Optimark
25th October 2019, 05:34 PM
I was on the market for a lathe, what exactly I wasn’t too sure about. My leanings in wood turning were heading more towards making bowls and platters with spindle turning being a very nice, but secondary requirement. Locally made Stubby lathes with their gap bed arrangement were interesting, I played with two models at my turning club; but I wasn’t overly excited. The strongest contender was a Vicmarc 300, or a second tier model, their Vicmarc 240 with swivel head.
I had been using Vicmarc 175 long bed lathes with swivel heads at my turning club for some years, so I knew pretty much how rock steady, well built and long lasting they were as they were being used six days a week for years with realistically no issues.
Having a Nova 1624-44 for some years with a swivel head and the complete outrigger arrangement for bigger turning, I pretty much knew how things may be with the swivel head on the Vicmarc 240. This would be alright, but I started to think of a sliding head, standing at one end and turning straight on, as though I was spindle turning might be a nicer way for bowl turning.
I am on the shorter side of average height, 173cm, so spindle height was a bit of a concern. However, I prefer a high tool rest, which allows me to keep my right hand quite low. For this reason, I had a preference for a Vicmarc 300 with its higher spindle position.
I visited the Melbourne wood working show, more or less for the hell of it. I came across the Laguna stand and saw the Laguna Revo 18-36, it looked interesting but the biggest surprise was how small it was. This lathe was quite squat and looked very solid, I was interested. The fella doing the talking showed various features, with each feature being revealed enhancing my view of Laguna Revo lathe design.
Some months later a decision was made to upgrade, so I went online to find more about the Laguna Revo 18-36 and Laguna Revo 24-36. Perplexed, is possibly the best adjective to describe my mind. Eventually I ordered the bigger Laguna Revo 24-36, sight unseen. I believe there are only 9, steel bed Laguna Revo 24-36 units in Australia as I write this in late 2019; mine is one of them. The lathe and motor were built in Taiwan and both are the same build date; 08-2018.
Power, the motor is a 3 phase 9A 230V Induction unit, running at 1725rpm. That equates to 2070 Watts of grunt. The power cord is a 15A unit, I need a short 15A extension lead for when the headstock is slid to the opposite end of the bed; something I hadn’t thought of.
The motor is controlled by a Delta S1 variable frequency drive (VFD) The motor is braked and with most of the stuff I turn, it stops within 2-5 seconds; stopping time depends upon the weight of whatever I’m spinning. With really heavy stuff, around 50kg - 60kg it freewheels, I apply light pressure to the hand wheel to stop it.
This lathe has more than enough power for anything I can conceivably think of turning, not once has anything been a bit hard for it to turn. Or even looked like it may be an issue. It is also smooth, really smooth, which I put down to the three phase motor as opposed to single phase lathes I have used.
The VFD on my lathe is completely enclosed in a sealed metal box with a small window to see some things. This is certainly a better arrangement over the 18-36 lathes that I have seen, whereby the VFD is just sitting there with only the VFD plastic box protecting it.
The IP (Ingress Protection) rating of the Delta S1 VFD is IP20, the charts I have seen tell me that IP20 is protection from touch by fingers and objects greater than 12 millimetres, with no protection from liquids.
I feel that the lathe designers may have upgraded dust sealing possibilities by adding the totally sealed enclosure to the VFD unit, therefore ensuring less failures to dust ingress, which, as most of us know, is a constant by-product of wood turning. I do not think they were worried about water ingress, as I have never heard of anyone hosing down a lathe. However with some large wet wood I have turned, the spray of water certainly happens and there is also a fine mist spray which happens when you core a wet bowl blank and place the smaller inner core and spin it slightly faster.
Spindle speeds, two settings 50 – 1300 rpm or 135 – 3500 rpm. Changing spindle speeds is easy and quick, taking just seconds to effect a speed change and be back into turning.
