Of beauties and lemons Re: Jet 1642 EVS-2 lathe

[Sal Kurban]

Dear fellow turners:

I received my lathe and after some help from the forum, I managed to get it wired with the help of a friend. Now I have to decide if

i) it is a beauty at heart but with minor blemishes
ii) it is a lemon

Here are the issues:

1) it has got paint chipping especially along the edges with some scaling
2) the motor has a very strong "hissing" sound especially at lower speeds (between 1-1000 rpms)
3) the steel shaft that protrudes on the head stock on the left (whatever it is called) is not straight; it kinda wobbles a bit and is visibly so at low speeds.

Please help me decide whether these are expected or there is something to be rectified.

[Dean Matthews]

Dear fellow turners:

I received my lathe and after some help from the forum, I managed to get it wired with the help of a friend. Now I have to decide if

i) it is a beauty at heart but with minor blemishes
ii) it is a lemon

Here are the issues:

1) it has got paint chipping especially along the edges with some scaling
2) the motor has a very strong "hissing" sound especially at lower speeds (between 1-1000 rpms)
3) the steel shaft that protrudes on the head stock on the left (whatever it is called) is not straight; it kinda wobbles a bit and is visibly so at low speeds.

Please help me decide whether these are expected or there is something to be rectified.

I would personally overlook the paint thing. unless they are doing really good paint jobs with proper baking techniques what you described seems to happen a lot. My Jet Mini has some cracking but no rust so it doesn't freak me out to bad.

The hissing thing... not sure what to say about that. Dirty power maybe?

Not sure about #3. Are you talking about the actual spindle that you put the wood onto? Is it actually wobbling or is it an optical illusion with the threads?

[Tom Keen]

hmmm... call customer support at Jet.. the number is in your manual. Complain, alot. Paint I wouldnt worry about. The "hissing" sound may be normal. Mine has a whiney sounds that is normal. But.. the wobble the is disconcerting. Im assuming you are talking about the hand piece that is attached to the rear of the spindle (on the left side of the headstock). Try removing the aluminum hand piece and see if the wobble is in the spindle itself....but as I said, I would CS and discuss all of this with them. Ive found them very helpfull.

Good Luck,
Tom

[Jack Norfleet]

I have the same lathe and love it. When I first got it I posted a question about the motor whine and the consensus was that it was the normal sound of the motor and VFD. As for the wobble, definitely call Jet. I chipped some paint during installation but it isn't an issue with me.

[Steve Schlumpf]

Sal - I have the same lathe as you and I love it!

If you are not pleased with the lathe - for any reason - call customer support and inform them!

1) paint will chip on you with time and use anyway - specially around the face of the headstock and the tool rest banjo and as long as it doesn't rust - no big deal. Just make sure you put some paste wax over the chipped out area.

2) the whine you hear is the variable frequency drive - it's normal and you will eventually get used to it.

3) the handwheel is an aluminum shaft connected to the motor side of the spindle. There are a couple of set-screws that attach it to the rear of the spindle. Loosen the set-screws, make sure the handwheel is seated flush with the rear of the spindle and re-tighten the set screws. A lot of things vibrate loose during shipping and hopefully it is as simple as that. If that didn't fix it - then call support as this part should not wobble and either it or the spindle has been bent.

Best of luck to you and be sure to let us know what you find out!

[Tom Steyer]

I think that Steve and others are correct. Certainly, don't worry about your first two concerns. Mine has some minor paint chip/flake out of the box, but that has not gotten worse and seems to have stabilized. The motor/EVS does make a little whine type noise that varies with speed - as Steve said, in short order you don't even hear it. As for the hand wheel, mine runs perfectly true, and certainly yours should as well. I do believe that the likely cause is it not being seated squarely on the spindle end. As has bees suggested, loosen the two set screws (several turns) take it off the shaft and examine the shaft and the inside of the handwheel for flaws or obstructions. While you are at that point, run the lathe and check for any visual signs of wobble on the left spindle end. Most likely is some problem with the handwheel, not the spindle

[Wilbur Pan]

The wobble I would be concerned with.

As far as the paint goes, I had a similar issue with a JDS dust collector that I have. I just called up JDS and had them send me some touch up paint and fixed it myself. Maybe Jet can do the same thing.

[Dale Gregory]

First, let me vent:mad:. Estes Trucking called me this afternoon and the driver asked me if I had a way of unloading my Drill Press??? What the heck are you talking about, it's a lathe and no, you have a lift truck to unload it with, right?. Oh, ok, well it may just say that on the bill of laden and no, I'm driving a 50' semi :eek:. I said, take it back to your terminal and don't even bother coming any farther, you can't get that beast in my driveway. So I call and the gal there apologized and said they will deliver tomorrow with a lift truck....we shall see and hopefully it's a 2hp Jet lathe not Drill Press:confused:

As for your lathe, yes, expect some minor chips, my Jet bandsaw had peeling paint on the bottom of the enclosure, wax all surfaces, and definately check out the wobble on the alum. hand piece. That also acts as your mount for a vaccum system if you want to go that route down the road so it shouldn't wobble. Good luck!

Dale

[Andrew Harkin]

Pretty much the same responses as everyone else, except for one small thing to add on the noise issue. I also have a 1642, and during the warmer months, there is not much in the way of motor noise, however, I do notice that I get a very distinct whine/hiss during the colder months, especially if I start messing with it before heating the shop up first. It doesn't seem to hurt anything, and in my case, it fades to a level that's easily ignored once it gets up above 55 or so.

