This is a fun thread.
I first got interested in lathe turning around 1981, or so. I probably would never had tried wood turning, if it hadn't been for the Shopsmith I had at the time. I bought the Shopsmith at a garage sale......$200, if I remember correctly! Anyway, it had a 5/8" straight non-threaded arbor, faceplate and a few turning tools that came with the deal. I can remember a bowl that broke in several pieces, one which hit the ceiling at a pretty good clip and left a mark for me to ponder it's power in flight!
I sold the shopsmith and purchased a Northwood lathe around 1985, or so. It was offered from a startup company that failed.....so you've probably never heard of it. It was a heavy lathe, about 500lbs, and had a variable speed drive that was mechanical in nature. I'm not sure if I'm remembering this correctly, but I think the speed range was between 600rpm and about 1600rpm......usable, but could have been better! It's VS drive was a very large variable pulley. It didn't work all that well.....belts kept slipping and you had to be careful not to exceed the range limits of the operating lever, which was easy to do. When that happened, you had to stop everything and it was at least an hour's project to get the belt drive back into operation.....what a hassle! I sold that one, too.
Then, around 1990, I purchased a 16" Woodfast lathe from CSUSA. This one is a real honey of a lathe. I sort of wish it were larger capacity and had variable speed......but, overall, it's been a great lathe.
The future? If I win the lottery, I don't think I'd waste too much time to purchase a Vicmarc VL300 lathe.....with a variable speed, dammit! For what I do, it seems to be about perfect.
What about you? Some pics would be nice, if you can manage it. Any input you can give about your old and new lathe would be interesting to hear. Campfire stories and tall tales are invited!!!!.....or, horror stories!
....odie
I first got interested in lathe turning around 1981, or so. I probably would never had tried wood turning, if it hadn't been for the Shopsmith I had at the time. I bought the Shopsmith at a garage sale......$200, if I remember correctly! Anyway, it had a 5/8" straight non-threaded arbor, faceplate and a few turning tools that came with the deal. I can remember a bowl that broke in several pieces, one which hit the ceiling at a pretty good clip and left a mark for me to ponder it's power in flight!
I sold the shopsmith and purchased a Northwood lathe around 1985, or so. It was offered from a startup company that failed.....so you've probably never heard of it. It was a heavy lathe, about 500lbs, and had a variable speed drive that was mechanical in nature. I'm not sure if I'm remembering this correctly, but I think the speed range was between 600rpm and about 1600rpm......usable, but could have been better! It's VS drive was a very large variable pulley. It didn't work all that well.....belts kept slipping and you had to be careful not to exceed the range limits of the operating lever, which was easy to do. When that happened, you had to stop everything and it was at least an hour's project to get the belt drive back into operation.....what a hassle! I sold that one, too.
Then, around 1990, I purchased a 16" Woodfast lathe from CSUSA. This one is a real honey of a lathe. I sort of wish it were larger capacity and had variable speed......but, overall, it's been a great lathe.
The future? If I win the lottery, I don't think I'd waste too much time to purchase a Vicmarc VL300 lathe.....with a variable speed, dammit! For what I do, it seems to be about perfect.
What about you? Some pics would be nice, if you can manage it. Any input you can give about your old and new lathe would be interesting to hear. Campfire stories and tall tales are invited!!!!.....or, horror stories!
....odie
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