Central Machinery 12in x 33 3/8 Worth or Wait?

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Harbor Freight has put their Central Machinery 12in x 33 3/8in 3/4 HP lathe with reversible head on sale for $379.99

I haven't bought a lathe yet but have about $500 to work with.

Worth it? Sale ends 7/31
 
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Woodchipper

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I started with one on recommendation of another turner. Make sure you regularly move the Reeves drive to keep it from sticking in one speed. This happened to me. Get an extended warranty as HF products only come with a 90 day warranty.
 

RunnerVince

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Dec 18, 2019
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Ogden, UT
I started on this lathe (my brother's), and needed to use it again while I was visiting him and away from my own shop to finish up a project for an upcoming family reunion.

Going from my Rikon midi to the HF model wasn't bad. The biggest issue I had was that I kept reaching for the non-existent hand-wheel. If you're doing pens or other small items, this can be annoying because there's not a really great way to turn your work with the motor off (for, say, hand sanding or inspection). When I was living with my brother, I had looked into getting a wheel for his lathe, and I think there was one from jet (or compatible with jet) that would also have worked on the HF lathe, so it's possible to add one, but that's additional money from the budget.
 

MRDucks2

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I started on this lathe (my brother's), and needed to use it again while I was visiting him and away from my own shop to finish up a project for an upcoming family reunion.

Going from my Rikon midi to the HF model wasn't bad. The biggest issue I had was that I kept reaching for the non-existent hand-wheel. If you're doing pens or other small items, this can be annoying because there's not a really great way to turn your work with the motor off (for, say, hand sanding or inspection). When I was living with my brother, I had looked into getting a wheel for his lathe, and I think there was one from jet (or compatible with jet) that would also have worked on the HF lathe, so it's possible to add one, but that's additional money from the budget.
As my first lathe it didn't bug me but did for most of my guests. There are hand wheels that have been turned on the lathe and fitted to the spindle with guidance from the internet.
 

MRDucks2

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I guess one comment:
As I mentioned above, I bought this as my first lathe and it worked fine, no regrets.
However, I bought it as my first lathe because I was not sure if I even wanted or would enjoy turning.

Had I known I was going to enjoy and want to do more of it, I most likely would have applied the money to a better lathe than this one.

Had I purchased a small or midi lathe, I would have kept that and purchased a larger lathe. As it is, when I began to advance my turning needs, the HF lathe was too big with to few features for the space it took up to keep in the shop with a larger lathe.
 

sorcerertd

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Looks like it's on clearance. I wonder if they are replacing it with an upgraded model with more features (like a hand wheel?). I'd choose their 10x18 over that model based on my use. If you stay away long enough, Harbor Freight will send you 25% coupons with no exclusions.

For what it's worth, the Turncrafter Commander from PSI is a pretty good deal for the power and features it has, but I can't speak to real world performance and reliability.
 
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Looks like it's on clearance. I wonder if they are replacing it with an upgraded model with more features (like a hand wheel?). I'd choose their 10x18 over that model based on my use. If you stay away long enough, Harbor Freight will send you 25% coupons with no exclusions.

For what it's worth, the Turncrafter Commander from PSI is a pretty good deal for the power and features it has, but I can't speak to real world performance and reliability.
That dastardly restriction on central machinery. I already have their Hercules bench grinder and it does a good job.

I should invest in CBN wheels now too!
 

Todd in PA

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Feb 16, 2021
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Port Matilda, PA
That's the lathe I have. It works fine. My tool test knob is now a HF vice grip. Since there's no wheel I wear a grippy glove to turn it by hand because grabbing the threads is ouchy. I look forward to upgrading it some day, but it's capable of producing a great many pens.
 

sorcerertd

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That dastardly restriction on central machinery. I already have their Hercules bench grinder and it does a good job.

I should invest in CBN wheels now too!
The last 3 they sent me said, underlined and bold, "no restrictions". The last one expired yesterday. I don't need more stuff right now, though I thought about nabbing a pressure pot for casting. Hopefully they will send another when I'm ready to buy something.
 

Woodchipper

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That's the lathe I have. It works fine. My tool test knob is now a HF vice grip. Since there's no wheel I wear a grippy glove to turn it by hand because grabbing the threads is ouchy. I look forward to upgrading it some day, but it's capable of producing a great many pens
It works.
 

sorcerertd

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@EventHorizonVII, before you start spending money on anything, check out the "things I wish I had known..." threads. They are long, but you will find some common things repeated that are there for good reason. Could I interest you in some whatchamacalits and thingamajiggies that I have laying around? ;)

Edit: Found one of them here --> Part II
 
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