HF mini wood lathe opinions

Ed, I have one of these and use it all the time for pen-making and other small projects. I think it is a great value for the money. From the looks of it, this same lathe is sold under some other "name" brands.

I have not had any luck finding a used mini lathe in Arizona for a $100. I have been tempted to try the HF lathe.

cm

Same here. I was going to reply to Bill that it seems the way to be sure something isn't for sale locally, is to want one. When I don't want it (whatever the "it" of the moment is), it is plentiful and cheap. And then, the day after I bought one, they are even more so.

Ed

the corralary is, if you have one to sell, no one wants it, when you don't have one, everyone wants two

anyway, if anyone is interested in the motorless Jet Mini - drop me a note and I'll forward it to our club president for consideration - the late belonged to a club member who lent it to us for an event at another member's garage - this other member had 220V outlets in his garage but used the same exact outlet for the 220 as we normally use for 110, so the lathe got plugged into 220 - it blew up a few parts in the motor controller (which I was able to repair) and then I discovered that it had also melted two windings on the motor itself, at which point I gave up. The lathe could easily be put on a stand with a belt driving it from below, or maybe you could find a matching motor (I found several on ebay, but at this point I decided it was best to just let it pass)

if you want to find me, go though my web site to get a valid email, don't reply to this address

(grin)

Lemme think it over, and lest I forget, the thought is appreciated.

Ed

You know Ed, the great thing about HF is the fact they will gladly take back any product if you have the receipt.

I have had a mixed bag of luck myself with their tools, but they have NEVER squaked about taking them back for refund if I make back within

30 days.

Buy it, try it and then decide.

Robert

Thanks for that. I *always* seem to overlook that aspect.

I too have had mixed results. Over the years I've learned... I fully understand a $100 tool isn't a $500 tool. When I get irritated, is when a $10 tool is a $2 tool. Know what I mean?

The worst was a $20 angle grinder that ground for around 17 minutes and then went kaput. Actually, the thing continued to function but the fan that cooled the motor detached from the shaft which made a hell of a racket and

*seemed* like it was going to spew sharp aluminum parts from the casing at a high rate of speed. To the point that I didn't want to use it anymore. OTOH, the bench grinder has performed flawlessly (i.e. beyond expectations) and at a fraction of the "name brands" cost.

Ed

I've had some HF stuff inoperable from the start (for example their automatic drain for air compressors - hooked it up, it blew it's little o-ring and was immediately dead - of course I run 160 PSI but still..... and then there is those horrible Crafstman and Pullon 16 inch electric chain saws - I went through a dozen, non lasted, the best worked for about an hour, the worst was DOA - after a dozen (6 of each) I gave up, the store gave me ny $ back and I bought a Sthil for 10X the price

I agree. But over the years, I have paid $100 for a tools that performed like a $15 tool. I used to only buy "professional grade" since after all, I use them to make a living. But the quality of many of today's tools is so poor, I have become a lot more diversified in my buying habits.

For example, I broke 3 DeWalt recip saws in just one week when I was installing skylights. I changed to a PC Tiger saw and it has worked unfailingly for the last 10 year with no problems. Why would I buy another DeWalt recip saw? On the other hand, my DeWalt cordless drill was one of the best cordless drills I ever bought.

My heavy duty 4" grinder quit one day, and I was near an HF store. I went in to see what they had, and they had their 4" grinder on sale for $15 and it came with a wrench, a metal and a masonry wheel, as well as extra brushes for the motor.

I bought it about 3-4 years ago and it is still going strong grinding bolts (removing burglar bars for painting), and various metal items. It is all ball bearing and has a simple slider for a switch. I will be stunned when this thing finally dies. Go figure. A $15 tool.

Good luck if you purchase from HF. Be sure and come back here and let us know what you think about the lathe.

Robert

Well, I couldn't resist. I went and picked one up today. It'll be a day or two before I can get it up and running. I'll be sure to do some sort of review after I've played with it a bit.

Ed

Looking forward to your review.

I have an older Craftsman than yours and just bought a Jet 1014VS. It's very smooth but the capacity in a DC motor is less than you expect. Good Luck

Peter

Heh, I've only had a chance to run a couple pieces of scrap pine (3/4" sq. and about 1.25" sq.) to round 'em over and shape a couple beads and such. I don't think overpowered will ever be used in conjunction with this machine but it runs plenty smooth. Having the speed controlled by a knob (as opposed to belt change) is pretty nice. The power will be incentive to keep my tools sharp. Still more to come (with some harder wood) later this week.

Ed