I am in the market for a Lathe. I need to turn leg spindles for the most part so the distance between the points is most important. For turning spindles and furniture parts how important is the horsepower?
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Replies
I have a 1hp Jet 1221 and a 2hp Laguna 1836. I don't notice any difference when turning spindles. They both get up to around 3500rpm.
If you don't need to go longer than 20" I highly recommend a used JET 1221vs. Easily found for around $450-$500 with the stand, and can easily be moved around.
I'm sure an old Delta/Rockwell which seem to be dime a dozen would serve you well for furniture parts. They often have quite long beds.
I'd agree about the Delta Rockwell. I acquired headstock and tailstock and banjo of a 1460 for $200. The bed was tricky because of the weight. I ended up making the bed and stand. The motor was a 1/3 hp dinosaur that started on fire eventually. Replaced it with 1/2 hp TEFC. No more fires. 😳
I’ve been looking at the 40” Jet. I plan to make mostly legs and table columns.
The old Delta Rockwell and Powermatic 45 (less common) are both very serviceable lathes. I used a Delta for a long time, till I got a Powermatic #90, which is much heavier and with a speed control rather than step pulleys for changing speeds. You don't need much hp for spindle turning. Bed length between centers was typically 38", which is long enought for most spindle turning, till you get into canopy bed posts and porch pillars. For lathes, more weight is a plus, as it reduces vibration when you are first turning your piece round. If a lathe is built strongly enough, you can add weight with sandbags draped on the base.
Starting in Aug, I have been taking woodturning classes at a local school. They have Robust, Jet, Rikon, PowerMatic, Laguna, Nova lathes. I’ve used them all at this point. There are subtle differences but I’ve been happy using them all and for my home I purchased a Delta and have been happy with it. I don’t know the horse power of any of them but all have seemed to have enough power. My advice, find one that meets you length needs and get one that new or used that is a good deal. My next door neighbor has a 75ish year old lathe (no idea on the model) and I was happy when I used that one as well.
39" is pretty standard if you want to turn spindles. That will get you just beyond table leg length.
The old Powermatics, and Delta lathes were nicely made and heavy, but you will probably have some unwanted vibration with the Reeves drives, unless you are very lucky. I had both a Powermatic 90 and a vintage Oliver and was not happy with either because of this. I have a friend who bought a new General Lathe when they were still made in Canada and he had the same problem. They are a lot of lathe for the money, particularly the Powermatic 90 (typically $1000+-), however, so if you are looking at one of these, check it under power before buying.
Electronic variable speed is the way to go. You don't state your budget so a recommendation is difficult.
Regarding the Powermatic 90, they had two versions, one was a close coupled motor to the Reeves drive, the later model had an intermediate jackshaft between the two. I would be wary of the earlier version.
I ca n vouch for Rob's comment about Reeves pulleys. I had a Delta and the one in the head stock self destructed, and the one on the motor shaft didn't fare well either.
Delta is a good bet ,there were so many of them manufactured that parts will be available. There are better lathes out there but finding parts for some old Oliver or Yates American might be a challenge. My suggestion is to get as big a lathe as you can handle. You don't know but that maybe at some time you may want to do something other than turning spindles. Big lathes can also turn small things but smaller lathes can only turn small things. Lathes fall under a category of tools that many people get into as a hobby and then find that they don't use it. Consequently it sits ,pushed into a corner and eventually they want it out of the way. There are some tremendous bargains on used wood lathes. Pennies on the dollar and often with tooling thrown in. Eventually you will likely have more money outlayed for tooling than the original cost of the lathe. I have a old Rockwell Delta that I acquired from Art Carpenter so it has sentimental value. It is a heavy cast ,belt driven machine and is very steady but I also have a Jet that was so cheap I couldn't resist, Reeves pulley, and I have to admit that I do like the variable speed. Slow on the Delta isn't all that slow and I often start with wildly misshapened and out of balanced wood and the ability to start at a very low speed that the Jet will permit takes some of the fear of getting a face full of log out of the equation!
My Canadian built General with a Reeves speed control has been a workhorse for the 40 past years and is a common sight in schools and shops all over the country.
have fun acquiring all the tooling and skills. Lathes are amazing machines.
I like, like I do with all my tools, big heavy cast iron ones, the heavier the better. Great names mentioned above - General, Rockwell, Oliver, Yates, etc. I would look hard to find one of those oldies even if it takes longer and requires more effort.
One thing I don't like on the new ones are how wimpy the tailstocks are. Its like the companies all decided to save money by making that a wimpy part. You use it a lot, tightening and loosening the work piece, so you want all the lock downs and adjusting wheel to be solid. Also, make sure the tool post is similar. You are messing around with it all the time, moving and adjusting height. Good quality, steel hardware, etc, all essential.