All, I'd appreciate a little wisdom please:

I'm in the market for my first lathe. I'd like to buy new for my first lathe, the conventional wisdom seems to have been buy something like a Delta 1460 used, but I am not nearly proficient enough at changing bearings and the like to take that route yet. Also, the odd one that comes up on CL tends to be much further north than where I am in GA. Like PA!

So, I think I want a mini/midi lathe to get going with, which can be inexpensively extended to do things like table legs. Bowls interest me, but less so smaller items like pens.

The two models I have seen are both Jets, the 1014 and the 1220. The 1014 can be had with VS, for almost the same money as the 1220. However, the 1220 can turn bigger bowls, and is more substantial. I think if I got the 1220, I would be Ok with that for a number of years, with a bed extension a year or so down the road. However, the VS model of the 1220 would run me about $250 more, and that makes it unaffordable. The 1014 can be had for $350, the 1220 for $379. The $29 difference is immaterial, but I do not know which way to judge the VS feature on the 1014 vs the extra capacity & weight of the 1220.

Or is there a different approach I could take for the same kind of outlay?

Many thanks in advance.