Looking for a new lathe: Nova 1624-44 vs. Grizzly GO698, Grizzly GO632

[Doug Herzberg]

I've been lurking for a few years and finally joined up.

This started with this month's Woodcraft catalog with the Nova 1624-44 lathe on the cover. $1,199 plus a $300 gift card. This lathe is worlds apart from my little 12 x 37 bench top lathe. I've had my lathe for 30 years, but have only used it occasionally. Lately, I've developed an interest in bowls, etc., and have started harvesting some hardwoods to use for that purpose. Some of the wood I have is quite large and it's time for a bigger machine.

I've read a lot of reviews on the Nova, including threads on this forum. No complaints that concern me, but I do worry that it may not have enough heft to handle larger chunks of wood. I'll take a look at it at the WC store, but I'm hoping for some advice from those of you who may have some experience with these machines.

The GO698 has an 18" swing, 47" between centers, and it weighs over 500 pounds, for shipping, at least. The headstock slides all the way over for outboard turning. (Does that work pretty well?) Figuring local sales tax and shipping on the Grizzly, it would cost me about $250 more than the Nova, but it looks like a lot more machine: 2HP, 47" spindle, larger swing, variable speed. The GO632 is smaller, lighter, and only 1.5 HP, but it would cost about the same. It has a swiveling headstock. No gift card, of course.

Anyone have any experience with these machines? Thoughts? Thanks in advance for your advice.

[Bob Haverstock]

Hi Doug,

I have owned a 1624-44 for about 2 years. It is the largest wood lathe that I have turned in. The weakest feature on it is the tailstock, it doesn't have much in the way of a thrust bearing.

The second issue is that the tailstock assembly is not a close fit to the ways. It takes a bit of fiddling to get it cammed in line with the spindle.

The good tuff, I've had no problems with the electrics. The lathe has lots of power and a good choice of spindle speeds. The tailstock and tool rest lock down nicely. The belt window is another nice touch.

My backgrownd is machine work and toolmaking, I have yet to turn and reposition the headstock. Yes, I can get the lathe to shake and vibrate with an unbalanced and uncentered blank with too much RPM. The largest blanks that I have turned were 13 inches in diameter and 20 inches long and very wet.

The bottom line is that I purchase this machine again based on the above experiences.

Bob Haverstock

[Fred Belknap]

Doug I have the Grizzly G0698 and it has served me petty well. It comes with a few problems built in like the tool rest is slightly less than 1" and after market tool post tend to be a full inch. This easily remedied by running a 1" drill bit through the tool rest. It has no detrimental effect on the use of the original tool rest. I broke the original tool rest but Grizzly was quick in sending a replacement. Another problem I had is using an after market chuck. The spindle has a shoulder behind the threads that is the same size as the inside of the Oneway chuck adapter that I use on my chucks. It got stuck and caused me some major headaches. I used a diamond file with the spindle running and it fixed that problem. The electronics on mine have been flawless, the variable speed is great. It will do pretty large pieces, I just completed a 16" bowl. There is no handwheel but that isn't a problem to me. It is a great lathe so far and I have owned it for almost a year and done a lot of work on it. I think it is well worth the money.

[Scott Hackler]

I have the Nova 1624 and overall its a nice lathe. It has quite a bit of power for a 120v lathe and I have maxed out the 16" dia swing on several occations. The ONLY time I have ever stopped the motor on this lathe was when coring a bowl with my McNaughton and my tool rest slipped, binding the blade. That is the ONLY time I have ever stopped it. I like the ability to rotate the head stock for hollowing and sanding bowls, but you have to manually allign the tailstock once you rotate it back, before you lock it down. The only minor complaint it that there is no variable speed and that its not heavy enough for a really out of balanced blank (need to build a 500lb ballast box). I get tired of changing belts to alter the speed, but in reality I can change the speed/belt in about 8 seconds. It would just be nicer to turn a knob.

I paid $899 on sale, a couple years ago and don't regret the purchase. It will be used a bunch more, until I can sell some things and save up for a Robust!

[Jon Nuckles]

I bought the G0698 and it would refuse to turn most of the times I turned it on. Grizzly sent a new headstock and it had the same problem. They said they were having problems and didn't have a fix for it at the time, so they offered to take it back. I did send it back and got a Powermatic. This was a little over a year ago, so I assume they have solved the problem by now. It is a lot of lathe for the money if they have gotten that bug out. Their customer service was very good so, despite the hassle, I would not hesitate to recommed Grizzly. Roger Chandler will surely chime in here, and he has very positive things to say about his G0698.

[Roger Chandler]

I have the G0698 from Grizzly and it has been superb! I think Grizzly has gotten the bugs out of the few that had a problem......which in my understanding was not any more than any other brand has experienced. Mine has done everything I have asked of it, and I am very pleased after having used it for about 20 months.

Probably not a better value on a full featured lathe on the market at present. I spoke with a Grizzly rep the other night, and December 1st is the next shipping date............if you are serious, then get your name on the list for this next shipment that will be coming in soon.

[Doug Herzberg]

Thanks, Fred. That's reassuring. The problems don't sound insurmountable. Have you ever tried running the headstock down to the right end of the bed for outboard turning? I thought I liked that idea, but the way my shop is set up, the GO632 might save a little space with the rotating headstock. Plus, it would have a wider stance for big stock. I haven't looked for outboard tool rests for either Grizzly lathe, but I'm about to do that now.

