Nova DVR XP and 1624 use question

[gsieracki]

To All,

I'm hoping to be upgrading from my Jet mini lathe here in the next couple months. Due to space limitations and since it needs a mobile base my choices are coming down to the Nova DVR XP or the Nova 1624. I can't seem to fins any other lathe that will fot into a 16 x 42 inch space. I do mainly goblets, boxes, segmented vessels and the occassional bowl. I'm looking for more capacity in swing and distance between centers.

Are there any other lathes out there that would fit what I do?

To those who own these lathes have you had any negative experiences with them?

I'm just a little worried since their only service center is on the other coast from me.

Thanks!

Gerry

 

[n7bsn]

I upgraded from a Delta Midi to the Nova DVR-XP for similar reasons. All in all I have been happy with the lathe. When I bought mine there were some QC problems and the fit and finish was as good the units I saw both before and after. But the most serious issue was the tool-rest hole in the banjo had not been milled out large enough, even for the supplied tool-rest (which is ~0.95 inches). So I had to spend about 30 minutes hand filing it out larger.

The US distributor being on the east coast is not as serious issue to be as the motor. If it fails, after Teknatool has discontinued the model (or Teknatool has gone under), I'm up the creek. While most lathes I could find some kind of replacement.

 

[MichaelMouse]

I've got the ancestor of the 1624, the 3000. Lots of lathe for the money. Works up to capacity fairly easily with the low end speeds available, and rigidity hasn't been a problem. The footprint will be a bit larger than you think, because the motor hangs out the opposite end. I just set mine so it swings over a cabinet, because I don't swing the head (yet) to turn. The toolrest is a beaut, sturdy, well-chosen tilt on the large bar, and an off-center post. Mine uses my old Delta 1" rests, so it must have been a fluke on the DVR.

It's an old mechanical drive design, but there's a lot of reliability and fixability in it. Of course there are no infinitely variable speeds, but I'm in no great hurry, so I don't need to turn on the brink of destruction, I just take what's comfortable.

 

[gsieracki]

how critical is the variable speed? I know alot of peole seem to reccomend it but since I only turn about two to three times a month is it realy worth the added expense. I don't plan on turning any huge chucks of wood that are severly out of balance. The most out of balance turning I have done is some segmented pieces where I didn't quite center it right and a couple off center pieces. My little mini seemed to handle it well however.

Thanks!

Gerry

 

[MichaelMouse]

how critical is the variable speed? I know alot of peole seem to reccomend it ....

Those that have it recommend it. Some even go so far as to say anyone without it doesn't know what turning's about. Those who don't have it turn with what they have. Pretty much the same as any gadget or whistle, you can do without until you get used to it.

Don't think infinitely variable makes you into a turner, don't think I turned better on an infinitely variable than a multiple speed. Only "advantage" I see is cutting as fast as possible for balance conditions. The speed is taken to shakin' and then backed off for the shapin'. So perhaps if you turn for the clock rather than love of turning you might want to speed up the creative phase and get into the real fun stuff - sanding - faster.

 

[n7bsn]

I seldom use anything other then the preset speeds on the DVR-XP. But I do, like when I spend the speed up to insane (ie turning a lace bobbin or pen), or down to crawl (large lump to be nocked more round). But those could be covered with a good range of speeds.

Having many speeds is what is really important. IMO, you need 250 to 3000 rpm, with lots of in between speeds. How this is done is not as important.

 

[Dario]

how critical is the variable speed?

Not very (critical) but makes your turning a bit more pleasurable.

Imagine watching TV with a remote and the other w/o....in the end you will see the same show. :cool2:

 

[Jake Debski]

Not very (critical) but makes your turning a bit more pleasurable.

Imagine watching TV with a remote and the other w/o....in the end you will see the same show. :cool2:

Good analogy, I'll take the remote thank you.

 

[Gretch Flo]

the variable remote

Not very (critical) but makes your turning a bit more pleasurable.

Imagine watching TV with a remote and the other w/o....in the end you will see the same show. :cool2:

A man without a remote?????? Come on!!!! Gretch

 

[Richard Baker]

Variable Speed

As mentioned, those who have it, love it. I often power sand at about 125 rpm, and when spray finishing on the lathe I let it slow roll at about 50 rpm after spraying to help avoid those unskillful runs and drips. Certainly not necessary for nice work, but handy to have, especially for the less skilled among us (self included).

 

[n7bsn]

Good analogy, I'll take the remote thank you.

Speaking of which, there is a hack that allows remote control, also over a year ago Teknatool had a reference to a remote control that was to be available
soon. But I haven't seen anything since.

Me, I would lose one, and the controls are not that far away...

