Small lathe

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Drcal

Drcal

Member
Joined
Aug 3, 2009
Messages
175
Location
Tampa, Florida
I am the principal of a school and I would like to demo turning for my kids. I have a great lathe at home but it is too heavy and big to transport. Can anyone suggest an inexpensive but decent small lathe I can buy. I really do not want to spend a fortune on it.

Thanks.
Carmen
 
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Craiglist for sale search Lathe; there's many of 'em out there.
You can probably pick one up that's good enough to demo and resell for what you pay if you don't end up having a purpose later.
 
Drcal said:
I am the principal of a school and I would like to demo turning for my kids. I have a great lathe at home but it is too heavy and big to transport. Can anyone suggest an inexpensive but decent small lathe I can buy. I really do not want to spend a fortune on it.

Thanks.
Carmen
Click to expand...

Carmen... Check with your local Turning Club ( I just assume there is one very nearby ) My turning club goes to many schools with multiple portable lathes and our members do demonstrations and small classes...

Troy
 
when it comes to tools, i prefer new ones,
i would check grizzly tools, the have many
small inexpensive lathes
 
try woodcraft store(or website).
i purchased a jet mini lathe from them years ago for less than 350 and just now decided to upgrade to bigger lathe. the jest mini lathe will do 6"diameter by 10" long.
i used the heck out of it and never let me down.
 
I know that most everyone on here thinks that harbor freight is garbage.
I get by just fine with my lathe fromm there for a lot less money.
And the whole arguement that it is made in china, what isnt made there that we use everyday
 
I suggest going to Harbor Freight as well. A lot of the members here start out using their lathes, and some are still using them. Harbor Freight also has a lot of sales and discount coupons as well.
 
Right now......Harbor Freight is running a 25% coupon special.

You can get a nice demo lathe (VS) for less then $100. Turn it into a buffing station when you are not using it for demos.
 
I have owned the same Harbor Freight VS lathe for nearly three years now. I haven't had any problems with it and its got plenty of power for turning pens. I have to move mine around the shop occasionally and its light enough that it doesn't cause me difficulty. My guess is that its about 45 lbs. If your school has a rolling cart it would be easy to put the lathe on top and roll it in the door.

I think your demo idea is terrific.
 
Harbor Freight is the way to go. I own there mini-lathe which I got for <$100 with a coupon. It has been working fine no hickups for over a year now with regular use.
 
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