I have this Rikon and it is great, they are coming out with a Variable speed conversion kit for it later this month. I will post a review on it when it comes out. For now the Rikon is a great value and a great lathe and their customer service is some of the best I have ever seen.
+1 on the Rikon AND their customer service. The
only reason that I can think of why the Rikon wouldn't be a first choice would be if you have a requirement for a physically larger lathe, i.e. more swing. That, and if you just absolutely have to have the variable speed. I don't have it, and really don't know that it would be necessary to have it. Although it would be more convenient to have the variable speed, you're really talking about 3-5 seconds to change speeds on the lathe as it sits now. I currently use three speeds for my penmaking:
- 430 RPM (Slowest) for drilling
- 3900 RPM (Fastest) for turning
- 1810 RPM (Second down from Fastest) for sanding and finishing
Hopefully some of this rambling will be useful.
Neil: It's good to hear that they're moving on the VS add-on. When I talked to them last, the guy was waiting on another prototype and depending on that, they would be introducing them about 45 days later. He must have been pleased with it.