I am interested in upgrading my current lathe. I mostly do spindle turning for furniture (chairs, table legs etc..). I am considering the Delta 46-756 and General 25-650, although I’m open to suggestions to anything in their price range (=/- $2000.00). I love the Oneway lathes but cannot afford the price tag. Does anyone have experience with either of these machines and/or recommendations? Thanks.
Willie
Replies
Yanks -
Don't have any experience with the General lathe but have seen it at WW shows. It's a nice hefty piece of machinery that I wouldn't mind having in my shop. I'm not that impressed with the Delta line of lathes but I have to confess that I haven't seen the bigger models, just the benchtops.
Have you considered the Powermatics?
The price of the Powermatics scares me away. I am interested in the General machines because of the optional bed extension in order to make turned ladder back type chairs.
Yanks -For spindle turning you definitely don't need the kind of heft in either the OneWay or big Powermatics, that I agree. Harbor Freight (egadz) sells a Jet knockoff that's gotten some pretty good press. Up the ante a bit and look at the Nova if you haven't already. Electronic controls for speed control is a real nice feature to have. I haven't ever used the Nova but comments read here and elsewhere have pretty much all been positive. The direct drive motor-in-headstock looks like a good design, too.
4 yanks--------I know the feeling about the Powermatic lathes, but...........I bit the bullet and bought the 3520. They are expensive but an excellent machine. I turned and sold enough bud vases in one craft season to more than pay for it. It is good enough machine to do the work and it does not try to walk across the room if you chuck up a natural piece of stock(as in log form) 16" long.
I just recently purchase an 18" bed extension for it, they also have a 50" ext. available. I don't regret buying the Powermatic---------just regret waiting so long to do it.
Best wishes in making your decision!!
Jerry
You might try looking at the larger Jet 1642. It has electronic controls cast iron legs and is pretty hefty. I managed to get mine for around $1600 by waiting for a Jet promotional sale. the others already mention here are also good choices
Just curious as to why you want to upgrade your lathe if you're only turning spindles?
There are 2 reasons. The first is that I am interested in finding a lathe that can turn longer spindles for chair backs (the General International offers an 18" extension as an option). The second is mass. My grizzly lathe has been good but it is fairly lightweight and does jump around a bit with weighty turnings (I make Jacobean and William and Mary furniture). This is particularly troubling for me in that I want to turn chair backs that are sawn with a rake for the back. This will require some counter-balancing, exagerating the mass of the turning and in turn my vibration problems.
Update:
Since I started looking I found that several people recommend the Jet 16"x42" lathe. After doing some reading I think I may want to go with this machine. It comes in 220v and 110v. The price difference is a couple of hundred dollars, but more importantly it is stocked locally only in the 110v configuration. I would prefer to give a local vendor my business but don't want to be disappointed. I am already wired for 220v so this isn't an issue. Does anyone have experience with this lathe? If so can you make a recommendation on which motor to get.
Edited 2/5/2006 10:09 am ET by 4yanks
Yanks -I think the Jet 1642 is the same lathe our club purchased recently for club demos and such. It's a pretty nice hefty piece of equipment and should handle your spindle turnings quite well. I applaud your leaning towards supporting your local vendor!Good luck.....Turn safely
I appreciate your input. However, I am replacing a Grizzly as I mentioned earlier. I will not buy another.
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