 

[rsser]

It seems some kind of design for a remote on/off switch was posted on the now defunct Nova Owners Group.

Does anyone have a copy or a link?

Thanks in advance.

 

[Joe Greiner]

It seems some kind of design for a remote on/off switch was posted on the now defunct Nova Owners Group.

Does anyone have a copy or a link?

Thanks in advance.

Except for voltage, amperage, and frequency, electricity doesn't much care what it's connected to. High capacity of all should be sufficient for anything less. Something peculiar about the Nova?

Google [remote switch lathe] just got about 18,000 hits.

Sometimes it's easier to design your own adaptation than to chase down the "perfect" solution.

 

[rsser]

G'day Joe.

Dunno what might be distinct about such a device for the Nova. But there's a computer in there and a hard reset might wipe out speed presets.

That's why I was asking specifically about folk's experience with making such a device ... so I don't have to reinvent the wheel.

I spent hours the other day researching commercially available emergency mushroom stop switches. The only available unit for palm or foot use was costly and still needed a sparky to wire it up.

 

[David Wilkins]

DVR XP owner here. I got mine with the deluxe cast legs and the outrigger. I really like the reverse, and the speed range. I don't go above 1500 rpm much. I did recently acquire a demo lathe (something I can pop in the car), my first priority was to get a variable speed.
I do wish the dvrxp had a remote, that would be my one and only complaint.

 

[waltben]

The DVR is a sweet lathe, but pricey for it's size. Like I've posted before, the new Delta 46-460 midi VS is shipping and should be available in many places within a week or so (Woodcraft, Amazon, etc.). I've been told that model will be priced at about $580 - much less than the DVR and a much smaller footprint. I turned a 12" dry canarywood bowl on my test one this past weekend without any stalling or other problems. They're also going to have a bed extension that should do you for whatever spindle length you may need.

 

[Jock Manuka]

G'day Joe.

Dunno what might be distinct about such a device for the Nova. But there's a computer in there and a hard reset might wipe out speed presets.

That's why I was asking specifically about folk's experience with making such a device ... so I don't have to reinvent the wheel.

I spent hours the other day researching commercially available emergency mushroom stop switches. The only available unit for palm or foot use was costly and still needed a sparky to wire it up.

Ern ,
the five preset speeds are merely default ones. We can chose our own at will .
Some have wired in speed dials as well as on/off and stop buttons .

I've tried to find where the Nova owners forum went to as well , to no avail

Jock

 

[n7bsn]

Ern ,
the five preset speeds are merely default ones. We can chose our own at will .
Some have wired in speed dials as well as on/off and stop buttons .

I've tried to find where the Nova owners forum went to as well , to no avail

Jock

Jock. Speed #2 (500 RPM) is fixed in the "firm-ware" of the DVR-XP and can't be changed. Speed #1 and #3 thru #5 can be user set.

MSN dropped all User Groups, and the Nova User Group split

Some went with My Family (the same one the hosts WoW), the problem there is it's a "private" group and you need to get an invite from a current member

Some went with a Yahoo Group that I host

I'm not certain all of the files on the MSN group got rehosted

Ralph

 

[mrGeeze]

nova dvr xp owner

i've had mine for a few years now.
i've turned hundreds of bowls on it.
biggest is 14-15" by 6-8" deep.

all in all its been good to me.

dislikes-mostly minor
shavings get stuck between ways & lathe stand. I have the old sheet metal stand they use to sell Piece of c%@p that is.

adjusting the speed by pressing the up & down arrow. rather have a knob.


for the money it seems hard to beat.

 

[Vaughn]

I've got EVS on both of my lathes and would like to have it on any future lathes, but for someone who's only turning a few pieces a month, I don't know that the price differential between the two lathes you're considering would be justified. I know a lot of fine work is done on the 1624.

...So perhaps if you turn for the clock rather than love of turning you might want to speed up the creative phase and get into the real fun stuff - sanding - faster.

I don't turn for the clock, and I love turning, but there are times when speed can be an advantage to me, with the net result being less sanding necessary in the first place. Obviously I'm doing it wrong.

 

[rsser]

Thanks Ralph. Have signed up.

 

[rsser]

For others: Walt Ahlgrin on the Yahoo group has made a full remote for his 3000. There's a bit of detail in his photo album there; not enough for this little black duck to copy though.

 

[Jock Manuka]

Jock. Speed #2 (500 RPM) is fixed in the "firm-ware" of the DVR-XP and can't be changed. Speed #1 and #3 thru #5 can be user set.

MSN dropped all User Groups, and the Nova User Group split

Some went with My Family (the same one the hosts WoW), the problem there is it's a "private" group and you need to get an invite from a current member

Some went with a Yahoo Group that I host

I'm not certain all of the files on the MSN group got rehosted

Ralph

cheers for that Ralph.