The Spindle, the spindle thread section on the spindle, is hardened; something I have not noticed on any other lathe I have used. The spindle threads are unmarked after almost a year of use. That said, all other lathes I have used and seen, have near perfect spindle threads after years of use; so I’m not too sure about that.
Hand wheel, the hand wheel, it is very different to any other I have used, or seen. I was a bit worried about the change from a disc type hand wheel that is on every lathe I have used, to the fence railing type on the 24-36. In fact, I now prefer this hand wheel as it is more ergonomically designed for hand gripping; similar to gripping a motorcycle handlebar.
Tail stock, all lathes I had previously used were fitted with a spindle shaped handle, the Laguna is a ball handle. My preference after using both is the ball handle, definitely a more ergonomically friendly unit. The tailstock itself, is fairly solid and there are some bolt on accessories which can make life easier.
The tailstock quill is self-ejecting, something I very quickly got used to having. If you run a male Morse taper with a spigot on the end, you will not have the full 115mm of extension. You lose around 10-12mm at the start, depending on how big your end of the Morse taper spigot is. The stability when extended to near the limit is very good, providing it is locked down. When inserting a drill bit it is obviously not locked down, but it is still remarkably rigid. This is different to anything I have used before, but that could also be because most lathes I have used have had an interesting life before I got to use them.
There is a standard bolt on platform to the tailstock, one does not need to bolt it on unless you are going to use some of the accessories available. This platform can take a light, a comparator and if you so desire, your rear control unit. I elected to have my rear control unit on the tailstock platform instead of the other option, on top of the front right legs. I tried this placement first but kept on almost walking into it with my thighs, lasted about an hour before I put it up onto the tailstock platform.
I find inspecting work, especially bowls with a tool in one hand, is a scratch on my work waiting to happen situation. So I turn to the right, press the stop button with my left hand, place my tool on a free standing rack with my right hand, turn back to the work and the lathe has now stopped; I then inspect my current masterpiece at my leisure. A turn to the right to pick up the tool and press the go button with left and right hands, finds me back at the tool rest in a couple of seconds. A very easy and repeatable safe method of working, one never has to reach over the line of fire to switch on or off doing things this way.
Lights, I ordered two lights for my lathe, one on the headstock with the other on the tailstock. This is a dream lighting set-up, period. If you are thinking of purchasing a Laguna lathe, then I would suggest you seriously consider adding these lights. They are Tungsten, not LED and therefore have a wonderful concentrated spread of light. For bowl work one is inside while the other is from the rear/top, I would not think of having another lathe without this lighting set-up it is that good.
Head Stock, is very solid, nice and high from the bed and allows you to turn 610mm of material. With the 24-36 lathe having a taller head stock over the 18-36 lathe, I have had no issues of my body parts touching the controls and inadvertently changing lathe speeds.
The much touted, tapered head to the spindle is pretty good. It certainly helps in getting right up to the chuck jaws and is appreciated when I’m working the reverse side of chucked material.
Spindle Indexing, is about as good as it gets. You have the option of using 14/36/48 positions for every 360º circle. Sliding the whole shebang up or down lets you select which range of holes, once you have selected the range you lock the unit in position. From there you turn your spindle with the hand wheel and locate the individual hole you need, push in the large knurled handle and screw it into the housing until it stops. At this stage, the spindle is locked rock solid.
Spindle Lock, the spindle lock is a pain to use. It works perfectly well, you just need to hold the button lock in with a finger while you locate your material onto your chuck or drive spur and with that same single hand, you either lock your chuck or bring up the tail stock to secure your material.
I know one can use the spindle indexing lock to hold the spindle, but it is a bit fiddly to use and why include a spindle lock if it is reasonably hard to use. I presume it does not lock as there is no electronic override to stop you from switching the motor on with the spindle locked. In a premium machine, albeit at a lower price than quite a few other premium machines; I don’t think this is the best design.
