You may recall my question last week, as to any owners of this lathe and how they like it, and the resulting thoughts and links. Thought I would try and give something back to the group as a thank you, and perhaps to help the next person looking at this unit.
Disclaimer - I have only been turning for 9 months, have only owned a Busybee Craftx lathe and have no intention (or ability) to match the verbosity of Greg G.!
I purchased the Craftsman 15" Pro Kit from sears Canada that is currently on sale for 799. The kit included the lathe, stand, 3 tools, duplicator and bowl turning kit. Altho I live close to 4 sears stores, I decided to pay the 50 bucks to have the unit delivered. Package arrived on time and was taken to my basement shop. All boxes were in good shape with no apparant damage. The stand is painted to match the lathe, using what I would guess is a powder coat to simulate cast, and all holes lined up with no problems. The lathe has the head not attached to the bed - this was great as it makes it quite easy for one person to place the bed on the stand, then add the head ( different from my craftx, as it was one big piece). The one issue I did encounter was with one of the locknuts that attaches the swivel head to the bed - threads were bad and I had to tap the nut to clean it up.
The unit has a curious mix of metal and plastic - the tail stock locks to the bed with a metal handle, but then they went and put a plastic handle on the lock for the live center. As well, the tool rest uses a metal handle for the bed lock, but again uses a plastic handle for the tool rest lock. There were 2 toolrests included and I can see the use for the smaller one when doing pens with the larger one being the same size as the one that came with the craftx. I mention the plastic handles as I have a tendency to Overtighten things, and broke both on my old craftx. Both rests appear to be cast, and I am still unsure if they are strong enough.
I brought the tailstock up to the head, to see how close the 2 points are. Holy! I was so impressed - they matched perfectly! (remember I am coming from a craftx where I had to "adjust" the tailstock anytime I used it).
I chucked up an old piece of acacia I had laying around, making certain the 10" piece was off center, as I was curious how the lathe would perform. The lathe stayed solidly on the floor and swung the wood around with no problem. Once I brought the wood to round I cranked up the speed to start shaping the bowl. Well, let me tell you, I always wondered what the big deal about a catch was, since my experiece with the craftx was that in the case of a bad catch the lathe would just stop. Not this puppy! What an absolute pleasure working with a strong piece of equipment! It claims to be able to make 2hp, and from this newbies viewpoint, it certainly can!
While I was turning, my mind started thinking of this large piece of silver maple I have been wanting to turn, and thinking about outboard turning I suddenly realized that I did not see the bowl turning kit that was suppossed to be included with the lathe. I went back to the website to see if indeed the kit included this, and sure enough, the picture showed the bowl kit as well as the description calling it out. I called sears and was told that it is a mistake, the kit is not included - however they would send me the kit no charge. This bodes well for any future dealing I may have! And Darrell, I do recall you saying this kit was not worth the money, but since it was listed as included, a fellow has to have it!
By the way, the 2 gouges and parting tool included are simply marked as craftsman, and my assumption is that they are not hss - not certain here as I just stuck them aside.... I have yet to try the duplicator, as spindle turning is not something I do much of, but expect to use it over the winter to replace an iron railing in my home.
Oh, the lathe also has the ability to do indexing, believe its 24 points, using a cam lock located inside the back head cover.
All said and done, at this early stage, I am very impressed with the unit, and have ordered a burl pack from Bow River Crafts in BC to really give the lathe a workout!