Thread: The New Laguna Lathes.

Don't know about an "honest" review, but I had a good look at this lathe at the last Melbourne Wood Show as well as watching a few demos by Guilio Marcolongo (sp?).

I spoke to him about the lathe, and allowing for an inevitable bias as a demonstrator fro Gregorys, he was very complimentary about this lathe. It certainly appears to deliver the goods.

Ok this is outside looking In on this.
I seen guilios one at sydney wood show the drive belts look to be a little thin. And it was a little short in hight for me
but that's just me

a mate I mine has a HARVEY it looks the same as the Laguna.
I called Harvey here in sydney they told me both are made at the same place just called 2 different names with 2 different price tags.
but about 1/2 the price the Harvey is
the big ones $2500 Australian he tells me it's a good lathe
The swing is big and it has a swing away bed on it to

here is the specs on the Harvey there listed my a online ebay shop that's in Wollongong

After years of innovative and hardwork, the Harvey team have successfully developed this new line of Turbo woodworking lathes, which have became two new members of Harvey machine family. Like all other Harvey machines, The turbo lathes are designed and built to satisfy the most disconcerning of woodworkers. With outstanding new features, energetic performances and so many user-friendly features, the Turbo range of lathes simply turn turning jobs in to an unprecedented experience.


FEATURING


High grade cast iron structure for headstock, beds and stands to ensure maximum stability
All beds are precisely ground to mirror like surface for smooth operations
Driven by advanced Servo DC brushless motor with variable speeds 50-3500 RPM
Digital wide angle speed readout with blue backlight
Extraordinarily high torque at low speeds for easy working on large workpiece
Oversized alloy spindle supported by three precision bearings
Easy belt changing without taking off spindle
Sliding headstock for easy outboard turning
Unique "Swing-away" Extension Bed system for easy tailstock storage (standard for T-60)
Heavy duty banjo with easy maneuver and secure locking
Cast steel chrome trimmed tool rest with micro height adjustment
End mounts for extension bed for longer center distance
Side mounts of extension bed for back turning
Lower end mounts of extension bed for outboard turning set up
Extension bed mounts on both ends of bed
Built-in spindle lock and index
2" riser blocks for working height adjustment
Optional safety cage type shiel
Convenient chisel storage shelf under bed (optional)
Universal mobility system (optional)
CE and CSA certified
STANDARD EQUIPMENT


Spur center
Live center
3" Face plate
Comparator Centers
Rear Comparator brackets
Knock out rod
Tool kit
OPTIONAL EQUIPTMENT


12" Extension bed with swing away system (Standard for T-60)
20" Extension bed
18" wide tool rest
Safety cage type shield
Toolrest riser bushing
Chisel storage pan

Cut and pasted off ebay

Ive looked at it and heard it running up close in Canberra and Melbourne. Nice and quiet and seems real smooth. I like the specs and I have looked 'online' very closely at the Harvey. The Harvey seems a very impressive unit in my opinion. So does the lungauna Ok spelt that wrong I think

Richard Raffan reviews the Laguna Revo 24-36 against the vicmarc VL300 and Teknatool 2040 in the Current Issue (81) of Australian Wood review

Originally Posted by mjl09

Richard Raffan reviews the Laguna Revo 24-36 against the vicmarc VL300 and Teknatool 2040 in the Current Issue (81) of Australian Wood review

And for those of us that do not have the magazine ... do you have a condensed or full reveal ...

The Vicmarc is more user freindly than the Laguna.

The laguna is big and clunky in all regards, hard to move the banjo as it is too long and the tailstock does not slide freely with one hand.

The belt as Dave indicates is too small for what you can swing on the lathe.

The spindle lock takes skin of when using the handwheel

Some excerpts from Richard Raffan's review in AWR 81:

"The Laguna Revo 24-36 is a really substantial machine with 3hp motor"

"The drive belts looks rather narrow but seems to do its job."

"The headstock can be locked in any position at any point along the bed, so if you want to work across the face of a bowl (rather than lean across the lathe bed) you move the the headstock to the end of the bed to create a short-bed lathe, a much better arrangement than a swivel head."

"The rest assembly moves easily and locks positively, as does the tailstock"

and in the final summary:

"At $4500 the Laguna Revo 24-36 is an exceptionally good buy, especially as it comes with the swing-away tailstock and 900mm between centres. However if the falling Aussie dollar forced the price nearer the VL300, that's the lathe I'd opt for. For me the VL300 remains the best wood lathe on the market."

A mate in NZ has the large Harvey and is over the moon with it. He has already turned 85kg lumps into very respectable hats weighing in at a couple of hundred grams.

Originally Posted by Mobyturns

A mate in NZ has the large Harvey and is over the moon with it. He has already turned 85kg lumps into very respectable hats weighing in at a couple of hundred grams.

I think we have the same mate

Originally Posted by nz_carver

I think we have the same mate

I am interested in how long Ian enjoys the lathe, he has a tendancy for being heavy on tools

Id say given the belt size it can be pulled up easy

I have Tryed a lot and I mean a lot to pull up a vl300 with a 3/4 bowl gouge but had little luck.

Id say the vicmarc is better lathe for its money.

Originally Posted by nz_carver

Id say given the belt size it can be pulled up easy

I have Tryed a lot and I mean a lot to pull up a vl300 with a 3/4 bowl gouge but had little luck.

Id say the vicmarc is better lathe for its money.

I bet I could

Originally Posted by nz_carver

Id say given the belt size it can be pulled up easy

I have Tryed a lot and I mean a lot to pull up a vl300 with a 3/4 bowl gouge but had little luck.

Id say the vicmarc is better lathe for its money.

Have a look at Glen Lucas's clips on Youtube using Vicmarcs & taking wide agressive cuts in kiln dried bowl blanks. They handle it easily.

Old Croc the way I figure it plenty of turners have learned to accommodate the short commings of what they have. For my money I would be looking at Vicmarc if I had the dollars, much more refined and as you know they take a beating pretty well. From the specs the Laguna should handle your large platters easily. I have concerns about the longevity of the motors, nothing more than a hunch as these style motors don't seem to handle the duty cycle a Vicmarc could. Youre more qualifed than most of us to assess that. Things high on my list is the likely hood you will get warranty backup, and spares in the future. I learned the hard way with my little lathe when the variable speed unit / motor started playing up well out of warranty. No parts & don't care attitude from Nova as it was no longer a production model. With so much machinery being imported and a lot of it generic models built to a price / spec level for different importers / re-badgers makes sourcing parts very difficult. Specification levels may be very different between suppliers for "identical" units.

Other thing to think about is the design of the lathes, personally I can't use a lathe with the motor at the headstock because of potential interference with a medical device so that rules out a lot of lathes these days.

Well thanks for all the help guys. My review has not arrived yet, so i snuck a look at the newsagent and checked his thoughts. I wont touch a vicmarc, so it looks like a trip to the wood show to see it up close. Just makes me wonder whats different between the Laguna and the Harvey? Both look the same, but a hell of a difference in price. I just bought a new welder and it looks the same as 4 other huflungdung welders, but from the reviews of members in the welding forum, i am happy the one i bought was worth the extra cost.
Thanks again guys,
rgds,
Crocy.