Shipping cost from Busy Bee in Canada

J

jster1963

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Hey Guys,

I finally found the lathe of my dreams only to have them dashed by shipping cost. My dream lathe costs $1799 but it will cost $1500 to ship from Canada to the Chicago area.

Guys I have searched hi and lo for and equivalent machine in the states, but there is always at least 1 feature that is missing. I want the Craftex CX700. It is a 10" x 22" lathe that has variable speed, power cross slide, and Tslot cross slide. The Grizzly G0752 is missing the tslot and power crossfeed. Most others are missing the power crossfeed. I have looked at EVERY lathe from Enco to Precision Mathews. All are missing 1 feature or I have to buy a bigger lathe.

Guys I plan to buy American iron and restore, but I need an out of the box running machine. So please don't bash me for buying a "Made in China" machine.

Does anyone know how I can get a shipment from Canada that doesn't cost the price of the lathe? I can drive but it will be 8 hours each way with a rented truck.
 
FYI: Busy Bee is owned by the brother of the guy who owns Grizzly. It's odd that this unit is not carried by Grizzly as most of the product line is very similar.


Ray


Steven said:
I'd consider spending that difference in buying a larger lathe locally.


Busy Bee stuff is no great shakes and their service is not great either.


See if any Grizzly items would work for you.
Even my old SB 9 has crossslide power feed, I suspect if you go larger you can get it.
Click to expand...
 
Steven: Thank you, but I don't want bigger and heavier. It's a "I don't have the room for a bigger machine" issue. Also, I have to be able to move it by myself. The 10" x 22" is the biggest I can "single hand".

Ray C: I asked Grizzly about getting the Craftex because of that link between the companies, and they said we have NO affiliation with Busy Bee. I thought the brothers could at least help each other out.

Thanks guys......
 
ARKnack: Thank you. There are several guys who have had issues with their customer svc. I'm just in LOVE with that lathe. I'm a youtube type guy and wanted to see a Grizzly G0752 in action, but they only had the Craftex CX700. What a cool machine! I feel like the guy in love with the wrong girl. You know it's not going to work out, but your willing to try ANYTHING to make it work.

I'll be in Michigan next week and will have to be careful not to go to Canada and get it. My wife and kids will probably keep me honest;-)
 
I have had my eye on that lathe too, but love the grizzly 4003g...meet you at the border...? J/ k....

busy bee is hit or miss on service....if you know exactly what you're looking for, and get one of the owners relatives, no so bad...the part timers there treat you like you're bugging them. Went there last Saturday, was directed to a guy reading the paper who didn't look up until I was a foot away and had to get his attention....
 
Shepherd: I have it bad! I'm really thinking about making that drive! I've still been trying to find the equivalent machine in the states, but no luck:-( I know how customer service issues are a problem, but hopefully the machine will be perfect;-)

That Grizzly 4003g is TOO big for my basement shop. That is a dedicated machine shop tool for me cuz of space. If I can't find a Craftes CX700 equivalent machine, I'm afraid I may drive 8 hours each way in a rented truck. THAT WILL SUCK! I get a FedEx discount, but not for things that big. O well.

Thanks for the input.......
 
Have you checked craigslist for a similar/better machine close to you. I find most busybee stuff needs tuning/repair before its up to standards that I would expect out of the box.

http://chicago.craigslist.org/chc/tls/4003341098.html - seems to be close to your size requirement, not sure about the cross feeed but it's also got milling capabilites. Not sure of the smithy quality though.
 
schor: Thank you! Unfortunately, I'm on craigslist 10 times a day! The machine you suggested is close, but no cigar. I watched a youtube vid on the CX700 and the machine is so quiet it is unbelievable! Plus, the guy said it ran true right out of the box. I tend to look on youtube for everything because seeing is half the battle.

Thanks again.......
 
Have you looked into 3rd-party shipping companies? Even something like http://www.uship.com, where it's kinda random people doing the work, but is much cheaper...
 
coflynn: I have not. Thank you! That is an option I hadn't really considered. However, I just may drive it myself when I'm visiting relatives in Michigan. I am a research, research, research type guy. I has been so disappointing to find the machine I really love and not be able to JUST buy it! Thanks again.......
 
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