Looking for a pen turning lathe......

[John Schumer]

Morning,
Looking for a pen turning lathe, How are those Nova Comet 11 lathes?
Any other suggestions?
Thanks,
John

[John K Jordan]

Morning,
Looking for a pen turning lathe, How are those Nova Comet 11 lathes?
Any other suggestions?
Thanks,
John

You can turn pens on nearly any lathe made, new or used. The one you pick might depend on your budget, the space you have, and whether you want to limit your future turning to pens.

[Kyle Iwamoto]

IMO the best pen turning lathe (only pens) is to look for a used Jet mini 1014. Cheap, pretty much bullet proof, and solid for it's little size. I have 2 of them. Turning a pen on a Robust, of course, is way better........ Just had the opportunity to turn on a Robust. Wow....

[Thomas Canfield]

John - I have a Nova Comet II lathe and it will do a good job on pens, along with a lot of other small items, and also do some bowl turning and other mid size pieces. An advantage is its lighter weight if needed to take to a class or demonstration. All that said, I also have a Powermatic 3520B and the two complement each other because I am not going to travel with it and do not turn pens on it either.

[John K Jordan]

John - I have a Nova Comet II lathe and it will do a good job on pens, along with a lot of other small items, and also do some bowl turning and other mid size pieces. An advantage is its lighter weight if needed to take to a class or demonstration. All that said, I also have a Powermatic 3520B and the two complement each other because I am not going to travel with it and do not turn pens on it either.

I agree about the advantage of a small lathe! I keep two Jet minis mostly to carry places or to loan to a few special friends. I have a stand for one but just set the other one on a workbench. In the shop I keep a 3520b and one Jet 1642 set up all the time. I can't imagine traveling with the PM!

I still think the lathe to get depends on the space and budget but it's hard to go wrong with a lathe the size of a Jet mini. I've been in classrooms populated with those or Rikon minis, great for pens but also for lidded boxes, salad bowls and plates, and almost any spindle that's not too long. I've never turned on a Nova Comet but from the specs and pictures it's probably a better choice than the Jet.

JKJ

[John Sanford]

I would recommend the Jet 1015 over the 1014 for one simple reason. If you ever want a bed extension, you can get one for the 1015. Finding 'em for the 1014 is a bear. DAMHIKT. Rikon also makes a decent mini lathe.

[Michael Mills]

I purchased the Comet II for my daughter and she has had no problems with it in the 3+ years.
I do like that it is 3/4 HP (5.5 amp); some other popular state 1 HP but 6 amp which is a little stretch.