Chris -
I started out with a small lathe (8x12), and found that after a couple of years my interests had outgrown its capabilities. When I started shopping around for a replacement, I set out a number of constraints to help focus on practical options - price was clearly a factor, but possibly more important issue for me was the physical footprint that the lathe would occupy since my shop space is limited. I eventually settled on the 12" Turncrafter (12x18) which I have now had for about six years. It has served me well, and I have been pleased with it.
As is the case with most lathes, the Turncrafter is made in China, and the same machine is available from other suppliers, usually with a different paint color and, in one case, with slightly different features (the King Canada version includes a reversing switch that is not offered on the PSI version). I suggest looking at the 12" model rather than the 10" - it offers more flexibility than the smaller lathe, and the price is only slightly higher. The 10" might be fine for someone who is only going to turn pens or other small spindles, or who is looking for a portable lathe for demonstrations. The variable speed controller is very convenient, and switching between pulleys is simple. It does not have a reversing switch, but adding one is not difficult. It is possible to 'tweak' the speed control to optimize the VS range to meet your needs. There are two minor quirks that you need to be aware of - I suspect that these are typical of the price category and not exclusive features of Turncrafter:
- It has an indexing wheel, but it is not intended to be used as a spindle lock. The indexing wheel is plastic, and attempting to use it as a spindle lock will result in broken teeth. DAMHIKT
- In my case, and in others that I have hear of, the tailstock can rotate slightly (only about a degree), but that's enough to cause the tailstock to misalign with the headstock. Normally, this is not a concern but it can be a slight nuisance when drilling on the lathe - use a skew chisel to cut a dimple in the center of the blank, and then align the drill bit with that dimple before locking down the tailstock.
My advice would be to first decide on what kind of work you intend to do, and then choose the features that you required to do that work. Then, you can create a list of lathes that offer that feature. After that, it's a matter the more practical matters such as price and the ability to fondle an example prior to making a decision, and the service reputation for both the lathe and the vendor who sells it.
