1340gt order dilemma

[joeblow65]

I'm not if this is the right place for this so please move if need be. I ordered a 1340GT last August with a ship date of January and as of today it's been pushed out to the end of June, early July. and I'm expecting more delays. I know it's not PMs fault but I'm looking at picking up a Grizzly G0824 instead. Do you guys have any input or pro con between them? Is the 1340 really that much better it's worth a 6-8 month wait?

 

[Ischgl99]

I have the 1236T, which is a slightly smaller version of the 1340 GT and am very happy with it, but that is far too long for me to wait on something. I got lucky in 2020 and mine was in stock, I would have bought a used local lathe if I had to wait that long. Something to think about, the PM lathe is made in Taiwan and the Grizzly lathe looks to be China since they don’t mention the country of manufacture. That may or may not matter to you, it did to me. You can also look at Eisen, some of their lathes are the same ones as the PM ones. They may have something in stock, or quicker delivery. When I looked at them prior to buying mine a bit over a year ago, I believe the prices were close to PM prices.

 

[mksj]

Tough one to judge, the Grizzly you get a lot with that particular model, it is on back-order until April. One of my complaints would be a fair amount of change gears for common threading, Norton gearboxes there is no change gears for imperial threads. Weight wise is a plus on the Grizzly G0824 and it has a larger spindle bore. I had a 1340GT and it is a very capable lathe, but I would expect the Grizzly to be also very capable. I moved away from mainland Chinese machines more because of fit/finish issues that I previously had with a mill. I just got tired of crappy workmanship and things not fitting or being sloppy. Since you are a bit more isolated in Alaska, service and parts would also be a consideration. Eisen is comparable lathe, you might look at the 1236GH which is about the only model in stock, I know a number of people that have purchased their machines and have been happy with them. If you need the extra swing and/or bigger spindle bore than stick with a 1340 or 1440 model. Inventory is the biggest issue these days, and will probably continue through the end of this year. The next tier up on lathes is going to be almost 2X the cost, so something like the PM-1440GT, Acra 1440C, Kent TRL-1340 or similar. One also needs to factor in shipping costs and off loading.

I personally prefer to go with the 3 phase models, as the motors are more reliable and there are tangible surface finish difference depending on the tooling/material being turned. You also have to be careful with single phase models when doing rapid reverses, if you switch too quickly the motor may continue in the same direction as opposed to reversing. Three phase, you can do a simple VFD install, and get the benefits of speed control and enhanced electronic braking if the lathe does not have a foot brake..

 

[joeblow65]

@Ischgl99 I've never heard of eisen, ill give them a call tomorrow. I would love to pick one up local but I live in Alaska and machines that are both not completely worn out or a 16" swing 8' bed engine lathe are hard to come by. I just saw a beat up 1940s heavy 10 sell for 4k a few weeks ago. its nuts up here. I wanted to avoid china but a large portion of even PMs product line is china so I'm not dead set against it.

@mksj Thanks for your input, I was just drooling over your VFD conversion thread. I have the 3 phase 1340 on order as the plan was to VFD it. I don't really need the extra swing but I'm planning on chambering barrels for big bore ELR guns and that 2" spindle bore makes that really easy. I talked to grizzly today and they have 2 shipments incoming, March 9 all sold, and a week later that has available machines on it. and my local distributor isn't charging me shipping to get it up here, which is almost 1000. I called PM to see if anything other machines were available sooner and I got a flat no so at this point grizzly is looking promising but you're right, that many change gears is 100% not ideal.

 

[Dabbler]

My advice is to get the lathe you *want* not the one to settle for. Even if it means saving more and waiting longer. My usual advice is to buy something adequate, and make a lot of chips. Nowadays, with supply shortages, I am seeing the emergence of people being disappointed by having to compromise on the appropriate machine.

 

[NCjeeper]

It seems all the machinery dealers are experiencing delays. Just order what you really want and then wait. That is about all you can do. I have been waiting on a 4ft box and pan brake from Grizzly for over a year now.

 

[Dabbler]

I should add that upgrading later can be quite expensive *ask me how I know*

 

[7milesup]

I should add that upgrading later can be quite expensive *ask me how I know*

True, but when I upgraded last year from a PM1022 to an Eisen 1440, I actually made money on my 1022, so not always a net negative.

 

[7milesup]

I've never heard of eisen,

I purchased an Eisen 1440E in early 2021. Very happy with it but they have gone up about 70% in price since. I paid $7600 for my 1440E. I see the 1236 is made in Taiwan which I would regard as a big plus. There is a huge difference between Chinese and Taiwanese machines IMHO.
Keep in mind the Eisen also has a DRO and supposedly a collet closer along with free shipping according to their website.
They also have a 1640 but it is a LOT more than the 1236. But then again, buy once, cry once. The more I think about it, you should get the 1640

 

[woodchucker]

I purchased an Eisen 1440E in early 2021. Very happy with it but they have gone up about 70% in price since. I paid $7600 for my 1440E. I see the 1236 is made in Taiwan which I would regard as a big plus. There is a huge difference between Chinese and Taiwanese machines IMHO.
Keep in mind the Eisen also has a DRO and supposedly a collet closer along with free shipping according to their website.
They also have a 1640 but it is a LOT more than the 1236. But then again, buy once, cry once. The more I think about it, you should get the 1640

got a question about the Eisen 1440E.. I see it's a 2 speed motor. I think single phase...
Does it have back gears, or does it rely on the 2 speed motor for it's low end? Back gears are very useful for torque.. if you don't have back gears, is there a good amount of torque from the low end motor?