Website for Vicmark lathes??

[Mikko]

Is there one? Google gave me nothing.

As I mentioned in my previous post, Records and Cobra are the standard tools of the trade up here.
Problem is that they are tad too light for making VERY large bowls due to 3/4hp motor and their overall weight.

My teacher mentioned Vicmark lathes as one good option.

They are apparently made in OZ and are solid as #%&?.
Are there any other Oz made lathes I should take a look at?

Convert me!;)

Many thanks,
Mikko

[Sprog]

http://www.vicmarc.com/start.html

[Mikko]

Thanks!
Beats me why Google did not spot this......

Cheers,
Mikko

[RETIRED]

Try the DVR.


http://www.teknatool.com/

[lyctus]

Mikko,
Vicmarc Lathes stand head and shouders above the competion. The quality is excellent, the VL175SEVSM with infinitely variable speed with high torque all the way, on board electronic read-outs and Fwd/Reverse takes some beating.
Go for it !
Geoff

[Mikko]

Looks pretty good to me!:-)

Only thing that I'm slightly concerned is the very limited over bed capacity.
Vicmark VL 300 allows plenty.

This outrigger of Nova seems pretty neato to me.

How is the price compared to VL 300?
I managed to find price only for Nova 3000.

In all honesty, the prices for Vickmark VL 300 seem astronomical!!
Re-rigged Graduates tend to cost half of that!
Keep it coming guys!
I'm VERY grateful for your assistance.:)

Cheers,
Mikko

[Cliff Rogers]

G'day.

I have a Vicmarc VL300ESVX, complete with Terry Baker's Autograph on it. :D

It's my favourite lathe, I've had up to 5 lathes at one stage & I still have 4. :rolleyes:

I haven't tried the DNR but I have seen one, it seemed a bit 'lightweight'
compared to my Vicmarc.

I have a Jet JML-1014 Mini Lathe for small stuff & I throw it in the back of
the ute to go to Turnout weekends.... the Vicmarc is too heavy for that.
I like the Jet but I love the Vicmarc & could do without the Jet if it wasn't
so portable.

I have a Childs Master Chuck,
Bonham 130 Lever acton Scroll Chuck,
a Teknatool Supernova T bar chuck,
a cheap chinese/tiwanese Mini Nova (copy?) lever action chuck &
2 Vicmarc VL140 Lever action Uni-chucks.

I use the Vicmarcs for my heavy work, roughing out etc.
One has a set of step jaws on it & the other has a set of shark jaws.
I use the Childs Master chuck on my old ShopSmith.
The Bonham goes on my giant, home-made, pedestal lathe.
The Mini Nova goes on the Jet & the Supernova can go on the Jet &
the Vicmarc & I have Cole jaws & pin jaws for it & it is used for
my finishing work.

Anyway, enough bragging, the Vicmarc stuff is damned good but the
Teknatool Supernova chuck is also very good quality, it is finished in
such a manner that it doesn't go rusty like all the others do.

[Little Festo]

I also have a Vicmarc 300 variable speed. it is a very solid dturdy lathe. i would imaging the larger engilsh lathes would of similar build (graduates etc) and would be a little cheaper due to freight costs (could be wrong??).

I have used a Nova DVR and it is a good lathe but definatly dosen't have the same feel as the Vicmark 300 - mind you there is a difference the price of the lathe and accessories but the Nova feels flimsy in comparison. The tool rest and tailstock is about half of the weight or less. All of the Nova's weight seems to be in the motor which by all accounts is the lathes strong point.

It all comes down to cost, the Nova's offer good value and quality in their price range but if you want to turn larger pieces the extra bulk and strength of build in the bigger Vicmarks and larger lathes is reassuring. When I retire my wife says she'll buy me an "Omega Stubby" - come on old age.

I have a very large Mahogany blank (approx 580mm in diameter X 400 approx) that I will be roughing out on the weekend that will test the lathe. The blank is too heavy for me to lift on my own.

All the Best Peter from Darwin.

[rsser]

The Vicmarc 175 comes with a stand, is 1 m between centres, and has a really solid outboard turning setup - a heavy steel post that transmits the forces to the floor, not to the stand.

[Mikko]

Thanks guys.....

Now I'm even more confused.:o

Yes, price is an important factor here for sure.
But then again, there is nothing I hate more than buying something and immediately noticing that I need to upgrade soon.

DVR motor seems VERY appealing to me. Then again, the rest of the body may be too light for some of the work I plan on doing.

The motor on 175 is 750W.....
That makes it a no-go to me.

I do not need much between the centres capacity....I really meant swing, sorry.:o

Peter, please let me know how that mahogany piece worked out.
It's pretty close to the largest pieces I can find up here...and our species are not even close to being that heavy.

To be honest, the DVR with 2hp motor is still looking better to me as I'm not that fond of fiddling with bands.

Also, our native timber is not as heavy as the stuff you lucky folks have down there.

What about making DVR more "heavy" by making heavier legs for it??
I'll bolt is to the floor for sure and can easily have a superheavy platform made for it.