The fix is simple and can be found in various guises on the web, I have utilised a couple of rare earth magnets a thin bolt and some timber I turned up. The fact that there are a multitude of people posting their fixes for this situation, tells me I am not alone in thinking this is a shortcoming of the design.
On the plus side, the fact that there is no electronic override switch to break down, should certainly help for overall longevity, but…
I had been using Vicmarc 175 long bed lathes with swivel heads at my turning club for some years, so I knew pretty much how rock steady, well built and long lasting they were as they were being used six days a week for years with realistically no issues.
Having a Nova 1624-44 for some years with a swivel head and the complete outrigger arrangement for bigger turning, I pretty much knew how things may be with the swivel head on the Vicmarc 240. This would be alright, but I started to think of a sliding head, standing at one end and turning straight on, as though I was spindle turning might be a nicer way for bowl turning.
I am on the shorter side of average height, 173cm, so spindle height was a bit of a concern. However, I prefer a high tool rest, which allows me to keep my right hand quite low. For this reason, I had a preference for a Vicmarc 300 with its higher spindle position.
I visited the Melbourne wood working show, more or less for the hell of it. I came across the Laguna stand and saw the Laguna Revo 18-36, it looked interesting but the biggest surprise was how small it was. This lathe was quite squat and looked very solid, I was interested. The fella doing the talking showed various features, with each feature being revealed enhancing my view of Laguna Revo lathe design.
Some months later a decision was made to upgrade, so I went online to find more about the Laguna Revo 18-36 and Laguna Revo 24-36. Perplexed, is possibly the best adjective to describe my mind. Eventually I ordered the bigger Laguna Revo 24-36, sight unseen. I believe there are only 9, steel bed Laguna Revo 24-36 units in Australia as I write this in late 2019; mine is one of them. The lathe and motor were built in Taiwan and both are the same build date; 08-2018.
Power, the motor is a 3 phase 9A 230V Induction unit, running at 1725rpm. That equates to 2070 Watts of grunt. The power cord is a 15A unit, I need a short 15A extension lead for when the headstock is slid to the opposite end of the bed; something I hadn’t thought of.
The motor is controlled by a Delta S1 variable frequency drive (VFD) The motor is braked and with most of the stuff I turn, it stops within 2-5 seconds; stopping time depends upon the weight of whatever I’m spinning. With really heavy stuff, around 50kg - 60kg it freewheels, I apply light pressure to the hand wheel to stop it.
This lathe has more than enough power for anything I can conceivably think of turning, not once has anything been a bit hard for it to turn. Or even looked like it may be an issue. It is also smooth, really smooth, which I put down to the three phase motor as opposed to single phase lathes I have used.
The VFD on my lathe is completely enclosed in a sealed metal box with a small window to see some things. This is certainly a better arrangement over the 18-36 lathes that I have seen, whereby the VFD is just sitting there with only the VFD plastic box protecting it.
The IP (Ingress Protection) rating of the Delta S1 VFD is IP20, the charts I have seen tell me that IP20 is protection from touch by fingers and objects greater than 12 millimetres, with no protection from liquids.
I feel that the lathe designers may have upgraded dust sealing possibilities by adding the totally sealed enclosure to the VFD unit, therefore ensuring less failures to dust ingress, which, as most of us know, is a constant by-product of wood turning. I do not think they were worried about water ingress, as I have never heard of anyone hosing down a lathe. However with some large wet wood I have turned, the spray of water certainly happens and there is also a fine mist spray which happens when you core a wet bowl blank and place the smaller inner core and spin it slightly faster.
Spindle speeds, two settings 50 – 1300 rpm or 135 – 3500 rpm. Changing spindle speeds is easy and quick, taking just seconds to effect a speed change and be back into turning.
The Spindle, the spindle thread section on the spindle, is hardened; something I have not noticed on any other lathe I have used. The spindle threads are unmarked after almost a year of use. That said, all other lathes I have used and seen, have near perfect spindle threads after years of use; so I’m not too sure about that.
