the blindman29
Member
I am going to buy a lathe for pen turning. Can you fellow pen turners give me some ideas of which lathe to purchase?
The Newby
Brian
The Newby
Brian
Lathe for Pen Turning! Which one is the best to buy?
- Thread starter the blindman29
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Dan Masshardt
Member
Yup. I wrote something to help people in your situation.
http://www.penturners.org/forum/f30/choosing-lathe-114611/
http://www.penturners.org/forum/f30/choosing-lathe-114611/
kovalcik
Member
You beat me Dan. Just went to find the thread and copy the link. You really should look into puttiing that in the library.
Brian,
Start with that link. It will give you a good overview. You will find people using everything from a Harbor Freight mini to a full size One-Way lathe and everything in between. What you need to ask yourself is how much you want to spend and what do you want to be turning in a few years? For some pens are an entry into the whole world of wood turning. For others pens are the desired end point. I would spend some time looking at Harbor Freight, Penn State Industries Turncrafter, Jet 1015 and 1221, and the Delta 460 lathe. The 1221 and Delta are very versatile and can be used for small bowl turning and making other projects. I would classify the others as mostly pen lathes. You can use them for other projects, but I think their size and power will limit/frustrate you if you want to expand to larger turning projects. Strictly my opinion. I have not seen or used the Harbor Freight or PSI lathes. The next step up would be a ful size, which if you are just starting, probably is not on your radar.
Another option that does not get mentioned very often is a used Shop Smith. They can be found relatively cheaply and would let you explore more woodworking projects. I started on a Shop Smith and several people on the board use one.
Brian,
Start with that link. It will give you a good overview. You will find people using everything from a Harbor Freight mini to a full size One-Way lathe and everything in between. What you need to ask yourself is how much you want to spend and what do you want to be turning in a few years? For some pens are an entry into the whole world of wood turning. For others pens are the desired end point. I would spend some time looking at Harbor Freight, Penn State Industries Turncrafter, Jet 1015 and 1221, and the Delta 460 lathe. The 1221 and Delta are very versatile and can be used for small bowl turning and making other projects. I would classify the others as mostly pen lathes. You can use them for other projects, but I think their size and power will limit/frustrate you if you want to expand to larger turning projects. Strictly my opinion. I have not seen or used the Harbor Freight or PSI lathes. The next step up would be a ful size, which if you are just starting, probably is not on your radar.
Another option that does not get mentioned very often is a used Shop Smith. They can be found relatively cheaply and would let you explore more woodworking projects. I started on a Shop Smith and several people on the board use one.
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Try to get one that spins.....everything beyond that is subject to opinion and there are many of them.
I started with the lowest priced one I could find at the time (harbor freight would have been cheaper but I didn't think to look there) It has served me well for 5 years now but is starting to wear. I'm going to retire it to buffing and get a new one myself. It is no longer available so I won't mention the name. Amortized this lathe added about $.20 to $.25 per pen to my cost. Less than some of the tools I bought to go with it.
I started cheap because I wasn't sure I'd like it but I did.
I started with the lowest priced one I could find at the time (harbor freight would have been cheaper but I didn't think to look there) It has served me well for 5 years now but is starting to wear. I'm going to retire it to buffing and get a new one myself. It is no longer available so I won't mention the name. Amortized this lathe added about $.20 to $.25 per pen to my cost. Less than some of the tools I bought to go with it.
I started cheap because I wasn't sure I'd like it but I did.
the blindman29
Member
Thanks
Thanks for the info. Much appreciated
Thanks for the info. Much appreciated
Dan Masshardt
Member
I guess the core questions are what are you gonna turn and how much can you afford to spend?