Is the HF 34706 adequet for a non-turner?

[Rich Engelhardt]

I need some spindles. I can buy them, but, I can also make them cheaper and more importantly, I can custom make them - but - I (obviously) need a lathe.
I have a HF coupon for the #34706 for $199.99. The reviews of this lathe are all over the place. I get the distinct impression that the vast majority of negatives come from people that expected a lot more & had it in their mind they were going to churn out fabulous works of turned art.

I have no such delusions - nor any real desire for that matter.

I just want a simple way to make 24" to 30" pieces of square wood into round pieces that have some taper and maybe some simple designed parts.

$200.00 fits neatly into both my budget and into my needs.

Buying a used "better" brand/model is out of the question so, please, don't even suggest it.
I'd have no idea what I was looking at.

[Dennis Ford]

This is a good deal for $200. You already know that is not equal to a $2000 Jet or $3000+ Powermatic but it will do what you want. A delta midi with extension would be more user friendly but would also be ~ 3 times as expensive.

[Andrew Kertesz]

I would say that it depends on how many spindles you need. You have not taken into account the incidental costs associated with this. You have the cost of tools, HF tools are junk, sharpening the tools, the cost of the raw materials for the spindles, finishing materials, ie: sandpaper, finish, clean up and other miscellaneous items that you will need. If you really want to get into turning I would weigh the cost of purchased spindles and then save my money for a decent lathe be it new or used. There is tons of info and guidance on this forum for tool purchases large and small.

[John Keeton]

Rich, you are right - reviews and comments about this lathe will be all over the place. But, I think many of them come from folks that do have limited knowledge of turning and may not realize the limitations of the machine.

The 34706 was my first lathe. Actually, I bought two of them. The first had a cracked base in the headstock, which was discovered when I tried to align the centers. HF promptly swapped headstocks with me. They first insisted on exchanging the entire lathe, and I refused as assembly of the stand, etc., takes an hour or so, and I really didn't want to disassemble it and reassemble the new one.

Aside from that experience, my personal opinion is that it is an excellent lathe for the money - particularly, if you desire only to do spindle work. However, I feel I must caution you. Your post seems eerily similar to mine a couple of years ago - I only wanted to make furniture legs, and had absolutely no intentions of turning anything else. The rest is history, as they say!!

The drawbacks, for your stated purposes, are few. The lathe has limited power, and even with spindle work, a larger spindle must be approached with patience at times. It also has a low speed of about 500-600 rpm, which is not a problem most of the time with spindle work. However, sometimes that is a little high for sanding - but, not too bad. The tool rests are extremely soft, and are a nuisance. I would recommend a replacement. But, you can use the OEM rests until you get some mileage behind you.

The one thing you must consider, is that there are a multitude of accessories that you will want and need to be an effective turner - even with just spindles. So, please include that in your budget, or your turning experience will not be good. First and foremost is a good sharpening system, and that will cost you as much or more than the lathe. You will also want a chuck, or chucks, though with spindle work, you can do without one for awhile.

For tools, start out with the better tools from HF. They actually do a pretty good job for spindle work, and I still use some of them.

Have fun! And, remember what I told you about my slide into the vortex!!

[Gary Max]

------- if you have the time---- a older shopsmith can be bought at a very good price---just a thought.

[Marc Himes]

Hello Rich. If you don't have very many spindles to turn and never want to turn anything again, or if you just want to try turning, I would consider finding an AAW chapter in your area and seeing if anyone in that chapter would work with you. Turners are frequently happy to share their knowledge with others and you could get some instruction in proper tool use as well, without the investment required. As has been pointed out above, there is much more equipment needed besides a lathe and this stuff can be addicting. Good luck, I hope you find what you need.

[Roger Chandler]

Rich,

John Keeton gave you excellent advise on the HF lathe.......Marc also gave you really good alternatives..............Most likely, if you just want to turn this set of spindles, then a fellow wood turner would probably let you use their lathe and teach you how to do it ..............

That being said.........you are likely going to like turning, and then want to begin upgrading if you purchase that HF lathe....if you want to actually purchase a lathe..........you would do better with a better machine..........that Delta 46-460 is a real good midi lathe, and you can get a bed extension for it.

You can make do for a couple of years with the HF, but if you will find a turning club, and ask if someone will help you, and learn what it is like to turn on a good lathe.........you can avoid a the purchase of a lot of things that you will eventually wish you had not purchased and you can get where you really want to be a lot sooner, with a lot less money wasted.

Most turners who go the cheap route first find out that they wished they had spent a little extra up front, then they would not have gone through all the upgrading and such............just my $0.02, and trying to let you know how it usually goes.....please know that this is the exact same road countless turners have been down before you.........it almost always ends up just like I have described..........find that turning club, ask for help and see how nice turners are as a group!

[John Keeton]

I will add this to the mix, and I know it sounds like I am advocating for the HF, but the truth of the matter is that I do not regret buying the HF at all. And, given the same scenario, would do it again. It has an 1" x 8tpi spindle (same as the Delta) and a #2 MT on the headstock and tailstock, so much of the accessories one would buy will transfer to the Delta 46-460. I bought mine on sale, with a coupon, for $187 and sold it for $150 - the loss of about $50 (counting the sales tax) was a cheap price to turn some table legs and to find out that I really enjoyed turning. Had I finished the legs, and not dropped into the vortex, that $50 loss would have been an even cheaper loss, IMO.

For where you are now, do it!

[Marty Eargle]

Mr. Keeton covered it. I own this lathe. I wanted to get into turn and was saving for the Delta, but I found this at a good deal with a 20% Off coupon, and that is something that a starving college kid, looking to get into an expensive hobby, can't pass up.

So far, other than lacking a little horse power and the centers being just slightly off (shimmed!), this lathe has done me well. I've been using it steadily for about six months and produced many pieces on it.

As long as you know what you're buying,, I doubt it will disappoint. Just know that the tool rest will get dinged up and the handles on the tool rest will strip almost instantly. Other than that, happy turning!

[Kevin Lucas]

I have one as well. I will say it does bog down or stop if you get a really big catch. It uses Reeves drives so it has a belt about 5$ at the hardware store so np. The spindle adapter is just a tiny bit long for the nova midi chuck a washer as a spacer worked fine. I wish it went a little slower on the low end but I cheated and modified it so it will. That is about all the negatives I can think of. It is a solid asian clone of an older jet 1236 I think. All in all I love it. I wanted to do spindles as well and got the long bedded HF spindle lathe. It wouldn't do bowls it spun way too fast and even bolted down was flimsy. A 34706 is solid and heavy and will do what ever you want it to do. Turning is addictive for sure and you will end up with shavings all over the floor and odd chunks of free firewood all over the place )

[Harvey Ghesser]

Run the other way!

[John Keeton]

Harvey, I am curious. Did you have a bad experience with the HF lathe??

[Rich Engelhardt]

Gents - I thank you!
I believe I'll check out the HF and if it's not too bad, go for it.
I'm not overly concerned about getting sucked into the turning habit.
"Turning" - while I recall from HS shop class as being fun, doesn't flip my "hot" switch.
This is more a means to an end than anything else.

[brian watts]

i have one and been turning on it 2 yrs and NO problem. heck i turn stock out of round and have to put a clamp on the base to hold it to the table so it will not fall off..LOL.. most of what i turn is turkey call stuff.....