Hand wheel, the hand wheel, it is very different to any other I have used, or seen. I was a bit worried about the change from a disc type hand wheel that is on every lathe I have used, to the fence railing type on the 24-36. In fact, I now prefer this hand wheel as it is more ergonomically designed for hand gripping; similar to gripping a motorcycle handlebar.
Tail stock, all lathes I had previously used were fitted with a spindle shaped handle, the Laguna is a ball handle. My preference after using both is the ball handle, definitely a more ergonomically friendly unit. The tailstock itself, is fairly solid and there are some bolt on accessories which can make life easier.
The tailstock quill is self-ejecting, something I very quickly got used to having. If you run a male Morse taper with a spigot on the end, you will not have the full 115mm of extension. You lose around 10-12mm at the start, depending on how big your end of the Morse taper spigot is. The stability when extended to near the limit is very good, providing it is locked down. When inserting a drill bit it is obviously not locked down, but it is still remarkably rigid. This is different to anything I have used before, but that could also be because most lathes I have used have had an interesting life before I got to use them.
There is a standard bolt on platform to the tailstock, one does not need to bolt it on unless you are going to use some of the accessories available. This platform can take a light, a comparator and if you so desire, your rear control unit. I elected to have my rear control unit on the tailstock platform instead of the other option, on top of the front right legs. I tried this placement first but kept on almost walking into it with my thighs, lasted about an hour before I put it up onto the tailstock platform.
I find inspecting work, especially bowls with a tool in one hand, is a scratch on my work waiting to happen situation. So I turn to the right, press the stop button with my left hand, place my tool on a free standing rack with my right hand, turn back to the work and the lathe has now stopped; I then inspect my current masterpiece at my leisure. A turn to the right to pick up the tool and press the go button with left and right hands, finds me back at the tool rest in a couple of seconds. A very easy and repeatable safe method of working, one never has to reach over the line of fire to switch on or off doing things this way.
Lights, I ordered two lights for my lathe, one on the headstock with the other on the tailstock. This is a dream lighting set-up, period. If you are thinking of purchasing a Laguna lathe, then I would suggest you seriously consider adding these lights. They are Tungsten, not LED and therefore have a wonderful concentrated spread of light. For bowl work one is inside while the other is from the rear/top, I would not think of having another lathe without this lighting set-up it is that good.
Head Stock, is very solid, nice and high from the bed and allows you to turn 610mm of material. With the 24-36 lathe having a taller head stock over the 18-36 lathe, I have had no issues of my body parts touching the controls and inadvertently changing lathe speeds.
The much touted, tapered head to the spindle is pretty good. It certainly helps in getting right up to the chuck jaws and is appreciated when I’m working the reverse side of chucked material.
Spindle Indexing, is about as good as it gets. You have the option of using 14/36/48 positions for every 360º circle. Sliding the whole shebang up or down lets you select which range of holes, once you have selected the range you lock the unit in position. From there you turn your spindle with the hand wheel and locate the individual hole you need, push in the large knurled handle and screw it into the housing until it stops. At this stage, the spindle is locked rock solid.
Spindle Lock, the spindle lock is a pain to use. It works perfectly well, you just need to hold the button lock in with a finger while you locate your material onto your chuck or drive spur and with that same single hand, you either lock your chuck or bring up the tail stock to secure your material.
I know one can use the spindle indexing lock to hold the spindle, but it is a bit fiddly to use and why include a spindle lock if it is reasonably hard to use. I presume it does not lock as there is no electronic override to stop you from switching the motor on with the spindle locked. In a premium machine, albeit at a lower price than quite a few other premium machines; I don’t think this is the best design.
The fix is simple and can be found in various guises on the web, I have utilised a couple of rare earth magnets a thin bolt and some timber I turned up. The fact that there are a multitude of people posting their fixes for this situation, tells me I am not alone in thinking this is a shortcoming of the design.
On the plus side, the fact that there is no electronic override switch to break down, should certainly help for overall longevity, but…