General 16018-2-M1

Hi Tom,

I own the General General 16018-2-M2 I am very satisfied with the lathe. It is very solid and stable just sitting on a cement floor. I have had no problems with it so far. I have rough turned wood blanks that were

15" diameter with no problem. The 1 HP motor handled it no problem. I also do allot of smaller work such as pens, and other little projects. I only have space for one lathe and must say I am very happy with the ability to do both small and large work on this unit. As someone else on this group once told me, "you can always do smaller work on a larger lathe."

I would recomend running a seperate circuit just for the lathe as loaded down it can draw around 15 amps. So if you have anything else on the circuit you could end up resetting the breaker allot. I also like the fact you dont have to manually move the drive belt from one pulley to another. The dial on the front of the stand is very easy to adjust speeds. Overall I recomend this lathe to anyone who has been turning for awhile before and wants to get into larger projects.

I know there are other great lathes out there, and I am sure others here will be happy to tell you there thoughts on them.

If I can help answer any other questions please ask.

Donald Vivian

Just out of curiosity......what is the minimum speed on this lathe?

According to this site:

it's slowest speed is 500. Seems a bit fast for large rough blanks. Otherwise, a most interesting possibility. Now if I can just find one used and local...

The picture has a Reeves drive, so I presume that it, as well as a step-pulley design is available. Variable speed can also be a function of the motor.

As most will have noticed, this is standard old iron in design.

500 rpm is definetely somewhat frightening for large rough blanks. After my first experience I always try and rough out my larger blanks with a chainsaw or on the bandsaw. And that takes some of the scariness out of it.

Donald Vivian

I don't have that lathe but I have the big General26020VFD which has a 20" swing and electronic variable speed. It also has a 4-step pulley to maximize torque at low speeds but it isn't cheap since it lists around $4500 Cdn retail price. A comparable size Oneway is at least 50% more. What I really like about my lathe is the electronic variable speed which will go right down to zero rpm. IMO, starting a large off-balance blank at

500rpm is too fast in many cases.

Having professed my love for my General, I would suggest you have a look at the Nova DVR as a possible upgrade for your lathe. The mechanical variable-speed Reeves drive like the 160 has works but it doesn't have the range of the electronic variable speed and is subject to more noise and typical mechanical issues. General International has some electronic variable speed lathes with rotating headstock which look a bit like the bed of the General 260 if you look quickly. I have no idea how reliable and well made they are. General International equipment is made off-shore (China??, Taiwan??) and should not be confused with General's "General" line of tools.

billh

Donald, how long have you had this lathe and does it have a reeves drive?

Tom, I had a 160 General with the reeves drive and after a year, it was nothing but trouble. Now I may have gotten a "bad" lathe but everyone told me to get the 260 VS, I didn't listen because I didn't want to spend the extra $1,000. Two years later and 2 new reeves drives (which I had to replace myself........alone) I sold the 160 for very little and bought the General 260. NOW I'm totally content. The General 260 holds its value better than any 160 plus the range of speeds and the reverse feature is worth the price alone.

Think about it.

Ruth

I bought it in June, it does have a reevse drive. But as of yet it has not caused me a single problem. I bought it from House of Tools, and the salesman I dealt with has been great, he helped me out when it came to getting a new piece for the tailstock at no charge, and I was at fault for the handle breaking. I have heard both good things and bad things about the reeves drive. For the amount of turning I do, I didnt want to spend the extra $1700 for the larger model. I will wait and see how it holds up, if it gives allot of trouble I will then have to look at something different. Bot for now I am very pleased with it.

Donald Vivian

To be a little more specific: I wouldn't trade my General 26020VFD for a Nova DVR but the DVR is a lot less money about $2500Cdn which would put it more in the range of the 160. I would never buy a lathe that didn't have electronic variable speed if it were to be more than a first lathe. billh

Donald, I hope it keeps working just fine for you. Like I said, it probably was just the lathe I had. After 8 months I replaced the reeves drive, about 9 months later I had to replace the whole unit, worm, spindle and pulleys (first time it was just the pulleys). About a year after that the far right pulley just fell off the spindle and that was the end for me.

I now have, I think, the same lathe as billh (above post). It's a

26020 VS; I don't know what the VFD is. I paid $3,000 including taxes and delivery but I bought it at the Albany Symposium last year. You really can't beat the show specials!

Ruth

Ruth, You have the same lathe as mine, the VFD designation I used is because I forgot that it is called VS. The price I quoted is the full list in Canadian dollars since Tom lives in Canada.

PS: I am the person who spoke to you at the Valley Woodturners meeting in Ottawa (I mentioned your posts on Woodcentral) last fall when your attendance was unfortunately cut short. billh

VFD in lathe terms is "Variable Frequency Drive". The motor runs at line frequency, and the controller varies the line frequency. It must have a 3 phase power source, and probably should also have an extra fan motor since the fan mounted inside the motor won't turn fast enough at low speeds to control over heating problems. Hope this helps.

Ken Moon Webbervile, TX.

What Ken means to say is that the controller receives power at 60/50 HZ, single or three-phase, and uses that power to produce other frequencies which determine the rotation speed of the motor.

Alternative is the DC motor. Or mechanical transmissions such as the Reeves drive.

Is it a sign of old age when someone else understands what you're saying better than you do??!! :-)

Ken

Nope, it's a sign that you are so familiar with what you're talking about that you subconsciously fill in what is missing to those who are trying to learn.

Never proofread your own copy unless it's had a week to cool.