wanted to try - Stubby

[Neil Strong]

With the bed extension mounted in the low position I have a 32” swing on my Laguna 1836. The extension comes with the riser for the tail stock and an extension for the tool rest. I have used it to turn 24” offset platters.

Yes, John, the Laguna 18/36 ticks a lot of boxes, as does also their 24/36, but who needs to regularly turn up to 36”, let alone 40” on a Stubby!? A Laguna is a good option for those that have a workshop layout that accommodates larger swing turning on the tailstock end of the lathe.

I did pick up a third full sized lathe, a Vicmarc 240 which is the one with the pivoting headstock... there is an outboard banjo set up so you can turn almost down to the floor. The post on it rests on the floor. I did find that awkward to move around, at least compared to the banjo when mounted on the ways.

Yes, Reed, that Vicmarc 240 is one of the best options on offer in the heavy duty lathes if you prefer a pivoting head, which I do. Being on the lighter side myself, I did find the Vicmarc outboard turning rig to be quite heavy to maneuver.

https://vicmarc.com/product-page/lathe-accessories/outboard-turning-attachment-detail

I found a DIY free standing tripod toolpost stand quicker to reposition.

A 24" swing lathe may be in my future, and would be big enough 99.9% of the time. I do know a fellow turner with a Oneway with the big outboard setup who would probably let me use it for a special occasion.

Good strategy, Kevin. And that arrangement might be mutually beneficial if you were to have a piece of kit, like a hollowing rig or set of bowl corers, to share with them.

---

The new Woodfast WL30/40A - Rikon 730 3040 might be another option for those who don't mind doing all of their turning inboard and want up to a 30" swing. I've been turning on Woodfasts for over 50yrs and they have all been good lathes, but they have gone through some ownership and manufacture changes in recent years, so I don't know about the quality of the Rikons. Having the option to go as low as 20rpm can be useful.

A couple of years ago I ran a thread on our woodturning forum down here to provide a side by side comparison of the larger lathes available here. Those A$ prices would be mostly out of date now, but note that no prices were forthcoming for Stubby... I think you may have to know the secret handshake to get that!

https://www.woodworkforums.com/f8/la...stralia-238070

Has anyone done something similar on the Creek?

[roger wiegand]

A Robust AB is almost as heavy as a Stubby, I'll bet if you ask Brent he can make you a short bed version if space is a major constraint. The sliding headstock makes it very easy to turn off the end of the lathe no matter the bed length.

[Kevin Jenness]

A Robust AB is almost as heavy as a Stubby, I'll bet if you ask Brent he can make you a short bed version if space is a major constraint. The sliding headstock makes it very easy to turn off the end of the lathe no matter the bed length.

The problem with turning outboard is the lack of a tailstock or a place to mount a typical captured hollowing system. I use the tailstock a lot to get the orientation of pieces right, and my Clark hollowing system mounts to the ways. The AB is a very good design for my purposes for up to 25" diameter and I may have one someday if I win the lottery. The Rikon 70-2040 is an intriguing design, similar to the Stubby with a bigger gap although the motorized moving bed seems unnecessarily complicated. It seems about as elusive as the Stubby too - I would definitely take a look at one if available.

[Mike Nathal]

One of my friends is researching Stubby as well as Robust and Oneway. He said the Stubby is substantially less expensive than a comparably equipped Oneway or American Beauty, including delivery.

[Neil Strong]

A Robust AB is almost as heavy as a Stubby… The sliding headstock makes it very easy to turn off the end of the lathe no matter the bed length.

IMO, that would make it a better option than the Stubby. IME, despite its adjustable beds, there are bits of the Stubby lathe that are still in the way if, like me, you prefer to turn unimpeded outboard or off the tailstock end of the lathe.

There were few sliding and swivel headstock lathes at the time the original Stubby was designed. Those that were available were innovative but not yet proven (eg Nova), so perhaps not thought to be the way to go with a heavy duty lathe like the Stubby. However, the sliding and swivel head lathes have been greatly improved and well proven since then.

25yrs is a long time for a woodturning lathe to not have gone through any further significant innovation, especially with so much competition in the lathe market nowadays. IMO, unless the Stubby ticks all of the boxes for you and is the only lathe that does something you really need it to do that other lathes can't, I don't expect it to be on many short lists.

One of my friends is researching Stubby as well as Robust and Oneway. He said the Stubby is substantially less expensive than a comparably equipped Oneway or American Beauty, including delivery.

Talking with Brent English a few years ago (on the last Norwegian woodturning cruise, so we had plenty of time to chat about such matters) he agreed that the cost of shipping and importing a Robust into Australia would put it at a disadvantage against our locally made lathes, like Vicmarc.

So, I’m surprised to hear that someone could buy, ship and import a Stubby the other way for less cost than local options like Oneway and Robust.

There have been some Stubby go into Hawaii, which is a little more understandable given the shipping cost would be similar either way mid-Pacific and also their penchant for turning extra large pieces.

https://youtu.be/GslfEkuxpcY

Although, that’s not a Stubby, but a DIY that Elmer Adams put together.

The problem with turning outboard is the lack of a tailstock or a place to mount a typical captured hollowing system. I use the tailstock a lot to get the orientation of pieces right, and my Clark hollowing system mounts to the ways. The AB is a very good design for my purposes for up to 25" diameter and I may have one someday if I win the lottery. The Rikon 70-2040 is an intriguing design, similar to the Stubby with a bigger gap although the motorized moving bed seems unnecessarily complicated. It seems about as elusive as the Stubby too - I would definitely take a look at one if available.

I agree, Kevin, the motorised sliding bed is an unnecessary gimmick that has only added unnecessary cost to that Woodfast/Rikon model. A crank handle would have been sufficient.

I can understand why some turners prefer to have their tailstock to assist with mounting blanks and why others use captured hollowing systems. I was turning for decades before the first captured hollowing rigs came along by which time I was so accustomed to freehand hollowing that I didn’t feel the need for what looked to me like complicated contraptions. But then, I rarely hollow deeper than about 12 to 15” or wider than about that.

Likewise, I have only ever turned bowls and hollow forms without a tailstock, no matter how large or irregular the blank. As I have to visualise what form I’m going to get from a block of wood before I cut the blank, how it then mounts on the lathe is already determined at that stage. I hated those old faceplates that we screwed our blanks to… and loved those scroll chucks when they came along in the 80s.