Lathes

Lathes · 09-26-2008, 12:51 PM

Am wanting to purchase a new lathe. With all of the units on the market, not sure which way to go.
First, the small table top units are out.
Want a full size for some outboard (large) turnings.
Powermatic, Jet, Delta, Oneway or what? I am thinking that most are all about as good and each will have the usual flaws or drawbacks.
Hopefully, some of you can give your views on each one from use.
Notice, I did say views and not opinions!!!!!!!!!

Thanks to all that can help with this.

flyrod444 · 09-26-2008, 02:20 PM

I turn on a powermatic 3520B at the school shop I teach at and it is a good lathe for the money. This being said I own and turn on a 2 hp 1640 Oneway with outboard features at home. While I can do anything that I need on the PM the Oneway is more enjoyable to turn on and a bit stronger in its construction even if it is more compact in design. I like the PM, but I am going to tell you two things that I don't like. One of things I don't like about the 3520B is the length of the motor shaft. It so long that it will flex just enough if one gets aggressive with their cut, and cause the belt to slip and make a awful sound. The old 3520A has I very short motor shaft and does not make this sound if the belt slips, if it ever slips. The other thing I don't like on the PM is that it's large head stock is in the way a little when I am turning small stuff up towards the head stock. I turn and sell crow calls so this is a problem if I use the PM. The OneWay spindle projects out a little more and has a smaller designed headstock which helps when turning small pieces up close to the headstock. Oneways customer service is very good as well. The only down side to my ONEWAY is it is very long with the outboard attachments. You need a lot of room for it in your shop. I built my shop after I got it and made sure I had room for it. You need to decide what you want to turn on your lathe and pick the one that best suits what you need. One lathe you might want to include is the Stuby. It is one of the best bowl lathes on the market. A lot of Pro's use it if that means anything.
Happy Shopping,
Jack

SteveColes · 09-26-2008, 02:26 PM

From another thread looking for the same thing. It also has outboard turning.

Originally Posted by SteveColes

Mac, Woodcraft is having a sale on the Nova DVR XP. $2199 => 1799 IMHO, this is the most under appreciated lathe on the market. I have it and can't think of anything that I would want instead, except perhaps one of the ginormous Oneways.

If you are willing to spend this type of money, then this is the one to get. 2 hp when wired for 220. Continuous variability from 100 - over 3000 rpm. Ability to save 5 preset speeds.

WoodWrangler · 09-26-2008, 02:49 PM

What do you want to turn?

I too was in the same boat recently and look at every model out there and then did a lot of research on the internet, posted in this forum, and got my hands on a couple of machines. For my level of knowledge and practical use, I ended up picking the PM 3520B with 18" extension. Why? Well, no one reason -- but in the end it was a balance of feedback, research, money, and practicality.

Since this thread has Oneway and Nova in comparison, I'll use those as my examples of my thinking ...

Oneway is excellent, but penny for penny I couldn't justify the difference in price. Without a doubt it's build well and that company is producing some fine stuff. However, the 16" swing was not what I wanted -- I wanted more without having to outboard it -- which then took me into the larger Oneway, which cost a lot more.

The Nova is a nice little lathe and I've actually turned on it a couple times -- it is very smooth and priced much lower, however it's not very heavy, even with the legs, and the variable speed is digital without a quick-access knob (not sure how big an issue this really is though, but made my "con" list). On the plus side ... it looks cool, it's high quality, it does support outboard turning, it's about 1/2 the price on sale (which leaves a lot of room for accessories), and it's readily available (Woodcraft sells it) -- oh yeah, and Steve vouches for it.

Sorry for the rambling ... but I just went thru the same thing I thought I'd share my "views".

woodArtz · 09-26-2008, 06:58 PM

Here's a lathe review you might want to check out in our download section.

http://www.ncwoodworker.net/forums/d...do=file&id=170