Gordon Henderson 2 | 25/02/2012 20:34:23 |
2 forum posts | Hello guys, This is my first post as I have just joined, so hello everyone! I am looking at buying a small lathe and have four contenders which interest me, and I would appreciate some advice as to which represents the best deal for me, given that price is one of my primary concerns . My choice is between the following; The CJ18 from Amadeal @ £420 plus £45 carriage. The new Warco mini lathe @ £499, carriage included. The Sieg Super C3 from Arc Eurotrade @ £561 plus £25 carriage. The Sieg C2 from Axminster @t £635. I already own a Sieg C0 which I bought for model making, (not engineering) so I am not a total novice to metal turning, but I want something a bit bigger to allow me to develop my metalworking skills. If anyone could give me guidance on the most suitable of the above, I would be most grateful. Thanks in advance, Gordon |
Bishbosh | 25/02/2012 21:04:33 |
2 forum posts | I have a Warco WM180 which I bought thinking it would me plenty big enough for my needs. Of course, as is the way with these things, I have rapidly out grown it and wished I had bought something bigger.... So, my advice would be to think long and hard about the size you need and then go and buy something bigger!! |
Steve F | 25/02/2012 21:42:21 |
![]() 101 forum posts 25 photos | Hi Gordon First i have to say i am no expert .I am a beginner model engineer but i can understand what you are going through. when i was looking for a lathe a few years ago i went through a similar exercise. What i did find is that the mini lathes advertised normally dont come with accessories. You have to buy everything so the costs grow. Lathe + 4 jaw chuck + faceplate etc. So for example if you look at Warco and check out their variable speed lathes like the WM180 which is a similar size to the mini lathes for example and yes it is more expensive.£640 but look at what you also get. 3 jaw chuck, 4 jaw independant chuck (which is the main chuck i use), Travelling steady, and fixed steady., 2 dead centres. and a mass of 70Kg compared to 43Kg of the mini lathe I ended up buying a 2nd hand WM210 trade-in lathe from warco in the end. i was just lucky that they had one at the time. Sorry i didnt want to confuse you but just add things for you to consider before parting with your cash. regards Steve
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john kennedy 1 | 25/02/2012 23:15:11 |
![]() 214 forum posts 24 photos | Gordon, Try and hang on and buy one at a show, I did and they knocked £150 off the normal price without having to haggle. At a show they are all laid out and you can play with them and get a feel for their size. Either save money or buy the next size up. John |
Gray62 | 25/02/2012 23:15:25 |
1058 forum posts 16 photos | Before you even consider what lathe you want or think you need, you need to ask yourself - what do I want to make? Are you building small table top stationary engines? are you likely to build a 4" scale traction engine? Do you have desires to build a 7 1/4 gauge loco? I looked at all of these and more when I purchased my current lathe, having already owned several machines previously. I settled on a Warco GH1330 which gives me a 12" swing over the bed and over 18" in the gap.
A larger lathe can do small work (my 5C collet chuck goes down to 1/16th and up to 1" A small lathe is handy to have, but I would have something Myford sized in addition to the big lathe. |
MadMike | 25/02/2012 23:37:36 |
265 forum posts 4 photos | Gordon, you say you have a mini-lathe already and yet you have highlighted 4 more mini lathes. Coal Burners advice is spot on. Before ever attempting to identify the machine choice, you absolutely must decide what you want to do with your machine. A good large machine is more than capable of producing small work, BUT a mini lathe is strictly limited in the size of work you will be able to produce. Before making any decisions you should visit www.lathes.co.uk and read up on most machines available past and present. Look at the machines they have for sale as well. Whatever machine you initially pick I can assure you that in a very short space of time you will wish you had bought a larger one. HTH rather than confuses.
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Ian S C | 26/02/2012 02:11:28 |
![]() 7468 forum posts 230 photos | I,v got a BH lathe about the same size as Coal Burner, after much looking, and barganing, it's a Taiwanese one and better than the Chinese ones even today (its nearly 20 yrs old). I looked at smaller lathes, the place I got mine from had a beefed up copy of a Myford for about twice the prtce I payed(even that was a fraction of the price of a real Myford), The other lathe I looked at was a 1230 BH Russian made lathe that was proberbly a better machine, but that was in the days of the USSR. Ian S C |
Dithering | 26/02/2012 10:41:53 |
20 forum posts | Gordon, I don't think you can do better than follow L H Sparey's advice in his book "The Amateur's Lathe" where he says "... it is desirable to buy as large a machine as the pocket or the accomodaion will allow". I've had a Unimat and a Myford Super 7 and I now have a mini-lathe and a Boxford but the one I use is my Chester Crusader which is roughly the same size as the Warco GH1330 mentioned by Coalburner above. I find big lathes much easier to use than small lathes (although I have quite small hands) and they can cope with very small work, particularly with a set of collets - mine are ER32. Regards, Brian.
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Stovepipe | 26/02/2012 12:49:25 |
196 forum posts | Gordon, Another consideration, surprisingly, could be your age and health. Will you be able to handle large heavy lumps of metal when you complete them ? At approaching 70 (with brand-new heart bypass and pacemaker), I've resigned myself to small scale modelling, because I know I can handle the results. This is not intended as a put-u-off, but a realistic factor which MAY need to be taken into consideration. Dennis
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Gordon Henderson 2 | 26/02/2012 14:33:22 |
2 forum posts | Thank you all very much for your posts, they have been most helpful and food for thought. As stovepipe pointed out, health will play a factor as my physical capacity to lift and carry is diminished due to asthma. As to the intended use of the machine, I will be limiting myself to small scale projects of the type suitable to developing machining skills. To that end, I have bought several of the Workshop Practice series and will work my way through those. This is purely for a bit of relaxation and I have no ambition to build engines of any type. I do greatly admire the skill and workmanship of those who do though. Thanks again fellas, your input is greatly appreciated. Gordon |
AlaninOz | 26/02/2012 15:34:20 |
15 forum posts | As others have said, buy the largest lathe you can afford and have space for. . I bought a Hafco AL330 several years ago after my youngest son "borrowed" my previous smaller 200 x 600 lathe. The AL330 weighs about 400 kg so he cannot bring 3 friends and lift it by the carrying handles. Carrying handles on a lathe? Who would have thought of it but the Chinese ! . I use it for making tractor parts, OO train parts 5 - 6 mm diameter and other things and could really use something bigger, still, no problem. My son has since bought a much larger lathe for his business which I can use. It is similar to the Hafco TM-1960G - 480 x 1500 www.machineryhouse.com.au - he and his partners modify cars, build intercoolers and fit turbochargers for "boy racers" with more money than sense! The drift car he built is a Nissan Laurel with a Holden V8, twin turbos & intercooler and puts out more than 620 kW at the wheels. Go to www.c-red.com.au to see it in action at the classic challenge. 2 videos of about 45 seconds each. By way of a contrast, my Fordson Super Major does 26 km/hr flat out and would take 5 minutes to complete the course! |
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