1236 Questions

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Big Rack

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I've been looking for a lathe and have considered PM1127VF-LB, PM1228, Grizzly G4003G and the PM 1236 which seems to have the most bang for the buck. I have been wearing Matt at QMT out with emails so I thought I'd ask here.
I see the listings for the preferred package and understand what it comes with overall though I still have a couple of questions.
Does this lathe use change gears, if so how many are supplied?
Is the chuck guard included?
I understand the coolant pump is in the right leg, is it accessible once the lathe is mounted? Could the leg easily be reversed so the pump would be accessible from the front? ( I probably will seldom use it and don't like a stinking coolant tank)
Finally whatever I end up with (and it looks like the PM1236) I intend to mount a hour meter that will time when the E-stop is out anyone have an ideal of what terminal to pick up either 11o or a control voltage?
Thanks for the replies.
 
Most changes are done with the gear box, but it does come with a few change gears..6, I think. I have not used any of mine yet. My lathe did include the chuck guard, though I did not specifically order it. You can access the coolant pump from the rear as long as you dont have the lathe right up against a wall. My splash guard is about 6 inches from the wall and I can get my coolant pump out no problem. Not sure if you can reverse the leg. At the very least, you will have to drill a hole on the other side for the foot break. Not sure about the e-stop. I'm pretty sure it handles 24vac control voltage for the contactors in the panel on the back of the machine. I suppose you could wire in a 24v hour meter easily enough and maybe mount it right in the bezel as long as it is small enough. There is not a lot of extra room in the casting. Here is a pic of the back side of the control panel. The e-stop is on the right. Hope this helps!
DSC08498.jpg
 
Having purchased a 12x36 (the G4003G) here's my advice, stop, step back and consider buying a larger lathe even if this means waiting a while longer to save up the additional money. It will be WAY less expensive to buy once vs upgrading in a year or two later. You can sink thousands more into a 12x36 buying a DRO, tooling, chucks that may or may not transfer to the larger lathe. I had people suggest to me to go bigger and didn't listen. Just saying.
 
Thanks for the replies as a hobbyist I'll probably never turn something outside it's envelope and being on a very limited budget this seems to be the best value.
Sometimes I think I should buy the mini stuff and put it in the basement but then I'd know I'd need larger.
 
Morgan, about your splash guard being about 6 inches from the wall, the PM1236 I'm waiting for will go into the right corner of the room. I planned on putting it 12" from the back wall and 12" from the side wall. Wondering if that would be enough for access. I think it would be but after reading the instructions for a Grizzly lathe, which said 30" from any wall, I get paranoid, ha.

Big Rack, I'm in a similar situation. Was looking at smaller lathes but didn't want to regret ending up with something I wished was larger, which is why I ordered the PM1236. I'll never use it to its full potential, and the 17" gap bed adds some insurance. I figure if I ever run into anything that won't fit, I'll find someone else to handle it... but I'm convinced that will never happen.
 
Its not 'just' about the work cube when considering a larger lathe. Its also about rigidity, mass, triple spindle bearings vs double, quality of spindle bearings, motors hanging off the back of the smaller lathes introducing vibration in the spindle vs motors located in the base of a cast iron stand on larger lathes. You might want to research the lengths some 12x36 lathe owners go to isolate their motors. A larger lathe that is 2 to 3 times the mass of a 12x36 may improve surface finish, accuracy, repeatability, depending on the part or you may find some materials more difficult to work with on smaller lathes to get quality results. Then there is availability of tooling for a given size QCTP. You are likely looking at BXA for both the 12x36 and 14x40's so I don't think it matters until you hit a 16 inch swing which lets you move up to CXA and 3/4 to 1 inch tooling.

Important - my lathe is just for fun, it sits for days even weeks or months not used. That's why I bought a smaller 12x36 even when my brother was cautioning me to buy something larger. But here's the thing...even though I only use it infrequently and then on stuff that's just for fun my expectations of quality are high, I expect whatever I'm turning to come out nice, and that's where I think a made a bit of a mistake going for the smaller lathe. Generally larger lathes of 2 to 3 times the mass produce higher quality turnings. I'm fine with the 12x36 quality on some materials, brass for example, its not a mirror finish but its pretty nice. Aluminum is...okay, its shiny but you can see the effects of vibration and less rigidity in the surface finish. I will say this my G4003G is accurate to .0002 with the DRO I can definitely turn to a tight tolerance with repeatability.

