I'm ready to buy a new lathe and have narrowed my chooses to a 14X40 Grizzly G0709 gunsmiths lathe or the Precision Mathews PM1440E, the specs and prices are very close to the same for both machines. The PM1440E is $4995 with a Easson dro installed including shipping, the Grizzly is $4750 with shipping and Dropro has the Easson dro for $500 but I would have to install which is not a deal breaker. Any input on which is the better machine, they are within $250 of each other I want to buy the better one.
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Grizzly vs Presision Mathews
- Thread starter Boudreaux
- Start date
- Joined
- Mar 10, 2012
- Messages
- 1,368
I don't recall reading any major negatives on either brand's big lathes. Grizzly has very good customer support, which hopefully you won't need but it's nice to know it'll be there, but I've also heard nothing but good about Matt, the owner of PM. If it were me I'd go with the PM because the price with the DRO installed is nice. The only thing is availability. Does PM have the lathe in-stock or can they provide an ETA?
- Joined
- Nov 16, 2012
- Messages
- 5,596
As you all know, I know Matt fairly well so...
Installing DRO is not fun -especially since you need to drill tap holes in the casting. Matt can do these things in his sleep and job will be done properly!
Either way you go, good luck w/your new machine. Be safe and have fun!
Ray
Installing DRO is not fun -especially since you need to drill tap holes in the casting. Matt can do these things in his sleep and job will be done properly!
Either way you go, good luck w/your new machine. Be safe and have fun!
Ray
- Joined
- Nov 27, 2012
- Messages
- 7,855
Both companies have great customer service but I prefer the "one on one" experience with Matt. I've have nothing but great experiences with him so I go back to him whenever I can.
IIRC you could save $100 if you get the DRO from Matt & do the installation yourself if you get one that doesn't have it installed already. It's really not hard at all but it will take up a good part of the day. Drilling & tapping the castings are easy, aligning the scales with an indicator to prevent bending & binding of the scales is what's most important.
I posted my lathe DRO installation here. It's not a step by step how to but it should give you an idea on what to expect.
The lathe DRO install was much easier than my mill. The lathe required almost no shimming at all. The mill DRO install was more time consuming aligning the scales because of all the slopes & angles on the castings. The scale mounting plates for the Easson has a pair of set screws on each end of the plates to allow adjustment for irregular surfaces.
IIRC you could save $100 if you get the DRO from Matt & do the installation yourself if you get one that doesn't have it installed already. It's really not hard at all but it will take up a good part of the day. Drilling & tapping the castings are easy, aligning the scales with an indicator to prevent bending & binding of the scales is what's most important.
I posted my lathe DRO installation here. It's not a step by step how to but it should give you an idea on what to expect.
The lathe DRO install was much easier than my mill. The lathe required almost no shimming at all. The mill DRO install was more time consuming aligning the scales because of all the slopes & angles on the castings. The scale mounting plates for the Easson has a pair of set screws on each end of the plates to allow adjustment for irregular surfaces.
- Joined
- Sep 24, 2010
- Messages
- 3,096
If I had the money I personally would go with Matt at PM. I like the way he deals with his customers and how agressive he is getting things fixed when there is an issue. Grizz is a good machie, but they are a huge company and their sometimes a little slow to get a response from. They do respond, it just takes a while. I tend to believe the PM's will last longer and maintain closer tolerance over time, thus my reason for supporting the PM's over Grizz. You can't go wrong with either, but I think you will be happier with the PM in the long run. I have never heard or read a negative about the machines or anything bad about Matt, and to me that means a good bit when I am spending my hard earned dollars.
Bob
Bob
- Joined
- Jul 26, 2011
- Messages
- 4,142
Actually,you CAN go wrong with any Asian machine. Hasn't happened to me yet. Numerous stories of sand left in machine internals,all kinds of stuff. My NASA machinist friend spent good bucks on a Jet 14" lathe and got it moved into his basement. Then,he discovered that the apron was chock full of shavings and other crud. He had to send it back,which cost money,and ended up buying an even more expensive model from them which turned out o.k..
The last lathe I bought for my shop at work was made in the same factory as Jets. It did have shavings and chips in the gear headstock. I removed them with a magnetic retriever wand. Good thing I checked before running it and getting damaged gear teeth. Not seriously full of shavings like my friend's Jet,but you do need to look over everything carefully when you buy Asian.
I have a brand new Jet wet wheel sharpening machine. It stopped running suddenly. Dealers told me they often don't run right out of the box. I discovered their circuit board had press on connectors that are TRULY as thin as a beer can. The workers crack them trying to push them on. Then,they soon fail. I just soldered my cracked connector. Now,the thing has stopped again. I should have soldered them all while I had it apart. I now have a Tormak,and haven't messed with the Jet since.
The last lathe I bought for my shop at work was made in the same factory as Jets. It did have shavings and chips in the gear headstock. I removed them with a magnetic retriever wand. Good thing I checked before running it and getting damaged gear teeth. Not seriously full of shavings like my friend's Jet,but you do need to look over everything carefully when you buy Asian.
I have a brand new Jet wet wheel sharpening machine. It stopped running suddenly. Dealers told me they often don't run right out of the box. I discovered their circuit board had press on connectors that are TRULY as thin as a beer can. The workers crack them trying to push them on. Then,they soon fail. I just soldered my cracked connector. Now,the thing has stopped again. I should have soldered them all while I had it apart. I now have a Tormak,and haven't messed with the Jet since.
I ordered a PM1440E with 2 axis DRO today, this seemed to me like the best deal for my needs or wants I guess I should say. Matt says he has it in stock, going to mount the DRO an probably ship it out Friday. I sold my Atlas 12x36 last week, I'm anxious to get set up.
Buddy
Buddy