The outrigger for Nova seems more than satisfactory to me....I'm used to that flimsy Record thingy.

Vicmark totally reeks of quality and solidity, but....I really find it hard to justify the pricetag (my car goes for less) and DVR simply seems much more hasslefree to me.

I'll turn some larger pieces from time to time, but most of the work will probably be considerably less than 700mm in diametre and the blanks likely to weigh less than 25kgs. Will DVR handle this if I make sure it has reasonable amount of ballast and bolted to floor?

Now that you know the needs, will DVR manage?
Current puny Record 0.75Hp motor sure can not.

Thanks,
Mikko

[rsser]

Difficult choice Mikko.

The 175 has two speed ranges - so you get to change belts for low speed and extra torque - and in the UK it's now being advertised as having a 1.5hp motor rather than the 1hp.

But the DVR seems to me to have better electronics and the virtue of direct drive. You can buy bed extensions if you need to, and build your own stand.

[Mikko]

So you recon bolting it to a 1 ton block of steel and concrete would do the trick?:-)
The bed is so short that if it is well mounted on supersolid platform I dare to trust that there will be very little or no play. There appears to be very good securing points on the bed

Any takers for this setup?

Thanks,
Mikko

[rsser]

Mikko, one of the turners posting in the virtual world of the web whom I respect the most, Lyn Mangiamelli, has a DVR 3000. Search rec.crafts.woodturning for his posts.

He likes the DVR, and that counts for a lot as far as I'm concerned.

I have the 175 but it was a close call vis a vis the DVR. At that time three years ago, the DVR wouldn't go slower than about 250 rpm if i remember and that was a clincher for me (and its lousy outrigger). That's now changed I believe and it will go slower. And you don't need to change belts to get the full speed range.

You can make your own stand, or get one welded up for you. You just need a heavy level top. In fact, I did that with the 175 just to save a few bucks - I bought the bench version.

In fact, if you're going to do a lot of bowls and deep hollow forms, a short bed is a good idea because you can stand in front of them. A swivelling headstock is fine as long as the banjo and rest will reach our far enough in front of the piece.

Hope this helps,

Ern

[Mikko]

Many thanks Ern,

That's pretty much what I wanted to hear.

DVR it is then. If I get rich one day, I'll go for the Vicmark 300...maybe.

As I understand the DVR is currently capable of going 100RPM...so that's sorted.

If you do not mind me bothering you once more....
What is the problem with the outrigger?
Compared to Record, this one seems luxurious!!!
This is a minor problem really as I can always construct my own....the Vicmark way if needed.

You guys have been of great assistance. My humble thanks. *bows*

I do not know why I'm drawn to OZ forums with all my hobbies...
Same happened with spearfishing...
Odd.

Cheers,
Mikko

[rsser]

Yeah, that's what I recall ... down to 100rpm. Nice kit - you won't regret it.

When I was last researching, the outrigger was attached to the bed and a bit on the flimsy side. May have been beefed up since. Some people fabricate their own on the principle of a standard fan - wide base, heavy post etc.

It's all about reducing chatter and vibration. I'm a fan of minimal overhang for this reason - except when I'm flinging the motorbike around the twisties :-} ... A solid post on a stable base; heavy curved tool rests of different radii for bowl turning matched with small gouges and fine cuts. Cuts down on the sanding!

Oz turners on the web are wise, generous, modest and humorous - that's why you're drawn to us ;-} Now where'd I leave the toilet paper?

(PS what drew you to Finland?)

[smidsy]

Hei Mikko,
You might be interested in google.com.au - it allows you to search for pages only from Australia.
Cheers
Paul

[rsser]

Hey Paul,
Aren't you three hours ahead of us east-coasters? Shouldn't you be still down at the pub?!!
Ern

[gatiep]

The VL-175 is available in Australia with a 1.1 Kw, ( 1.5 hp ) motor on special order for around Aud 3600. I have one and the minimum speed is 62 RPM.


Have a good weekend

:)

[Mikko]

Thanks Ern!

I have noticed that I tend to "improve" all my gear one way or the other.
This one will be no different in anyway it seems. Adding a supporting post can not hurt here.

What drew me to Finland???
Was born here......will that be good enough?
I'm 100% Finnish....and proud of it...I think.:rolleyes:

OK...that pretty much wraps this one up.
Thank you all and have a nice one...I'm of to pub.:D

Cheers,
Mikko

[smidsy]

Hei Ern,
Perth is two hours behind the east coast, but I'd rather have a few mates round and drink here - cheaper than the pubs and no booze buses to worry about.

Mikko, that part of the world must be beautiful, my sister was born and bred in sunny Western Australia and she now calls a suburb of Oslo home - and I have to admit that you guys sure know how to drive a rally car.
Cheers
Paul

[Mikko]

Back from them pub to destroy a neat bin of Barossa....
Yes, Finland is VERY beautiful during the Summer and Spring....rest is sheer misery.
Norway...do not get me started.....
It's more like NZ South Island. We go to Kristiansund in Norway once or twice a year to do some phenomenal spearing, lobstering an scalloping.
Norway rocks!!!
We have more neat turnable wood though...but no mountains or proper sea....:-[
Sweden is the pits IMHO.
Oh...some of us do how to play the wheel.....I sure do not.
It must be this weather from hell that is making SOME finns good drivers.
Now I'm just waiting that it will have similar effect on my turning...