Four out of five , same thing mate . The thing has got to start up at some speed and 500 rpm is it eh .

How did it come about that the Nova owners group split in two ?
And more to the point , what happened to the link from the Teknatool site . Have they decided not to recognise either group .

 

[Jock Manuka]

cheers for that Ralph.

How did it come about that the Nova owners group split in two ?
And more to the point , what happened to the link from the Teknatool site . Have they decided not to recognise either group .

Teknatool have now redone the Nova Owners Group link to one of the new sites .
Its' a bit of a nanny state sort of place tho

 

[Joe Greiner]

Ah. I forgot about the possibility of a computer being in the act. But for "fault tolerance," preset speeds should be in hard memory, in case of power failure. Maybe you have more reliable power in your neck of the woods.

Up & down arrows are a PITA, but mostly necessary for digital controls. Knobs are analog, unless detents mimic the arrows (more expensive this way). Same with the slider bars in Visual Basic - like that thing over there ---->

 

[n7bsn]

Ah. I forgot about the possibility of a computer being in the act. But for "fault tolerance," preset speeds should be in hard memory, in case of power failure. Maybe you have more reliable power in your neck of the woods.

Em, they are in memory, it's nonvolatile so the lathe does not forget (no matter how long power is out)

Up & down arrows are a PITA, but mostly necessary for digital controls. Knobs are analog, unless detents mimic the arrows (more expensive this way). Same with the slider bars in Visual Basic - like that thing over there ---->

Actually a knob could control an optical encoder and that could be digital, it's just that the Teknatool designers didn't go that route

 

[n7bsn]

Teknatool have now redone the Nova Owners Group link to one of the new sites .
Its' a bit of a nanny state sort of place tho

I don't know why (even now, months after MSN closed the old group) Teknatool hasn't updated the link (which is now dead).

As for the split, my thought, long term, with no public method of finding the My Family group, it will die. If new users/owners can't find the group, they can't subscribe

 

[Jock Manuka]

Em, they are in memory, it's nonvolatile so the lathe does not forget (no matter how long power is out)



Actually a knob could control an optical encoder and that could be digital, it's just that the Teknatool designers didn't go that route

I seem to recall someone installing a stop/start switch and a speed dial on an XP.
Can't remember what forum it was on ,was a couple of years ago , when I first got mine

 

[David Wilkins]

You can reprogram #2 also, but it has to be below 500 rpm.
I thought the buttons were a bit of a pain at first also, but you get used to them. Largest bowl done here is 23"x 6" or so deep.

 

[John Neugebauer]

A tough choice!

Gerry, I was in the exact same boat as you are in a few months ago... I also have the Jet Mini VS an LOVE it! I just wanted something a little bigger but I have a basement shop and will be bringing the lathe downstairs by myself!
At first I considered the new Jet 1220 VS but after a trip to Woodcraft and
seeing the Nova lathes it was a no brainer for me.
I first looked at the 1624 and it was really made well, however after turning on a variable speed lathe you CAN'T go back. I would rather keep my Jet mini then go to a NON VARIABLE speed machine of any size. I bought the Nova DVR and can't get over how much I love this lathe. I will do everything you want and more!
In my opinion you would be MUCH HAPPIER with the DVR over the 1624. Believe me it's worth the extra "grand"... Good luck!

 

[Carole Valentine]

shavings get stuck between ways & lathe stand. I have the old sheet metal stand they use to sell Piece of c%@p that is.

I wish I had set mine (a DVR) on blocks for that very reason. And looking at the DVR XP, it seems that it would even be worse. Looks like the ways come all the way down flush with the base. Of course I guess that's not a problem if you use the cast iron legs because you have nothing under the ways. Over all I like the lathe and love the swivel headstock. There have been 1 or 2 times when I wished it would go below 100 rpm, but it was no big deal. One beef I have about it is the seemingly endless "safety" wait for the lathe to start when you have it in reverse.

 

[Jock Manuka]

I wish I had set mine (a DVR) on blocks for that very reason. And looking at the DVR XP, it seems that it would even be worse. Looks like the ways come all the way down flush with the base. Of course I guess that's not a problem if you use the cast iron legs because you have nothing under the ways. Over all I like the lathe and love the swivel headstock. There have been 1 or 2 times when I wished it would go below 100 rpm, but it was no big deal. One beef I have about it is the seemingly endless "safety" wait for the lathe to start when you have it in reverse.

Carole ,
Shimming it up an inch or so , by putting ply strips across the bolt lines will fix that .
I've been meaning to do it to mine , but I just gotta get around to it .


The 'beep beep beep' has saved my bacon more that once , when I forgot that I was had it in reverse