Lathes - what would you buy

[Cleggy the Spyder Man]

as per title really

must not be too large or to heavy just for ease of transportation although I understand they are all F***** heavy

prefer one with drill/mill

wont get too much use and will be for general making up of parts for the spyder and other possible future projects

I have looked at Clarke ones in machine part which would probably do everything I would ever need but have also seen secondhand myford lathes advertised and sold for similar monies although these seem rather large in comparison

what do you guys reckon or have you got sumtin stuck in the corner of the garage gathering dust that you dont use anymore and wish to sell

[Richgm]

IMHO the Myford is the better lathe. Being more robust it would last longer than the Clarke and produce better quality turning. But if your not going to use it that often does that really matter?

If I was buying one (knowing that it was only for odd jobs) then the ability to mill as well as turn would swing it for me.

HTH  

Rich.

[Nick Algar - Competition Secretary]

Whilst I agree with Rich that the Myfords are better, if you want to mill then the Clarke doesn't look to bad. If you can get 3 phase and a bit of space then they actually get cheaper 2nd hand. But it looks like you will always get your money back on a Myford. Do you really want to mill ? or will a pillar drill do ?

[John Loudon - Sponsorship Liaison]

I was somewhere today where I was shown the delights of the Axminster catalogue To be sure they will have something to suit and be better than Clarke

[Thrustyjust]

I have the Clarke lathe with milling head. I havent actually needed to use the mill although have all the collet set and mounting plinth. I didn't get the swarf stand either, just mounted it and bolted to a solid bench. The lathe gets used loads for little bits and pieces and works really well. Apart from being b****y heavy in the box that it was in and the instructions were crap, seems pretty good. I was looking at the smaller yellow hobby lathe before gettting this and glad I did.

[Cleggy the Spyder Man]

cannot think of a use for the mill but you never know

ok so the Clarke one sounds like it might fit for purpose but I take what you say about the myfords - just perhaps a little bit too bulky

anyone using the sealey range?

and again if anyone is interested in selling what they have I may be interested

thanks for the input

[KerryS]

Clarke, Axminster, Arc Euro, Chester, Warco are names to look for. They all sell lathes made by Sieg in China but with slight differences. they are all substantially less ££ than a Myford but for light use will do OK. If you are planning on several hours a day use then go for a British made Myford, they sell refurbished ones too if you look at their website. But for occasional use the Chinese ones are good value. If you are going to site it in a cold garage, forget the digital read out add-ons, they don't last or work reliably.

A popular amateur lathe is what the Yanks call a 7 x 12 which has a 3.5" centre height and 12" between centres. This weighs around 50kg. Sieg have begun offering a revised version of this lathe with an induction motor rather than one with brushes and get favourable reviews.

See here for more info.

But check out the names at the start of this post for wider range of machines.

[windy]

Yep would reccommend a myford. Have access to a neighbours (super 7) and its great.

Looked at the clarke one, not much cop - british are best!

[Rob Marshall]

I have used a Clarke lathe a few time and found it hopeless, it would stall when trying to take a 0.5mm cut on aluminium. A worn Myford all though not ideal would be far better as it can be restored.

[ACW]

Ive got a BH900 Warco Lathe and a Super Major Mill. Both decent kit for the money. Ive converted both to run coolant and the mill also has been converted to 3 axis CNC. I can fit most stuff on this and it has enough grunt for most jobs... but this isnt light kit and takes a fair bit of space up.

When Ive tried clarke mill / lathe types in the past Ive found you get a poor effort for a mill or a lathe. better to get someone to do it for you.

[Norman Verona]

The machine Mart lathe is made by Jiangsu Machinery Corp, the company I bought the bulk buy jacks and tools from. The lathe (with Mill and stand) was about $600. I needed 10 orders.

However I gave up as too many on the dark side were moaning about the jacks and recommending an alternative - made by the same company!

[dhutch]

Ultimately the first choice for the budget is do you want an old second hand lathe, worn but of good quality, or a new lathe which will be of lower quality but more of a known quantity.

- Personally im more in the forma camp, but thats a fairly personal decision imo.

Daniel

[Dave Eastwood (Gadgetman)]

Slightly off the topic as it sounds like you're looking at the slightly larger Clarke type machine, but for anyone with/looking at the smaller Sieg type lathes, (as supplied by Clarke et al); one of the biggest issues with these "out of the box" is the accuracy of the factory set up. There is a lot of room for improvement if you dive in and have ago your self. Setup guide

[KerryS]

Gadgetman is right. ArcEuro in Syston near Leicester offer a set-up service for the Sieg lathes which includes complete strip down and re-build. They charge £150 for this.

[B5234FT]

I looked at new options and wasnt taken on the construction so ended up with a hendey 12x30 which is possibly a little big.

Any machine you buy you will find fault with, for instance The Hendey is big enough for face brake disks in, or make up banded 13" steels, but I'll doubtless find some job I cant do with it!