Perth....ah....
One day I'll come over to slam one of your great Dhufish.:-)

Cheers,
Mikko

[Jim Carroll]

Mikko you would not be dissapointed with the DVR lathe. There is a lot of contention over the build of the lathe compared with the VL175. If you put them side by side most people would look at the VL175 and say what a solid lathe. The comparison is DVR 90kg and the VL175 190kg.
The electronics in the lathes is the main differance . The VL uses good electronics with belt drive. The DVR has the advantage of being direct drive so no loss of power from the motor through belts and pulleys to the headstock spindle. On some lathes this can mean a loss of up to 20%. With smart technology which means when you increase the load the torque increases, when the load decreases the torque reduces. It is making changes for you all the time to keep a constant speed at what you have set. This is one advantage the DVR has over any variable speed lathe.
With the new electronics coming out these days they can regulate the amount of torque coming out of the motor but are unable to set them to increase under load. As ern has indicated when these DVR's first came out there was some settings everone was concerned about. You now have a starting default speed of 500 rpm a low speed of 100 rpm and a top speed of 3500 rpm. You can increase the speed by 5 rpm incriments or by holding your finger on the keypad you can scroll up quickly.
The outrigger if set up properly will give you no trouble at all. You have your normal fastening points on the lathe bed. at the left hand end of the headstock is 2 x 12mm bolt holes in the casting which you bolt from underneath. The outrigger is bolted to the outside of the headstock casting with 2 bolts and there is provision for 2 bolts to bolt this to your bench. As long as you have all these in position you will have no problems. This is where people early in the peace came unstuck as they were not advised of all the fastening points, and they were getting a transfer of vibration from the bowl blank up to the toolrest.
You can use the existing toolrest for peices up to 400mm over the lathe bed or move the headstock to the 22 degree or 45 degree position . You need the outrigger for the 90 degree position and can turn up to 740mm.
As with any lathe if you are starting with something that is a bit out of round and out of balance the slower you can go the better and as long as you have a suitable base you should have no problems.
I hope this helps. :D

[Alastair]

Hi Guys

I am weighing into this late, as I was not on line over the weekend.

I have just gone through this same process, so will include my comments FWIW.

The Vic 200 was my first "wish", as I was not completely sold on the variable speed option, since the torque reduces with the speed, just when you want it. On the variables, Vic have addressed this by increasing the motor size, and including a 'high/low' pulley. The DVR has done it by a revolutionary motor design, and with the electronics.

My concern with the DVR was that with the revolutionary motor, also comes exclusivity. If you have a problem with the motor, you are locked in to NOVA, and their supply, delivery and pricing. I have been led to believe that the headstock enclosed motor is not servicable, (I may be corrected on this). At least with the Vic, the motor can be replaced with a stock item, and probably the electronics as well. In addition, the headstock is separate to the drive. The Vic, however does not have the advantage of the swivelling head, which makes up for the lower swing.

I finally settled for the NOVA 3000, with 8 belt speeds, on basically the same bed and frame as the DVR. My premise, based on the pricing at the time, was that I could not justify the difference between the nova 3000 and the Vic VL200 manual (6 speed), ($1500 cf $2500) . I have been led to believe that the 3000 has gone up by $500, which would probably reverse that decision now, as the construction of the Vic is superior.
I also rationalised, that with 8 speeds, I could add aftermarket frequency control to the 3000, and have the advantages of both worlds.

While loading my new unit into the car, I was given some confirmation of my choice: The headstock side of the box dropped six inches onto the ground, and the comment from the dealer was that it was just as well that it was the 3000, as such an impact had been known to wreck the electronics on the DVR

In the variables, with the DVR and the Vic VL 175 both in the region of $3000, I would stay with the VIC given my concerns above.

Hope my 2c hasn't clouded the issue.

Alastair.

PS To date I can't fault my choice. Variable would be nice, but with belt speeds down to 178, and a simple eye-level belt change, I am not suffering too much. The unit is lighter than the VIC, but has taken everything I can throw at it, including out of balance, square log blanks 450mm in diameter. This was on the swivel, and using the standard banjo. With the outrigger, there would be few limits.

[Mikko]

Very valuable info. Many thanks indeed.

Cheers,
Mikko

[Richard Casey]

Hey, Mikko why would you want to buy light weight kiwi stuff when you could get a pommy VB36, from what I have read they could be one of the best in the world and they are just across the ditch from you .

[Mikko]

Well...why don't I!!:-)
I have never heard of this lathe before.
It is pretty much all I could ever hope.....for only ~EUR1000,00 more than Vicmark.

I clearly do not read enough mags...

It may still be that I'll get DVR first as I need a new lathe soon and getting +£3500 is not that easy for me now.

Thanks a million for letting me know of this.

Cheers,
Mikko