What to buy

[SillyOldDufferModerator @sillyoldduffer]

Posted by Barrie Lever on 27/05/2019 17:31:54:

Posted by JasonB on 27/05/2019 16:59:48:

Then there are all those trips to look at second hand machines that will burn up as much fuel as a container ship load.

I bought everyone of the Compact 5's sight unseen, never had a problem, and I am fussy.

Yes but that's luck, not industry best practice! I've driven through a few red lights in my time, never had a problem…

[Former MemberParticipant @formermember53456]

[This posting has been removed]

[Frances IoMParticipant @francesiom58905]

Many societies hold regular rummage sales which sometimes include small lathes – certainly lathe tools are always included. Also asking around members may find one with one to sell – that illustrated looks ill designed for either of your stated interests – lack of accuracy etc for clocks, no thru spindle makes many items trickier to make + what looks like a rather restricted headroom. I bought a WM180 which was I thought the minimum size I would need for general use and as a first lathe would allow me to gain much better knowledge to make a decision about any subsequent, possibly larger lathe tho so far, some 3-4 yrs later, I remain generally happy with my initial purchase – also most lathe tools would fit any somewhat larger larger hobby machine – the small Cowells + their low cost competitor Flexispeed often have a very restricted range of tools available.

[Former MemberParticipant @formermember32069]

[This posting has been removed]

[JasonBModerator @jasonb]

Posted by Barrie Lever on 27/05/2019 19:29:13:

It is not luck at all, it is skill and knowledge.

And that is the biggest problem for a newcomer who may have no engineering background and possibly never used a lathe even at school, they can't tell a good one from a poor one.

Would be interesting to know what proportion you let go compared to what you took a punt on.

Edited By JasonB on 27/05/2019 19:49:55

[HollowpointParticipant @hollowpoint]

There's pro's and cons to buying either British or Chinese, British built lathes are undeniably better quality but they come with a price tag to match. The good thing about Chinese lathes is that parts and accessories are readily available and cheap.

That said there is loads of options for British made lathes under £700 quid. These are the ones I would be looking for:

.Boxford AUD, BUD, CUD

.Myford ML7 or Super 7 (if your lucky)

.Myford ML10

.Raglan Little John or Loughborough (no screw cutting on the latter)

[Former MemberParticipant @formermember32069]

[This posting has been removed]

[SillyOldDufferModerator @sillyoldduffer]

Hi Barrie,

Apologies if you thought I was mocking in a hurtful way, I just find human frailties amusing – especially my own! I'm teasing rather than criticising.

I do get why people like nice tools, but I've been trained to challenge it. Businesses should never invest in unprofitable tools and it's amazing how salesmen, one-upmanship, or wishful thinking can persuade theoretically rational engineers into ignoring cold logic and thereby wasting money.

Hobbyists are different, tool collecting, tool restoration, tool using, pottering, whatever people want to do with their time and money is fine by me. Nonetheless honesty is good policy; always worth questioning one's motives because another approach might be better.

In your original post you refuted Jason's point about the need to travel and look at second-hand lathes with 'I bought everyone of the Compact 5's sight unseen, never had a problem, and I am fussy.'. I don't think that's good advice for beginners! It implies anyone can buy a lathe off ebay without any bother. Now you've said something rather different: 'It is not luck at all, it is skill and knowledge. I look carefully at the photo's, look at what is in the background, read the description and then make a decision to buy or let it go. My instinct rarely lets me down on this kind of thing.'.

My advice to beginners is simply that buying a new machine of the size and type you want with consumer protection has advantages if the purchase is unsatisfactory. Buying second-hand is much less predictable, anything between rip-off and mega-bargain. Hard to tell which is which. Much safer buying second-hand tools when you know what to look for.

Dave

PS Quite right – I was lucky not to have hit anything during my accidental red-light adventures. Pretty sure it wasn't intuition or skill that saved me!

[Howard LewisParticipant @howardlewis46836]

If you are in the market for any machine tool, join a Club and take with you someone who, preferably, knows the machine in question, An experienced person will spot things that you may not, even if they are not too familiar with that particular one, and save you a lot of money, time and effort afterwards.

You might do better looking at a secondhand machine from a reputable dealer. Their business depends on keeping a good reputation, so are unlikely to try to shaft you. But there can be exceptions to this!

Good luck with the search

Howard

[Former MemberParticipant @formermember32069]

[This posting has been removed]

[Author]

Posts