going to turn pens and small things for the price why not! If you find out it is not for you, you are not out a ton of money. If you get better and love the hobby then an upgrade can be made. It does a a little variable speed and is cast iron so there are worse things out there.

Good luck and have fun!

Woodturning will suck you in and never let you go!

JEff

[Michael Faurot]

I was just looking at that same lathe as an option for a friend who has been contemplating whether he'd want to get a lathe or not. For the price and with free shipping, it seems like a decent deal. I also took a look at the manual (http://images.rockler.com/tech/RTD10000595AA.pdf) for it, and it has #1 Morse Taper fittings in both the head and tail stock. The head stock also has a standard thread pattern of 3/4"x16. So it should be easy to get Morse Taper accessories and a chuck for the lathe.

[Gordon Seto]

Lathe is fraction of the cost in turning.
In case you change your mind, the accessories for this lathe won't fit any lathe you are going to upgrade to, such a pen mandrel, centers, buffer etc. Now the standard for mini lathe is 1" X 8 TPI spindle thread and #2 Morse taper. I think this lathe has very little resale value.

I have no experience with the lathe you are talking about. For pen turning, the requirement for alignment is quite high. If the pen mandrel doesn't run true, the pen would look loop sided at the twist joint.

For this price, I would look into a popular used lathe, such as Jet mini. If you don't overpay, probably it won't cost you much in case turning is not for you. If the turning bug got you, you don't have to re-purchase what you did for this lathe when you upgrade to a larger lathe. You may not even need to upgrade for some time.

[Bernie Weishapl]

I agree with Gordon. It is a 3/4 X 16 spindle. If you fall in love with turning as most of us did the accessories you get for it won't fit any upgrade you do. My brother had a 3/4 X 16 lathe and he tried to sell it but for 2 yrs never could. So he just gave it away. Resale probably wouldn't be any good if you do decide you like turning and upgrade. Just my humble opinion.

[Will Krautkramer]

I have that lathe, mines branded Performax and I got it from my local Menards last winter. Harbor Freight sells their version of this lathe also.

I paid ~$135 for mine and am very pleased with its performance, for me it was well worth the money. I also have a larger rockwell lathe and prefer to use the mini over it. I have even thought of picking up another mini so I can have one set up for turning between centers and one with one of grizzlys $100 chucks (http://www.grizzly.com/products/4-Jaw-Wood-Chuck-3-4-x-16-TPI/H6264)so I don't have to switch back and forth.

It isn't the most powerful lathe but I've managed to turn a 3.5" dia carving mallet out of honey locust on it last Saturday without to much trouble.

The stock tool rests doesn't adjust as low as I'd like for some of my oland type tools with larger dia. shanks but I'm making a rest that should solve the issue. I've also had a small hiccup with the arrangement they use for the tailstock quill. It uses two set screws on the tail stock that go in a slot on the handwheel nut to keep it stationary while the quill moves in/out and I've had to file off a burr that formed on the edge of the slot when it presses against the screw when tightened down on a piece of stock. I'll get a pic later to better show what I mean.

For $99 I wouldn't sweat resale value! but that's just me. As far as adaptability of accessories I've seen adapters that go from 3/4"-16 tpi (example (http://www.pennstateind.com/store/LA3418.html)) to 1"-8 tpi so you could get a 1" X 8 tpi chuck with a future upgrade in mind and #1 morse taper accessories can be used with larger lathes if you get adapter sleeves.

[Will Krautkramer]

A pic of the hand wheel on mine where the burr formed.

[Scott Lux]

Will, I couldn't agree more. It's a great lathe for the money. It is not a Jet, but it's 1/3 the cost of a Jet.

I responded to another question here about a pen-turning lathe.
http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?p=1005268&page=2

I think the Wilton is a great starter lathe. My alignment was dead on straight out of the box, and the variable speed is great.

The one accessory I did buy, a utility chuck from PSI, came with a 3/4 X 16 adapter, so I can use it with a 1 X 8 lathe also.

I don't expect resale to be good on it, but I only have $135 in it, and I've sold 7 or 8 times that amount in stuff from it.

Lux

[Wyatt Holm]

I would say if you want a mini lathe, get a Jet.

[Greg Cuetara]

I was actually just going to get on here and ask about this lathe. I have a delta midi and it has served me well for the past year. I was looking for a little lathe for my father to turn pens on. I would think that for less than $200 I could get him outfitted with everything for turning pens. As someone else said for 99 bucks who really cares about resale value.

Wyatt why are you saying to just get a jet? I understand that the jet is a very good little lathe but really for 1/3 to 1/4 the cost it sounds like this is a pretty good little machine. It is nice to always buy the best but some of us either can't afford the best all the time or lower cost machines work perfectly well. I think this actually retails for $270 and for that cost I would probably get the Jet but at $99 it sounds like this might be a decent deal.

JMHO. Greg

[Tom Wilson66]

Greg, I started on the same lathe several years ago. The only reason I upgraded to the Jet mini was I could turn bigger diameter projects on the Jet. Anything over about 3 inches will bog down the 1/4 hp motor on the smaller lathe, but for pens and most turning projects using the pen mandrels, this will do a great job. One thing I liked about mine was the speed range is from 0 rpm up to about 2500 rpm, which is great for finishing on the lathe. Also, it is light enough to carry anywhere, and put away if the bench space is needed for some other use.:D