Thread: How many of you have heard of Stubby lathes?

]I love your reasoning!

Ahhh! The logic of a clear thinker. Brilliant piece of thinking, outstanding financial deduction.

that seems a bit steep for the lathe but i havent seen one in the raw. One thing i notice alot of lathes have is the tailstock is how should i say hollow. When i was at TAFE and work i was tought to look certain things in lathes and having a solid tailstock was one of them, also another thing ive noticed is how small the wheels are on the tailstocks, a bigger wheel makes it so much easier to tighten up.

The Lathes i used to work on at work were Goldies that turned up to about 2m (except the main one i turned on which was 6m), dont know if anyone has heard of that brand but they were a very tough lathe and very solid. Im pretty sure my boss designed them himself, and then george from lidcombe tafe designed a lathe and it was pretty much a replica of the goldies my old boss designed, George even came to the factory a few times to take a look at our lathes, but never gave any credit to my old boss who pretty much came up with most of the design.
Ill see if i can find some pics and post em up.

So for those with Vicmarcs, what are the $$ for 2hp var speed and a swing of 375mm?

Omega Tool & Engineering P/L were on Stand 150 at the 2006 Melbourne Working With Wood Show - adjacent to Vermec and opposite the Cross Cut Saw Racing.

Several of the Stubby lathes were on display and being demonstrated. I recall that one had a sold Happy Birthday note on it.

The pamphlet being handed out carried the notation

"Specifications and pricing subject to revision without notice. Prices include GST. Prices effective January 1st, 2002".

The prices shown for the various models were:

S1000 - $7700 S750 - $6050 S500 - $4986 Nugget - $3605

This is the price quoted to TTIT for the S750.

All models are noted as being "infinitely variable", but this doesn't seem to get a mention on the website.

They looked to be big mean mothers. The pamphlet read "Industrial Quality Throughout" and this probably summed up my feelings about them - they are more than the needs of the average joe.

I don't want to get into a debate about the pros and cons about this or that lathe compared to any other - some people like Holden, some people like Ford and apparently Skew dreams about BMWs .

But rsser did raise a comparison with Vicmarc. For the record, the Nova DVR 3000 (not the new XD) is 2.3hp, 1000mm between centres and a swing of 385mm. Has variable speed from 100 to 3500rpm with swivel headstock that increases the swing capacity. An outrigger attachment gives swing to the floor and there is potential to add a bed extension. They retailed for around $2,650.

Value for money, give me the DVR, I can spend the rest on something else.

I might add that, at the Wood Show I commented about the Stubby lathes to somebody whose opinion I value. His comment was that, in his opinion, the Stubby was overkill and that the DVR could do all that any of the Stubby lathes could do.

But each to their own. Buy what you can afford and what you want.

While usin' Old Griz, and wantin' bigger, I was checking out the differences between the Oneway and the Powermatic. Price was one of the differences... a big one.
An elderly gentleman told me, "Al, don't spend your life settlin' for second best. Sell your first born, sell your truck, buy the lathe you want, then make enough bowls to buy back your firstborn and buy a new truck."
I took his advice. (but Her Majesty wouldn't let me sell the firstborn.)

Never mind Al. Some women are just plain unreasonable.

Gino

Baxter, I'm not into pissing matches either, but I would say that the Stubby 1000/750 and the Nova DVR are not in the same class of machine and so it's not a fair call to compare them.

Originally Posted by rsser

the Stubby 1000/750 and the Nova DVR are not in the same class of machine and so it's not a fair call to compare them.

I'd second that.. having eyeballed Erns Stubby in person (even if just briefly) I'd have to say that it was by far the most serious lathe I've seen apart from the Old 3 meter wadkin beasts that still live in the back of some shops.
I reckon the nova (and both my woodfasts) look like volkswagons in comparison.

having said that I doubt I'd consider one seriously.. I'd be far more inclined to get really silly with my 7grand, buy an old patten makers lathe and do a full resto.

Originally Posted by rsser

Baxter, I'm not into pissing matches either, but I would say that the Stubby 1000/750 and the Nova DVR are not in the same class of machine and so it's not a fair call to compare them.

Ern I agree with you that the Stubby 1000/750 and the Nova DVR are not in the same class of machine. That is why, in my post, I referred to the Stubby Lathes as being "big mean mothers" and mentioned the manufacturer's description of them as being "Industrial Strength Throughout". You will also recall that, before I mentioned any other lathe, I also commented that "they are more than the needs of the average Joe".

The only reason that I made any reference to the Nova DVR 3000, in this thread about Stubby Lathes, was that you had previously asked

So for those with Vicmarcs, what are the $$ for 2hp var speed and a swing of 375mm

and I offered the information about the Nova as a form of response to your inquiry.

I have no problem with people buying equipment that suits their person needs and that is probably why Stubby lathes are offered in a number of configurations - to suit the requirements of the individual.

Fair enough; apologies for a wrong assumption.

I agree that it's horses for courses, and was interested in the comparitive price of say a Vicmarc 300 shortbed as perhaps coming closest to the S1000/750 by way of lathes readily available here.

Ern's has done a bit of sailing as well !

Originally Posted by ptc

Ern's has done a bit of sailing as well !

... and that was before we got to the ferry ;-}

Originally Posted by rsser

Fair enough; apologies for a wrong assumption.

I agree that it's horses for courses, and was interested in the comparitive price of say a Vicmarc 300 shortbed as perhaps coming closest to the S1000/750 by way of lathes readily available here.

G'day Ern

I have the shortbed VL300 1.5hp with the extension bed, which I can turn in or outboard.

I got it about 5yrs ago brand new and I think I paid $4600.

To date she has been a very nice solid machine and I have had some pieces up to a metre in diameter on her :eek: . And this is without the machine bolted down to the floor :eek: .

The beauty about the varaible speeds is you can start off at 10rpm and wind it up till it just starts walking and then back it off a tad .

Originally Posted by baxter

His comment was that, in his opinion, the Stubby was overkill and that the DVR could do all that any of the Stubby lathes could do.

Not so! After too many hours pondering the pro's and con's of the 3 lathes I've narrowed my choice down to, I finally hit on the one thing that really separates the Stubby from all the others.
I was trying to work out why I only resorted to outboard turning when I had no choice. Was it just that the old MC900 toolrest extensions were too flexible?:confused: - no, I could have fabricated a chunky great outrigger of some sort.
Was it that everything would jump around the shed as the larger blanks rarely balance?:confused: - no, I could have made a chunky great stand to settle that down.
But that's the point isn't it - it's the bigger blanks that are more unbalanced - which is precisely when you want extra support and you can't bring up the tailstock for anything bigger than 400mm on any of the others!!!! As an example, the DVR XP (was 2nd choice) is rated at 740mm swing using the outrigger but you can't use tailstock support once you have to go outboard at 400mm. The S750 Stubby does 750mm diameter BETWEEN CENTRES so to speak.
Next question - is it worth nearly $3000 extra for that functionality???? - who cares - I called Enzo this morning to arrange a 'meeting' with an S750 next month anyway! As long as it meets my expectations (shouldn't be too hard), I'll be bringing the sweetie home with me.
Decided to look at it this way. If I live another 20 years and don't get the Stubby, I'll waste 20 years wishing I had. If I get the Stubby and cark it a week later - at least I got to use one!