Thread: New Carbatec WL-1100P lathe

nice purchase, good choice as it appears to be a larger lathe, you haven't gone for a small machine that you may regret in the future.

So if you buy a decent lathe like this you can turn pens? You don't need a small one for the accuracy?
I appreciate that my el cheapo lathe is probably too cheap and nasty to turn pens but I am just curious about the topic of lathe selection now. Sorry for my ignorance.

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im not sure if your question was directed to me but i didnt buy this particular lathe to turn only pens....if i wanted to only turn pens i would have bought a smaller lathe....

i am interested in getting into larger turnings like bowls and vases.....

No my question was more general and hypothetical. You made clear why you bought this lathe. Keep in mind I know nothing about woodturning.
I was curious to understand if a large or reasonably large lathe is also suitable for pens and if so what level of quality is required of the large lathe to be suitable for pens.
In my mind are the assumptions that pens require higher accuracy and that smaller lathes have this but larger lathes might not. I'm beginning to think these assumptions are incorrect. Due in part for your reasons of buying this one.


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yeah i'm not sure.....to me it shouldn't matter if it is a big lathe or a small lathe they both do pretty much the same thing....turn something on an axis.....to me a smaller lathe just limits what you can potentially turn on it...so if you decide in the future you want to turn larger projects you would need to buy a bigger lathe....just my opinion tho...and i'm only getting into turning myself .

That looks like a good choice in lathes , happy turnings and stay safe
You can turn large and small on a big lathe , but you can only
turn small stuff on a small lathe.......

Originally Posted by DaveVman

Keep in mind I know nothing about woodturning.
I was curious to understand if a large or reasonably large lathe is also suitable for pens and if so what level of quality is required of the large lathe to be suitable for pens.
In my mind are the assumptions that pens require higher accuracy and that smaller lathes have this but larger lathes might not.

We turn much smaller things on large lathes than pens.

We need accurate lathes for most of the things we turn.

Originally Posted by DaveVman

No my question was more general and hypothetical. You made clear why you bought this lathe. Keep in mind I know nothing about woodturning.
I was curious to understand if a large or reasonably large lathe is also suitable for pens and if so what level of quality is required of the large lathe to be suitable for pens.
In my mind are the assumptions that pens require higher accuracy and that smaller lathes have this but larger lathes might not. I'm beginning to think these assumptions are incorrect. Due in part for your reasons of buying this one.


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The accuracy is all in the hands of the operator

In general, they don’t make low quality lathes in the big sizes, so bigger lathes tend to be towards the better end of the spectrum, quality wise. A big, heavy solid lathe will be better suited to accurate work than a small, cheap and bendy lathe.

I like the look of the sturdy legs on that lathe.

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Originally Posted by NeilS

I like the look of the sturdy legs on that lathe.

You can buy them from Carbatec (possibly others as well).
I used them to replace the folded metal stand on my MC-1100 from Hare & Forbes.

https://www.carbatec.com.au/woodturn...-sold-in-pairs

Originally Posted by arose62

You can buy them from Carbatec (possibly others as well).
I used them to replace the folded metal stand on my MC-1100 from Hare & Forbes.

My early Woodfasts all had the folded metal cabinets. My latest Woodfast has the cast iron legs. I much prefer the cast iron legs now for stability and noise dampening.

I see that the latest top-end Nova galaxi also has quite sturdy cast iron legs. A pity that lathe doesn't come with an M30 x 3.5 spindle thread that most of us use here in Oz. Otherwise I expect it would be a stronger contender here, given its control system, full power 2HP drive and swivel headstock.



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