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Thread: Advice on a lathe please
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1st January 2020, 10:35 AM #1
Advice on a lathe please
Hi there, looking to try my hand at wood turning and spotted this for sale Wood lathe, with tools. | Power Tools | Gumtree Australia Stirling Area - Stirling | 1237167326
I've been googling everything I can find on the subject and the Woodfast M305 seems to have a pretty good reputation, and this one is offered with what seems to be a pretty good selection of Sorby and Hamlet tools.
Assuming that the lathe is operational and in good condition what do the doyens of woodturning here think? Is it worth me driving four hours up to Perth (and four back again) to have a look at it?
Thanks in advance for any help on this.
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1st January 2020 10:35 AM # ADSGoogle Adsense Advertisement
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1st January 2020, 12:16 PM #2
Here on the east coast, the lathe itself can be bought new for around that price and the tools individually for around $300-400. (They were probably bought cheaper, as sets.)
I've no idea how shops are for you locally, but assuming that you'd have to buy here and ship over... would 8 hours of your time and fuel/running costs be more economical than freight?
- Andy Mc
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1st January 2020, 12:31 PM #3
OK, so maybe it's not great value for money, especially given the drive (and I REALLY don't like having to drive up and back to Perth), so maybe I can expand the question to include some other new options I've been looking at which would give me EVS and a reversing function.
1) Hare and Forbes WL-14V @ $572.
2) Nova Comet II (from Carbatec) @ $929
These two represent the high and low price points I'd be prepared to pay given it's a first lathe, and of course I'd be needing some tools and probably a chuck after not too long. Is the Nova worth $350 more? Any other observations on these machines?
Edit And then there's this Rikon 70-220VSR @ $999 315mm (12.5”) x 510mm (20”) Variable Speed MIDI Lathe 70-220VSR by Rikon - Beyond Tools
So many choices, so much option anxiety.
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1st January 2020, 12:41 PM #4
Yes, the total if purchased new is about twice the asking price. That is about fair value, so not a rip-off or a bargain.
Just looking at the photos, the lathe looks like it has been hardly used. Those little Woodfasts are very reliable.
The issue with getting a bunch of tools included is that you end up with some tools that you will never or hardly ever use, so not as much value as you expect. There are also accessories that are missing, like chucks, faceplates, drivespurs and other toolrests that will have to be purchased at some stage.
Welcome to the forum if you go ahead.Stay sharp and stay safe!
Neil
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2nd January 2020, 04:42 PM #5Senior Member
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I agree with Neil, the replacement price including stand and tools is twice that price.
This is a solid reliable small lathe.
The Rikon is a big step up from this or the Nova Comet which is underpowered and lightly built by comparison.
Try contacting Woodturners of Denmark, they may know of lathes for sale in your area.
You could try a wanted to buy ad on Gumtree in Albany region.
Steve.
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2nd January 2020, 06:49 PM #6
Thanks for the reply mate, I decided to pull the trigger on the Rikon. Prior to the original post I'd pretty much talked myself into a Midi lathe with EVS and reverse so it wasn't so hard for me to convince myself that I really, really deserved it, you know, for Christmas and all that, plus it's on special at the moment so if you think about it I'm really saving money by buying it.......
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2nd January 2020, 08:22 PM #7GOLD MEMBER
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Good move. Obviously the Rikon doesn’t come with tools. I’d buy a small basic set of quality tools, but I find the tools kind of collect themselves. By the time you buy a few at the markets, get given a few by friends who have one lying about but no idea where it came from etc etc then you will probably find you will assemble more then you need fairly quickly.
Apologies for unnoticed autocomplete errors.
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2nd January 2020, 08:50 PM #8
Cheers, I'm feeling pretty good about going for what seems like a solid piece of kit. Ordered these chisels from Carbatec Economy Turning Chisel Set - 6 pce | Wood Turning Chisel Sets - Carbatec . Probably best I learn to sharpen lathe chisels with an economy set rather than the premium stuff. Looking forward to making a mess, according to the freight tracking it should land down here on about Tuesday next week. I may not come up for air for some time after that, I'm on 20 acres and there's plenty of wood around here just waiting to be mangled by a rank novice like myself.
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2nd January 2020, 10:52 PM #9Woodturner with a shed
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Get yourself a basic bench grinder (8 inch of you can afford it but 6 works just as well), throw on an 80 grit wheel and get a decent tool rest, these don't have to cost a fortune. Have a look at Brian Havens and Cindy Drozda for excellent guides on how to sharpen your tools without a fancy (read "expensive") jig.
Tool rests can be either hard to find or expensive. Here's one that I use and it's certainly cheap enough.
Chisel Grinding Jig | Sharpening Jigs & Honing Guide - Carbatec
Have fun!
Redbeard
Sent from my SM-N975F using Tapatalk
Cheers
Redbeard
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3rd January 2020, 11:12 AM #10
Hi Biggus.
Congrats on your new lathe. I started with a chisel set like that and like you say you will need to practice sharpening. The tool rest Readbeard linked works just fine.You really dont need to spend a fortune on sharpening. A wood version of that also works fine.
I got a lot of good info from this site when I was starting out.
Wood Turning Lathe tips, techniques, instruction
Regards
John
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3rd January 2020, 03:15 PM #11Woodturner with a shed
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Of course, I meant to say checkout Brian Havens and Cindy Drozda on YouTube for freehand sharpening tutorials and much, much, more. Plus Stuart Batty on YouTube and Vimeo (SB Tools on Vimeo).
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Cheers
Redbeard
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3rd January 2020, 04:55 PM #12
Thanks for the tips, I have a very old Ryobi 6" grinder (looks 70s or 80s) that has one standard and one white wheel that I was given about six months ago and haven't even plugged in yet but if that works it should suffice for the moment once I've cleaned it up and dressed the wheels. Later on down the track we shall see if a more appropriate system becomes desirable if not strictly necessary.
As for youtube it's my new God these days, every time I have to learn something I binge watch 'how to' videos for a couple of weeks. As often as not I come away thinking my tools are not even close to sharp enough. Paul Sellers comes to mind, the guy gets his tools so freakishly sharp I can only watch in amazement. I can spend days watching those guys.
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3rd January 2020, 05:49 PM #13Woodturner with a shed
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So long as the old grinder spins true and you've got the white wheel true as well you're good to go.
Watch the YouTubers, you'll learn a lot, but then get out there and give it a go. Get yourself a good quality face shield and decent dust mask, because safety first. Start small, my first bowl was only three inches across. If something like that gets away from you, and you're not turning at a million miles an hour it's not going to hurt you. And if it does get away from you (and it will happen) it's far from the end of the world.
If you can join a club I would. It depends on your availability, they're mostly run by retired guys, not working people. That said they're normally a wealth of knowledge just waiting to pass it on.
And when you've done that bowl or vase or handle you think is pretty good, post some pics up here. Most of the folks here are gentle with the newbies.
[emoji106]
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Cheers
Redbeard
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3rd January 2020, 07:40 PM #14
I don't know about wood turning clubs but there is the men's shed about 20 ks down the road, I'll have to drop in there for starters. First item on the list to make is a handle for the vise in the workbench that's materialising slowly in my new shed. I've got a heap of very soft pine lying around that I figure shouldn't be too scary to start with. I think we'll leave the Wandoo until I have half a clue, having seen what it does to my chainsaws.
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4th January 2020, 03:20 PM #15
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