General Category > General Discussion
what's your dream lathe?
Bryan Milham:
Jaffa,
how long is a piece of string?
Or more seriously, what do you want to turn?
Pens & Bobbins need a small lathe,
Bowls & Platters (especially large ones), need a powerful motor to work against the torque created by the tool.
I'm (generally) a spindle turner, I need a long bed as opposed to a large swing over the bars.
A good general purpose lathe will have a 1kW motor, 12 to 14" swing and 28" to 30" bed length, but even this varies with manufacturers.
Twisted Trees:
Hi Jaffa,
You would probably be best served starting a new thread few lathes on this one are aimed at beginners.
However, the choice is very wide, it helps to have an idea of what you expect to be turning, and a budget area.
I have just traded up from my first lathe which was a Myford Mystro which coincidentally there is one advertised in the for sale section right now. Mine had the factory stand with it, but it was an excellent lathe very stable and turned some very heavy bits of wood over the 10 years I owned it.
burywoodturners:
--- Quote from: Twisted Trees on July 08, 2019, 10:18:27 PM ---Hi Jaffa,
You would probably be best served starting a new thread few lathes on this one are aimed at beginners.
--- End quote ---
OK I will do it for you Jaffa, most people get a really old lathe and then sak the question!
Ron
Mike313:
--- Quote from: Twisted Trees on July 08, 2019, 10:18:27 PM ---
I have just traded up from my first lathe which was a Myford Mystro
--- End quote ---
As a matter of interest, what lathe did you trade up to?
Twisted Trees:
--- Quote from: Mike313 on July 10, 2019, 10:44:52 AM ---
--- Quote from: Twisted Trees on July 08, 2019, 10:18:27 PM ---
I have just traded up from my first lathe which was a Myford Mystro
--- End quote ---
As a matter of interest, what lathe did you trade up to?
--- End quote ---
After a lot of looking, measuring, and head scratching I went for the Axminster 1628, with bed extension. The throw over the bed is what the Myford had on the bowl extension, and it can go up to 800mm with the extension fitted in lower position. This also allowed me to turn my lathe 90° in the workshop giving me a better use of my space. So far I am mostly happy, the only annoyance is the noisy cooling fan which is on all the time the lathe is powered. So once my workshop refit is done I will be taking it apart to see if I can put in a quieter cooling system.
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