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Dodgyboy
1st June 2009, 04:41 PM
I am looking at buying a Lathe, I borrowed a dodgy little GMC from the FIL and have gone and got myself hooked. I was in Toowoomba Woodworks the other day and could buy a Hafco Lathe for around $500 how would this be for a beginner.
Cheers Todd

brendan stemp
1st June 2009, 05:37 PM
Beginner or master you will get what you pay for and $500 aint much to spend on a lathe. Better options would be to try and get a better quality second hand lathe or buy a good quality mini lathe. Dont disregard mini lathes just because they are small. I reckon I could do a large percentage of my work as full time woodturner on a mini lathe. There is also the consideration of resale value and demand. There exists a big demand for good quality second hand lathes and not so for the poorer quality ones.

DoctorBobski
1st June 2009, 05:51 PM
I just got a Jet 1220 for my Father-in-law. Seems like a good machine for about $700. I also looked at Enzo's (Vermec) line of beaver lathes. Get vicmarc quality (and a nice stand) for a starting price of $1400 but couldn't stretch the budget.

rsser
1st June 2009, 09:00 PM
A lot of us started on 500 buck lathes and it's surprising what you can do with them. Pretty good value.

Further up the range in new lathes would be the Teknatool 1644 and the Leady.

orificiam
1st June 2009, 09:24 PM
Hi Todd I've been turning on a Hafco for the last 7 years and appart from changing 2 Belts I've had no other problem with it.
Cheers Tony.:)

rsser
1st June 2009, 09:36 PM
And unfortunately the lathe is just the beginning of the plastic card burn-out :(

GJ and I had a go at estimating the other costs and came up with a ratio of about 1:1 :oo:

texx
1st June 2009, 10:12 PM
i rekon that would be a good lathe to start on for a few reasons.
one is you have a lot of other bits and pieces to buy and if you spend to much on your first lathe you will be limited ( if you are on a budget ) on what else you can buy to go with the lathe.
two you may loose interest after a while and a 500 buck lathe sitting in the corner for just the odd bit of turning now and then is no big deal.
if however you do stay interested then in a few years you will know exactly what you want and or need for the type of turning you do and then go for that lathe keep the cheaper one as well because it can still be handy for other things .
3 the guy in toowoomba woodworks is a good guy i buy a bit of stuff from him and those little guys need the business we dont want the bunnies and such wiping out all these smaller guys not that thats a reason to buy that lathe just thought i would throw it in

watsrags
1st June 2009, 10:22 PM
I brought a woodfast M305 a few weeks back close eought to $500 , 12 swing 16 inch bed
great machine easy to change the bed for diffent speeds. you could do worst.

Skew ChiDAMN!!
1st June 2009, 10:59 PM
If you like turning on the GMC, then you'll be in heaven turning on the Hafco. :)

It's of good enough quality that, with the odd repair, it can last the rest of your turning life, assuming that you don't upgrade further down the line.

And most accessories you buy for it (I think Ern underestimated with his 1:1 ratio :D) will carry over to the new lathe if you do upgrade.

poulso
1st June 2009, 11:07 PM
I brought a woodfast M305 a few months ago.
So far so good.Couldn"t be happier.
Give Jim a ring @ Carrolls woodcraft supplies.

Cheers Jason

rsser
1st June 2009, 11:42 PM
Skew, depends on initial lathe cost obviously

What would the basic supporting cast be?

Grinder and white wheel
Chuck, probably
4 tools
A few measuring tools

:?

Skew ChiDAMN!!
2nd June 2009, 01:04 AM
My first major expenses weren't so much in the tooling department, but finishes. (And blanks for jam-chucks. I held off several years before buying a scroll-chuck. :- )

I spent almost double the price of my first lathe on various brands & types until I eventually settled on the few that worked for me. (Which, for the record, are Rustin's DO & Plastic Finish, a few Gilly Stephensons waxes & damn near the entire UBeaut range.)

I still have quite a few dollars worth of "hardly used" products tying up vital shelf space. (I really should give the Organoil another go, but why bother when I'm happy with what I prefer?)

texx
2nd June 2009, 08:37 AM
Skew, depends on initial lathe cost obviously

What would the basic supporting cast be?

Grinder and white wheel
Chuck, probably
4 tools
A few measuring tools

:?

and half a pallet of other stuff, finishes good quality sandpaper in all grits, and a bandsaw is real handy .
maybe a few more jaws , and on and on and on

Grumpy John
2nd June 2009, 08:47 AM
And unfortunately the lathe is just the beginning of the plastic card burn-out :(

GJ and I had a go at estimating the other costs and came up with a ratio of about 1:1 :oo:

Unfortunately, I think it's more like 1.5:1 now :oo::oo:, but it's still cheaper than therapy.

rsser
2nd June 2009, 10:01 AM
Texx, yes, but what would be the min? Sure, some abrasives and a finish, so say $30?

GJ, 1:1 may only work for sane turners.

texx
2nd June 2009, 11:12 AM
maybe i'm a bad shopper i find it easy to spend 150 bucks without trying .
last time in the woody shop bought a meter each of cloth backed sand paper in about 5 grades. a bottle of CA and a couple of finishes to try and a pack of 5 pen kits .
and burn or eat the docket so the mrs don't find it :roll:

Ed Reiss
2nd June 2009, 12:32 PM
In 1996, when I was hot and heavy into production work, I worked out the cost of all the equipment, wood inventory, sandpaper, finishing supplies, replacement parts on hand, and equipment acessories.....total cost came to $18,790.00. It really surprised me with that total
It's amazing just how much an individual spends on their toys and doesn't really have a clue that they are doing so.:o

Dodgyboy
2nd June 2009, 01:21 PM
Ok well I have gone with the Hafco + a set of 6 tools, medium range I am guessing+ white wheel to suit my bench grinder+ 1 mtr of cloth back sandpaper in 3 grades. All up $715 so I am very happy with that for starters. Will probably buy a scroll chuck soon, any suggestions which one? there seem to be a lot of choices.
Cheers Todd

rsser
2nd June 2009, 01:46 PM
Todd, which chuck has been thrashed out not long ago.

Take a look and get back with any questions.

Dodgyboy
4th June 2009, 08:36 PM
Todd, which chuck has been thrashed out not long ago.

Take a look and get back with any questions.

Cheers Ern, I went with a Vicmarc.

jefferson
4th June 2009, 09:02 PM
A good choice in IMHO. What size did you buy? The VM 90/100 jaws won't fit the VM 120/150, but otherwise, great.

Jeff

funkychicken
4th June 2009, 09:09 PM
If you wanna try a real lathe (Jet 1220 or Nova 3000) then feel free to drop by my place Dodgyboy