I just stopped by the local WC to see the Nova. Talked to George, whose name I have seen on this board. It looks like a pretty good lathe. Some things I noticed are: 1. The tailstock on the display did not move smoothly along the bed. There was a DVR right next to it with what appeared to be the same tailstock and bed and it moved smoothly, so I'm thinking the 1624-44 just need a tweak in the clamping mechanism. Otherwise, fit and finish looked great. 2. Although the legs look a little light and there is no plan to add weight, the feet can be bolted to the floor. That should take care of that. Looks like an outboard tool rest will set me back another $250 or so, so I'm off to the Grizzly site to see what they offer, if anything.

[Doug Herzberg]

John and Roger, thanks for your input. I called Grizzly and learned about a 4 - 6 week delay in shipping. Asked about any electronic/electrical problems and the sales rep owned up to some motor problems about a year ago. Said it hasn't come up lately.

[Roger Chandler]

John and Roger, thanks for your input. I called Grizzly and learned about a 4 - 6 week delay in shipping. Asked about any electronic/electrical problems and the sales rep owned up to some motor problems about a year ago. Said it hasn't come up lately.

Doug,

The problem was with the circuit board supplied by Toshiba........they had a few that had an issue........they have colaborated with Toshiba and fixed the problem now.........Toshiba and Grizzly worked on this until they got it solved.......they actually stopped selling the G0698 for about 6 months till this issue got rectified...........I have not heard any more issues with it since that initial one............

I think for comparrison purposes..........you could compare the G0698 to the Jet 1642 evs but it is bigger and has pretty much the same features...........some of the parts on the Jet and Powermatic 3520b are identical.

[Doug Herzberg]

I couldn't find an outboard tool rest for either of the Grizzly lathes I'm looking at, so I called. The first rep didn't know what I was talking about and the second finally asked me to look at the image of their bigger lathe: http://www.grizzly.com/products/20-x-43-Heavy-Duty-Variable-Speed-Wood-Lathe/G0694. Once he understood, he didn't know if they had such a thing for the models I'm interested in, so he put me on hold and went to the sales floor to ask one of the old timers there. Not available.

I looked at the big lathe, which I can't afford, to see if the tool rest might be adaptable to the smaller models. The single leg looks like it might wobble, depending on the size of the castings, but it seems to me the assembly might be adapted to any big lathe. (I saw this suggestion posted on another site, so it's not original). Like most things, buying the individual parts would make it cost prohibitive, but I've noticed that some Grizzly people watch this site and am hoping that if it's feasible, they will offer the assembly at some time in the future for a price less than the sum of the parts.

If that doesn't work, I see some other people have adapted other brands to fit a particular lathe and others have fashioned their own tool rest. My own little lathe has a left hand spindle for outboard turning and the owner's manual has a drawing of what looks like a fruit crate standing on end which they recommend as a home made tool rest. Haven't tried that, nor will I. Times sure change.

[Roger Chandler]

Doug,

Laguna sells an outboard bed extension and tool rest assembly for their version the platinum 18x47 unit.......pretty much the same lathe.................I think you can get one from them and it will fit or get their version of the lathe and pay around $1900 - $2000 for the same unit, only theirs has a handwheel on it as well. IMO, it is not worth the extra money.

You can also make a floor stand with pipe and make your own tool rest for outboard turning...........there are threads on SMC to that effect that will show you what others have done.

[Doug Herzberg]

Thanks, Roger. Started looking at threads and found this at Busy Bee: http://www.busybeetools.com/search.php?search_query=CT128EXT&x=16&y=18. It fits their 1847 lathe, which looks exactly like the Grizzly with a different paint job (I didn't read every line of the description). http://www.busybeetools.com/products/WOOD-LATHE-18IN.-X47IN.-W%7B47%7DDIG-READ-OUT-CT128N.html

I think I'm there. The Nova is nice for what it is, but the 1847 Grizzly looks like what I need. Just got a postcard that the woodworking show will be in Denver November 18, so I think I'll go there first, just to see what accessories I can pick up before I place my order.

Thanks everyone, for your help. Keep the suggestions coming, especially if I'm missing something here. I'll post a photo (of the lathe) when it comes. You may have to wait a few years for a decent turning.

[Roger Chandler]

Doug,

The Busy Bee [Canada] and Grizzly are the same lathe......only you can get the BB in either 1x8" spindle or the 1.25" spindle size.....the out board attachment is the same on all 18/47 lathes...........I am not sure BB will sell in the USA, so you might have to get it from Laguna, unless you ask Grizzly to order you one. I think they don't usually carry it, but I think they can get it if they really want to..............

I ordered an extra banjo and tool rest for mine because I have a duplicator that uses two banjos to mount to the lathe, and they got that whole assembly for me.

[ken gibbs]

Roger, what isa banjo? Thanks.

[Roger Chandler]

Roger, what isa banjo? Thanks.

Ken,

The banjo [tool rest base] is what clamps on to the ways of the lathe to hold the toolrest in position.

[Doug Herzberg]

Thanks again, Roger. I finally went to the Laguna website and looked. Sure enough, right there for $145.00, with a little more info. Mounts 13" below the spindle, so makes for 26" swing. Right now, they're having a 1 cent shipping special on accessories. The shipping special ends tomorrow, 10/29/11, if anyone following this is interested. I spoke with Jerry, x9612. I went back to Busy Bee and checked shipping to Colorado. $19.00, plus $79 for the part. Either sounds doable.

Laguna indicated that shipping on the lathe itself might also be discounted. Sounded like about $500.00 more for the lathe and bed extension with the Laguna badge.