Please Help

[Mr Shiraz]

Hi everyone,
After talking about it for the past twenty years i finally decided to try wood turning, so armed with a limited amount of dollars i went to buy a lathe but quickly found out that i knew nothing about wood lathes and dont know which to choose, so if anyone can point me in the right direction it would be appreciated.
The two that i was looking at are the Delta DE46715 from Carbatec at $699, and the Jet JWL1236 from Woodworking Warehouse at $950.
To my untrained eye their does'nt seem much difference between them and i dont know if they are good lathes or if there is anything better for around the same price so if anyone can offer any advise i would be very grateful.
Mr Shiraz.

[lubbing5cherubs]

Hi Mr Shiraz, I can't help you I have only just learning myself but someone here will let you know soon I just want to say welcome
Toni

[Mr Shiraz]

Thanks Tony,
After waiting so long, cant wait to get started.

[Captain Chaos]

G'day Mr. Shiraz,
Welcome to the UBWWF.:)
I just did a Google search on the two lathes & there is really not much in it between either lathe. The Jet has a Reeves variable speed system & 3000 RPM top speed whereas the Delta has an advertised top speed of 2500 RPM via a 6 speed pulley setup. The Delta Has a greater distance between centres, ( Approx 40" ) & the Jet approx 34½". The Delta lathe has 24 position indexing whereas the Jet has only six positions & the method of locking the indexing in is a bit messy I think.
Delta spindle thread - 8 tpi. Jet spindle thread - 10 tpi.
Personally, without actually sighting either lathe, I think that the Delta has a bit more to offer than the Jet. It is also listed as being about 120 lbs. heavier than the Jet lathe. I'm not sure if that is necessarily a good thing or not.
Hope that this is of some help to you - although you are probably more confused than ever now. :confused::)
Regards,
Barry.

[Mr Shiraz]

Thank you Barry that is of great help i was tending to lean toward the Delta and of course it is cheaper which leaves me more for goodies.
Thank you once again
Brian.

[hcbph]

Brian

I'm not going to speak to any of those lathes directly as I have not used any of them, rather your selection process. First things first: what are you planning on turning? I do mainly furniture restoration work so for me spindle turning is a main consideration. How large a diameter along with what maximum length can I do was top of the list. What expandability if any is available for a given lathe? What's the threads of the headstock, in case you want to do faceplate or chuck turning? Can you do outboard turning if needed? What tooling do you want/need to do your turning? What is the hp of the motor and what is the voltage requirements (and do you currently have that available in your shop? What is the parts availability for any particular brand of lathe? Is variable speed and reversing something you want/need?

I went through this list the other year when I was thinking about a new lathe (my 3d as I had outgrown my 2d one). For me, doing mostly spindle work, I needed hp (2 hp) which ment 220v (which I have) lathe. I went with a 16 diameter as that should be my max diameter, but I can also slide the headstock to one end to do bowls etc if I ever want to do that. I got a 42" between centers but it also has 2 bed extensions available (which I got an 18" extension) so I can now turn up to 60" in length. This one has evsr so it can go from 0-3000 rpm's and is reversible to. It also can take a Vega duplicator, so that's a benefit. It also has cast iron bed and legs so it has some weight to it.

I got as close to my perfect lathe as I could get for the money I had available. Unless you define what you want, there's a pretty good chance your future lathe will not live up to your expectations. Also consider buying used if you can find the right one, if can save you some definite money if you find the right one.

Good luck on your search.

Paul

[Zed]

try any of the following maufactueres / sales outlets:

woodfast,
jet,
Carbatec,
hare and forbes,
omega

depends on how much u want to spend...!

cheers..

[Mr Shiraz]

Brian

I'm not going to speak to any of those lathes directly as I have not used any of them, rather your selection process. First things first: what are you planning on turning? I do mainly furniture restoration work so for me spindle turning is a main consideration. How large a diameter along with what maximum length can I do was top of the list. What expandability if any is available for a given lathe? What's the threads of the headstock, in case you want to do faceplate or chuck turning? Can you do outboard turning if needed? What tooling do you want/need to do your turning? What is the hp of the motor and what is the voltage requirements (and do you currently have that available in your shop? What is the parts availability for any particular brand of lathe? Is variable speed and reversing something you want/need?

I went through this list the other year when I was thinking about a new lathe (my 3d as I had outgrown my 2d one). For me, doing mostly spindle work, I needed hp (2 hp) which ment 220v (which I have) lathe. I went with a 16 diameter as that should be my max diameter, but I can also slide the headstock to one end to do bowls etc if I ever want to do that. I got a 42" between centers but it also has 2 bed extensions available (which I got an 18" extension) so I can now turn up to 60" in length. This one has evsr so it can go from 0-3000 rpm's and is reversible to. It also can take a Vega duplicator, so that's a benefit. It also has cast iron bed and legs so it has some weight to it.

I got as close to my perfect lathe as I could get for the money I had available. Unless you define what you want, there's a pretty good chance your future lathe will not live up to your expectations. Also consider buying used if you can find the right one, if can save you some definite money if you find the right one.

Good luck on your search.

Paul
Thank you Paul, a lot of good info for me to absorb, i mainly am interested in bowls, pens,goblets and those sorts of things so i will be a little wiser now before i choose,
Cheers Brian.

[Mr Shiraz]

Thanks Zed
You listed a few places that i hadn't even heard of and i will keep away from the ten dollar helmets
Cheers Brian.

[ss_11000]

another brand zed left out is Vicmarc. a new one is probably out of your price range, but you may be able to find a second hand one around somewhere.