Lathe

Hi John,

I also looked at both and ended up with the Delta. It works good but wish I would have spent the couple hundred extra and bought the heavier Jet. Nothing beats a good heavy lathe. The less tendency to vibrate the better finish you can put on with the tools themselves. If you tall like me the Jet is a little higher. I did build a platform for the Delta and clamp the feet down to stop some of the vibration. I also built two sets of drawers under the lathe to hold tools and that also helps in keeping the vibration down. The Jet is just heavier all around.

Tim

I bought the Jet 1442 about a year ago. My price point was about he same as yours. I'm pleased with the purchase. There are better lathes, but I could not find one at that price.

-Steve

Get the Jet 1442, 14 in swing, 42in bed. Heavy cast iron. About $850

STEMO

My first lathe was a 14" Delta. After about 6 months I sold it for half what I had paid and bought a Jet 1442. The Jet is far and away a much better machine in all aspects.

The following article may help in your decision.

A used one, IMHO. Depends what you can find. Old used North American cast iron is usually a better long-term bet, and often less out of pocket than new imported stuff. Sometimes you might need a new motor, or new bearings, or a VFD to run a 3-phase unit if you don't happen to have

3-phase at home, but you can often do those things and still come out ahead, $ wise and lathe wise.

I have a VIC300 that weighs in at around 900 pounds. I can still make a 1/4" miniature vessel, so thin I almost can look through it.

You can make anything on a large lathe that you can make on a small one, but not the other way around.

Bjarte

Used is a real good option. Bear in mind, anything which is cast iron and broken/missing will likely not be replaceable. Bearings, pulleys, screws and handles come off the shelf or can be fabricated.

It's rigidity, not weight which counts, so while you're shopping, make sure that the unit has good, positive locks to keep its components in line and constant reference to each other. If you want weight, you can add it, up to the weight of mother earth, when you bring it into the shop.

Another nice thing about used lathes is that a lot of them include other goodies like tools.

John,

I fly a Jet 1442. Had it about 18 months and am still tickled with it. It ain't perfect, but its darn good. If you watch, you might get a sale at Woodcraft--Washington's birthday or such.

I'd buy it again if I had the chance. (But it only cost me $700 when I bought it!)

Walt C

Your statement, " It's rigidity, not weight which counts " - true words of wisdom! Piling sand on the base doesn't turn a flimsly lathe into a quality lathe. billh

For sure... and even better than tools, I've bought a couple of used power tools and had the owner throw in jigs that he'd built to use with the tool... great jump start..

Another advantage of buying used is you get to see how it stands up to use...

mac

Please remove splinters before emailing

I couldnt agree more, Go to school auctions and check out the old Iron they are getting rid of. I got a Rockwell/Delta 46-450 (12" swing 14" over gap 36" between centers

500+ lbs.) for $25.00. I did some minor cleaning and bought a used VFD and I have a great heavy lathe under $200.00. Worst case scenario, I may have had to buy some bearings, 1 phase motor and I would still have been ahead. As for parts, it appears that I can get everything for it except the 7/16" tail stock spindle clamp.(SO I make one out of a $2.00 piece of allthread.)

I do agree that you need to check for obvious signs of abuse and neglect, however, that old iron can take alot and still be as true as a new $800.00 jet 1442.

I will admit that the lathe I picked up was neglected and cosmetically abused. I spent about 3 hours cleaning and shining up the parts and she isn't the prettiest girl at the dance but she is a joy to play with.

One side mention: I really love having the lathe with the Reeves speed control and the vfd on this lathe. It really give you a wide range of control. I especially like the soft start of the vfd.

I have a Jet 12x36 ($500 on amazon). Keep an eye on the lower RPM's. I like it a lot, but I wish I could go slower than 550 RPM's for bigger bowls. But a lot of the lathes in this price range (Jet, Delta) can't go much slower. As a novice, alarge chunk of wood spinning at 500RPM is scary. Some beef up the Jet 1236 with plywood and sand to prevent vibration. The bigger Delta/Jet lathes are better at reducing vibration, but the lowest speeds are about the same. I think the $900 Jet goes to 450rpm.

The Nova 1624-44 ($1000) goes down to 218RPM, and I am envious of that low speed.

Also - expect to pay a lot for tools and sharpening equip eventually. For starters, look for a sale on the Woodcraft slow-speed 8" grinder. ($95 today, about $80 on sale) Also get the Harbor Freight HSS lathe chisels ($37 today). I don't remember if they go on sale often.

That set doesn't include a decent bowl chisel. So that might be about $50 more. The HF set will let you practice your sharpening techniques on cheap steel.

It's easy to spend as much on tools for the lathe as on the lathe itself. I think I'm around 3x-4x now.

If you are serious about bowls, the Nova would be a good choice over a Jet or Delta (says a Jet owner). However, if your total price is $1000, you won't have much for tools.