Looking at Used Lathes

[Jim Koepke]

I am just learning about using a lathe.
I have found an old, about 50 year old, Craftsman lathe.
I think the man said $100. Would this be a good starter lathe?
He said it has a 16 inch swing by 48 inch ways. I have only talked to him on the phone so far.

jim

[Scott Hubl]

Pictures and a Model # would help ALOT to know what your looking at there.
Otherwise just too hard to comment on with the info you have so far.

[Wilbur Pan]

I am just learning about using a lathe.
I have found an old, about 50 year old, Craftsman lathe.
I think the man said $100. Would this be a good starter lathe?
He said it has a 16 inch swing by 48 inch ways. I have only talked to him on the phone so far.

jim

I don't know of any Craftsman lathe of that vintage that has a 16" swing. Typically the swing of 1950-60's era Craftsman lathes were in the 8-10" range.

If you are looking for a good beginner lathe, and it's not one of the monotube designs, it could be a good way to get into woodturning. One thing to check would be the type of thread on the spindle and what kind of morse taper the spindle and the tailstock have, as that might restrict the accessories available for the lathe.

[Dean Thomas]

Can we just kind of talk gently but pretty straight?

Used Craftsman lathes are frankly a crap shoot. Kind of like some of the discount house lathes that could be mentioned. If you get a really great cheapie, you have a pretty fair lathe, but usually not as good as the one that it closely resembles. USUALLY. Talking generalizations here, okay?

With used Crapsman, er CRAFTSman lathes, I've seen the gamut from "wow what a deal!" to "you paid for that anchor?" Bearings often are shot. Spindles are often bent. Parts are often missing and are often proprietary and not standard, thus not available as replacements. REALLY old Craftsman lathes frequently used industry standard sizes and designs and a LOT of metal. Those oldies were and are pretty amazing. Some new, easily available and STANDARD bearings, clean up the junk and rust and away you go.

Just be very, very careful to make sure that you can get what you need to make a whole lathe out of what you buy.

And, lastly, to assuage any hurt feelings, I know lots of folks who've purchased Griz and HF and other not-quite-brand-name lathes who are perfectly happy folks who turn out very nice work on their lathes, band saws, and drill presses. I do know a lot more of those owners who are not happy about their purchases, many of whom use the tools as shelves to hold the tools and parts for their new (or gently used) brand name tools. This is not a commercial for those few or against any others, just a caveat to kick some tires before you purchase unless you have a LOT more disposable cash that I do. ;)

One man's opinion, right?