Minilathe advice, please

[John Shattuck]

I just replaced the bearings on my baby Grizzly, because it felt 'crunchy'. Turns out it was a belt/pulley issue. New belt and pulleys are on their way, but.....
If, by some freak of nature, sunspots, personal incompetence, and/or enemy action, I'm unable to return my $150 Grizzly to service, what do y'all think I should replace it with? So far, I've turned a bunch of pens, a few awkward bowls and some parrot perches. I like the variable speed, but then I've only had this one lathe, so maybe I'd like changing belts. The Jet VS mini looks nice, but then again, I speak from a position of awesome ignorance.
Guidance, please!

[Ken Fitzgerald]

John....Welcome to the Creek! If you'll do a search using Jet vs mini as the search text .......you'll find a lot of discussion on this subject. It's an often discussed topic with a lot of opinions as to whether or not the VS is of use. I own and use a VS mini...but it was given to me and therefore I didn't have to pay the extra bucks for the VS. Regardless of which mini you choose.....look for a low bottom rpm .....when I chuck up an unbalanced piece on my Jet VS Mini....500 rpm's is almost too fast. I'd really like to have a lower speed. Other than that....I've pushed my VS mini....and it's performed well.

[Neal Addy]

I'm an unashamed, totally biased, and fanatical Jet mini fan so take my opinion for what it's worth. For the $199 Feb sales price it's hard to beat. It has a known track record, many satisfied users, and seems to be popular in turning classes and clubs. That says a lot.

That said, I've heard good reports on the Rikon mini. A bit more swing and bed for roughly the same money. It seems to be the new kid on the block and got a lot of buzz when it was released. Time will tell whether it stands up to Jet in the school yard. I figure it was the main reason that Jet came out with the 1220. Gotta keep up with the competition.

The M-Power mini being sold by Rockler looks like a good deal too (according to a Rockler sales guy whom I trust). It is reportedly made by the same folks who make the Jet mini. I haven't heard feedback from any users yet.

[Jonathon Spafford]

Go with the jet mini manual. It is an awesome and a tough little lathe. It is very popular and I love mine. Save the hundred bucks from a VS... it only takes 30 seconds to change the belt!!! This is a really awesome lathe!

[Bernie Weishapl]

I will throw in the Rikon at $250 is a great little lathe and will turn a 12" bowl. I had a Delta midi that only turned 10" but when I got the Rikon I sold the Delta. IMHO I wouldn't waste the money on VS. It only takes seconds to change a belt and you don't lose any torque at the slow speed.

[Nancy Laird]

There are other mini/midis out there than Jet and Rikon. Try looking at Delta, Steel City, and Woodtek for starters. Jet and Rikon aren't the only fish in the sea!

Nancy

[Gary Herrmann]

Don't forget the blue one - Fisch. I've been very happy with mine.

[Shane Sura]

While I am brand new to turning I have the M-Power from Rockler. so far I have had no problems with it and have turned some pens a spindel and am starting on a bowl. It has good power and the Belt is easy to change. The bed is smooth and seems very well put together. Also if you go to their web site you can look at the item and it currently has three user feedbacks detailing other folks opinions. For someone like myself starting out I could not beat the 179 price. Only cost me 20 bucks to ship so it was great.

Shane

[Chris Barton]

The Oneway 1224 seems like a nice lathe...

[Jason Slutsky]

Warning - Novice turner $.02

I became the happy owner of a Rikon 70/100 a month ago and I love it. I've done a little work on a Jet mini and that's a great one too. As said above, I think the extra 2" clearance makes a big difference. Advantage of the Rikon? Spindle lock is nice when removing chucks. Very easy belt change.

[John Shattuck]

Thank you all for the input. I'm still confused, but now I know I'm not alone! Before finding this site, I had settled on the Nova DVR as my lathe to dream of (someday, when I've scraped up 2 spare grand, and all 4 kids are through college); but now I hear tell of a thing they call 'Stubby'...
I still don't know if the Griz is fixable. I have the parts, but have discovered I need a gear puller to (safely) get the pulley off the motor shaft. I fully expect that, if I ever get it all back together, I will find that 'one o't flayrods gone outa skew on treadle'. This is not a comment on Grizzly so much as my view of reality.
Again, thank you all, and I'm so glad I found this site!
John

[Lee DeRaud]

I'm an unashamed, totally biased, and fanatical Jet mini fan so take my opinion for what it's worth. For the $199 Feb sales price it's hard to beat. It has a known track record, many satisfied users, and seems to be popular in turning classes and clubs. That says a lot.No kidding: I've seen firsthand (and contributed to) the kind of abuse these things put up with in Woodcraft classes...not to mention close to a year of my hamfisted technique at home. The first word that comes to mind is "bulletproof".