Anyway food for thought.
 
It was very interesting to read you comments, even somewhat funny, because they were the same reasons why people suggested I move up to a 12x36 when I was initially looking at a 9x20. The bottom line is there is really no magic number when it comes to size, and the saying too much of a good thing can apply with lathes as well. The 12x36 is much larger than I need for 95% of what I'll use it for... a collet kit is on my buy now list. The other 5% is what convinced me to switch it even though the 9x20 could have easily handled them as well. I have a friend who has been using a 9x20 Enco for a couple years now to make all sorts of items, like small cannons that actually work and they look fantastic. He has machined a couple parts for me and again perfect. I really do appreciate the comments but there is really no need for me to go any larger... at least not again. But thank you very much.
 
I told yall wrong..my splash guard is 8 inches from the wall, not 6. The splash guard sticks out behind the lathe a good bit further than the back of the stand's leg. The coolant pump is easy enough to get out, but you do have to kinda work sideways. The electrical panel on the back is pretty hard to get to, though you probably wouldn't need to but once in a blue moon.

Cobra, you would be able to access everything with a foot behind and in the back, but a foot on the side will limit the length of the stuff you can put through this spindle hole (if that matters).

I built a base for my machine out of 3/16" 2x2 square tubing and put leveling feet on it as many other members here have. It gives the advantage of raising the machine up to a more comfortable height, and if I ever really really have to move the machine, I can borrow the pallet jack from work and slide it right under the base. The base being that thick, however, creates a bit of a twist problem. The machine is not heavy enough to flatten out a slightly twisted welded base. You will probably have to use shims between the stand and the base to align the machine...no biggie, really. I used feeler gauge leaves and it has worked out well.

Coolidge is right about bigger machine = better quality work. More mass, less vibration, better finish, etc. My decision to get the 1236 was based on size. I have only a one car space in my garage for everything and the 1236 was the absolute biggest machine I could fit in there and still have room for a mill and some other stuff. Seriously, it looks like the shop out of a WW2 diesel submarine...ok, maybe not that bad, but it is pretty small. I have been happy with the 1236 and the 932. I wouldn't mind a big ole 16" lathe and honkin big Wells Index, but it just ain't gonna happen for a few years. If you can get bigger, do it, you wont be sorry...if not, I don't think you will be unhappy with the 1236. A lot of members, like darkzero, produce some very nice stuff with theirs. Check out some of his threads...oh, and he says one of those link belts helps a lot with vibration and finish. I haven't tried one yet...any finish problems I have are due to lack of skill and inexperience (though I am getting better).

Here is a side view of the machine, so you can see for yourselves about the spacing:
Side view.jpg
 
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65Cobra427SC said:
It was very interesting to read you comments, even somewhat funny, because they were the same reasons why people suggested I move up to a 12x36 when I was initially looking at a 9x20.
Click to expand...

Lol, yeah...that's how I ended up with a 1236 when I was looking at an 1127..you got to watch the guys around here...they'll do that...they did it to me...twice.
 
Funny, I must have posted my previous response to coolidge literally seconds before you.

I had seen something about the link belts before and considered them, but the added bonus of vibration and finish makes them a must buy, so thanks for bringing them up.

Although I do have room for a larger lathe, considering I was initially looking at a mini-lathe, then a 9x20, and ended up ordering the PM1236, I think I better stop there, especially considering I'm now looking at the PM932-PDF. Between both machines and the tooling the money is adding up fast. I should have also mentioned this to coolidge but I'm retired so money is more of a factor now than before.

About the foot of room on the right side... you're correct. Although the spindle hole goes all the way through the headstock assembly, it depends on what I'm machining as to which side I may need to feed it so I need enough room on both sides. Although I could probably do anything even if the lathe was up against that wall, this is going downstairs in the unused family room being converted into a workshop, so I have enough space to spare. I'll increase the space another foot or two which will be more than enough.

I only started looking at this forum today but I did happen to see your 2x2 square tubing base earlier... very impressive. I'm surprised about the twisting but I still like the idea and the shims aren't a problem. I may go ahead and do that as well but I'm curious, if you had to do it again, would you change anything? Mainly wondering if there is a way to help keep it from twisting. I have a friend who is a welder by trade so I would do all the cutting and fitting and have him do the welding.
 
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