[Raymond Overman]

There is an audible whine with the VFD. I was used to it on my old lathe so I didn't even think about it when I set the new one up. I did notice a few paint chips but they weren't bad enough to really worry about. The left hand of the spindle wobbling would definitely worry me. Have you checked the alignment at the headstock and tailstock by sliding the live center and spur center together and checking for runout?


First, let me vent:mad:. Estes Trucking called me this afternoon and the driver asked me if I had a way of unloading my Drill Press??? What the heck are you talking about, it's a lathe and no, you have a lift truck to unload it with, right?. Oh, ok, well it may just say that on the bill of laden and no, I'm driving a 50' semi :eek:. I said, take it back to your terminal and don't even bother coming any farther, you can't get that beast in my driveway. So I call and the gal there apologized and said they will deliver tomorrow with a lift truck....we shall see and hopefully it's a 2hp Jet lathe not Drill Press:confused:

Dale, the 50ft semi that came to my house had a lift gate. The driver had a pallet jack and pulled my lathe up a fairly steep hill all the way to the back edge of my patio within 25 feet of my shop. Yes, I tipped him for the service.

I planned ahead when I put in my order though and made sure that I put "Residential delivery. Lift gate required." in the customer notes so I wouldn't have a problem. I learned that lesson when I ordered my band saw from Grizzly.

As for the drill press or lathe issue. The delivery scheduler probably never looked at the 379 lb box that has lathe written in big letters on the side so you're probably ok. Good luck.

[Dale Gregory]

There is an audible whine with the VFD. I was used to it on my old lathe so I didn't even think about it when I set the new one up. I did notice a few paint chips but they weren't bad enough to really worry about. The left hand of the spindle wobbling would definitely worry me. Have you checked the alignment at the headstock and tailstock by sliding the live center and spur center together and checking for runout?

I planned ahead when I put in my order though and made sure that I put "Residential delivery. Lift gate required." in the customer notes so I wouldn't have a problem. I learned that lesson when I ordered my band saw from Grizzly.

As for the drill press or lathe issue. The delivery scheduler probably never looked at the 379 lb box that has lathe written in big letters on the side so you're probably ok. Good luck.




Dale, the 50ft semi that came to my house had a lift gate. The driver had a pallet jack and pulled my lathe up a fairly steep hill all the way to the back edge of my patio within 25 feet of my shop. Yes, I tipped him for the service.


Ray, I ordered the home delivery and lift gate service from the start. First issue was whoever the wholesaler is didn't forward that to Estes, 2nd issue is that Este screwed up even after talking to them. Hopefully, it will all be good after today. We have had about 4 inches of rain, so there is no way I can 2 wheel it through the yard to the basement, I'll have to go piece by piece down the steps in the house.

Dale

[Sal Kurban]

Thank y'all for your informative responses. If I am to update you, I can say that the paint thing seems to be the easiest. Jet has agreed to send touch up paint that will resolve the issue.

The handwheel issue is also resolved thanks to the feedback I received: I removed the aluminum hand wheel and it was not straight in its housing. When I put it back carefully, the wobbling cannot be noticed. BTW the headstock and tailstock do perfectly line up together.


As for the noise I think it is a bit unusual but am working on a resolution. I have used two lathes of its sibling the JET 1642 EVS (1.5 HP regular voltage version) and they did not have the whining/hissing noise. Can it be that the 2HP 220V version has a noise and the 1.5 HP 115V version does not? Does it have anything to do with the voltage you think?


A final note about purchase & delivery: this lathe was very easy to get to "my temple" in the basement. But I had to do it in pieces. I bought the lathe from Woodcraft for $1500 with a $150 gift certificate rebate. Plus tax it came to $1450; still $50 less than the Rockler deal. But I had to pick it from Woodcraft (no biggie since like most "wood loving people" I have a pick up truck). It did not hurt that the manager at Woodcraft is a former student of mine ;)

[Sal Kurban]

I would like to update everybody on the latest:

I tested the voltage on the current and it was fine. Now when I turn the lathe on, it does not start. I has to warm up for few minutes and I need to switch it on and off to start it. Is this normal? The whining is way too high as compared to similar two lathes I used in the past.

[Dale Gregory]

Sal, I think you have a problem with your VFD and/or off-on switch. Mine starts immediately, as soon as you pull out the start knob and increase the speed control dial, no delay of any kind. Not being funny, but have you checked to make sure you are getting 230v by checking both hot wires in your outlet (or if you only check 1 hot plus ground you will get 115v).

Dale

[Sal Kurban]

Sal, I think you have a problem with your VFD and/or off-on switch. Mine starts immediately, as soon as you pull out the start knob and increase the speed control dial, no delay of any kind. Not being funny, but have you checked to make sure you are getting 230v by checking both hot wires in your outlet (or if you only check 1 hot plus ground you will get 115v).

Dale

First, congratulations on the arrival of your beautiful lathe; I saw a picture and it did not seem to have paint chipping. Mine has paint chipping everywhere!

Yes I did test the voltage with a digital voltage meter and it reads between 250-252V. I called Woodcraft where I purchased it and they are contacting tech support to possibly replace the VFD + motor. It is a matter of luck I guess.

Thanks for the feedback.

Sal.

[Dale Gregory]

Sal, good luck on your VFD. It's a shame you are having this string of bad luck. I have a few chips on top of the headstock housingbut it's not too bad, nothing like your situation. I hope it al works out for you.

Dale