What accessories have you gotten for your lathe.............vacuum chuck system, steady rest, extra tool rests, etc? Which of them has helped you the most in your turning? Your info might just help new turners to avoid spending on things they will eventually find they did not need. I have a Hold Fast Vacuum system with both the 3" and 6" chuck heads, and 4 inch one I made. I use it a good bit, and also a Jeff Nicol steady rest..............man is that thing solid and useful! I have about 4 different rests for my G0698........I like the robust 6 inch low profile rest.........it really helps getting in close for finial work..
I don't actually have my lathe yet (shipping January 12, I hope), so I'm one of the new turners who may benefit from this thread. I ordered the Grizzly 3-3/4" chuck with accessory jaws and a new insert for my 8" faceplate. I'm planning to get an outboard extension from Busy Bee tools and have a 1/2" #2 MT drill chuck on my shopping list at Amazon. That's what I'm going to start with, and I may treat myself to a Thompson gouge or scraper and a mini detail or mini hollowing set from PSI. I've been looking at curved (bowl) tool rests, but haven't decided yet. I think I'll experiment with some homemade steadies, vacuum chuck and articulated hollowing tool before I spend more money on those accessories. BTW, Laguna sent me an e-mail offering their 18-47 lathe at 10% off for Christmas, with $99 shipping. That brings it within $240 of the Grizzly. I wish I knew for sure that Grizzly will ship on January 12.
Doug, I think Grizzly is usually pretty reliable on their ship dates..........back when a few machines had an issue with the circuit board in the inverter [all fixed now from what I understand] the demand outstripped supply...........I think they are doing better now.........I have not heard of complaints about shipping as of late............ You can always call tech support and ask if they think the shipping date is pretty much on target. On my lathe, I actually got it earlier than they promised...by about 10 days........I hope your experience is similar.
Doug, PSI has a few good tools I could recommend, that I have and really like. One would be there inboard bowl scrapers there heavy duty and work great. also there 3 pc. tool rest #cltset1 for $29.95. You need to take a flapper wheel on a grinder and re size the 1" post a little smaller due to the fact grizzly's banjo is drilled metric which is just small of a inch. I re-cut the 12" rest to 6" for smaller work. I also use there barracuda4 chuck kit runs true and holds very well. Like Roger I have the holdfast vac chuck. The 1/2" #2 MT drill chuck is a nice item to have I use mine quit often. I still need a steady rest, and a monster hollowing system. The want list never ends.
