Pm1340-gt Qctp?

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Alan H.

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I am likely to order a 1340GT later this week when I get it all run to ground. I am trying to decide what to do about a quick change tool post. As you likely know, Matt offers one with 5 holders for ~200 bucks. He also sells a couple of Aloris options but they are far more expensive. Of course there are options from others as well.

For those of you with this machine, what did you opt for and why? Thanks in advance for the insights.
 
I and one or two other 1340GT owners here (that I know of) went Dorian, which IMO is just a slight tick up from a Aloris. I also went with a way more expensive chuck than I intended (PBA) because I was thinking that it would seem silly to spend that much money for a quality lathe and then cheap out on the critical accessories. Just my $0.02. :)
 
I too went with Dorian tool post and couldn't be happier. After purchasing and evaluating Aloris, Dorian, Phase II tool holders, I ended up buying 20 of Matt's BXA tool holders. Yes, the Aloris and Dorian tool holders are a bit nicer, but I'm happy with my choice. Also bought the upgraded "Preferred Equipment Package" and the Taiwanese 4-jaw chuck, and asked Matt to upgrade the 3-jaw even more to a ChanDox Adjust-tru type 3-jaw. These chucks look every bit as good as a Bison or PBA to me.
 
I too went with Dorian tool post and couldn't be happier. After purchasing and evaluating Aloris, Dorian, Phase II tool holders, I ended up buying 20 of Matt's BXA tool holders. Yes, the Aloris and Dorian tool holders are a bit nicer, but I'm happy with my choice. Also bought the upgraded "Preferred Equipment Package" and the Taiwanese 4-jaw chuck, and asked Matt to upgrade the 3-jaw even more to a ChanDox Adjust-tru type 3-jaw. These chucks look every bit as good as a Bison or PBA to me.
David, Thanks for the feedback.
Interesting that you bought Matt's tool holders and the Dorian. Did you look at Matt's post and compare it to the Dorian post?

BTW, there is a note on Matt's website that says the 1340GT now comes with an upgraded 3 jaw chuck. Is this the same one you have?
 
I bought a couple of Aloris off ebay. Have a few Aloris holders, but most of mine are the Shars, Phase II, etc. As long as you replace the cheesy hold down screws with good stuff, they work fine. Still have the original 4-sided tool post & a QC that came with my 1340-GT & haven't ever used either. Maybe one of these days I'll get around to selling them :eek:
 
David, Thanks for the feedback.
Interesting that you bought Matt's tool holders and the Dorian. Did you look at Matt's post and compare it to the Dorian post?

BTW, there is a note on Matt's website that says the 1340GT now comes with an upgraded 3 jaw chuck. Is this the same one you have?


My chuck is not the upgraded version mentioned on the web site - the chuck itself is probably similar, but it's an Adjust-tru type which has fine adjustment screws around the outside of the chuck so you can easily dial out the runout - kind of a 3-jaw inside a 4-jaw if you get the analogy. Here's a photo of the 3-jaw I got from Matt - it's very nice:

IMG_5184.jpg


I did not evaluate Matt's QC toolpost. I have worked with other import QC tool posts in the past and not liked them nearly as much as the Dorian. I'm not saying Matt's tool post isn't great - I just haven't seen it and didn't want to take the risk. My previous lathe had an Aloris which I liked, but I think the Dorian is slightly more refined. Personal preference.

The tool holders are another matter entirely - a chunk of steel with a dovetail on the side. If this were a CNC lathe where tight tolerances on tool-offsets etc. were a concern, I might have gone a different direction on the holders. I do think Matt's BXA-style holders are just fine and a terrific value. I did replace all the screws with grade 8 replacements only because I have OCD. :)

As long as I'm posting, I will add that I have made substantial upgrades the the stock PM1340 including all new electronics package from Mark Jacobs, new vector-rated Baldor motor driven by an Hitachi VFD. Mark Jacobs (mksj here on the forum) has been a tremendous help to me throughout the upgrade. I also built my own stand. I'll be posting additional info here on my upgrade once it's complete, but here's a sneak peek:

IMG_5299.jpg
 
Whoa! You got my attention......more please!
 
David,

Love your DRO monitor mount, very nice. I second the other comments, please do a full write up on your setup.

Dan
 
I too, like David, bought some of Matt's tool holders. I have a few Aloris, but the others work just as well. The important piece for repeatability is the QCTP.

EDIT: Oh, and David, I LOVE the face plate. Where do I get mine? :)
 
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