DRO or not?

[mksj]

You would be better off at that price range with either a 1228 or 1236 lathe with larger spindle bore, standard chuck mount (D1-4), should be able to take a BXA QCTP and MT3 tailstock which opens you up to much more common tooling and accessories. Also less change gears and heavier lathes.

https://www.precisionmatthews.com/shop/pm-1228vf-lb/

PM-1236 12″x36″ Precision Lathe – Precision Matthews Machinery Co.

www.precisionmatthews.com

PM-1236T 12″x36″ Ultra Precision Lathe – Precision Matthews Machinery Co.

www.precisionmatthews.com

 

[theperfessor]

About 20 years ago I bought a lightly used Clausing/Colchester 15 x 50. Used it for a couple years w/o a DRO with no real problems until I ran into a job where I just couldn't do what I wanted to do using the dials. Paid $10k for the lathe, got a local tool vendor to install a 2 axis Newall. Cost $1500. But that extra 15% allowed me to do things faster and more accurately. I realize that's a bigger lathe at a higher price than what the OP is interested in, but my point is that I will cry once when I pay the bill but after that I'm going to get a far more capable tool.

Our shop is getting a virtually unused 12 x 36 Harbor Freight/Central Machine lathe in the next few months. Buying it from my BIL. It will be a backup/second op machine and thus not heavily used or used for complex work. But guess what - it will have a DRO on it within a couple of months. Easier for all of us to use, we are all comfortable with CNC displays and digital tech, why not take advantage of that?

We are a production shop, probably less necessary for hobbyist/home shop.

 

[i4Marc]

Price is definitely an issue. I am selling everything I can just to put the cash together for the 10" or maybe 11" lathe. The 12" probably is out of reach for me. Also as I mentioned, I have to get this down some basement stairs so size and weight is a limiting factor as well.

 

[epanzella]

A mill really needs a DRO but a work around using dial indicators is pretty easy on the lathe.

 

[keeena]

...For now I'll probably be making, or trying to make, screws and other parts for my knives/sheaths and small parts for my race bikes....

What and where do you race? Machining compliments the sport nicely; great to have machining tools at your disposal. But if you thought racing was expensive... Well...buy the lathe and report back in a year.

I wish I had a DRO on my lathe but have gotten by without one for now. As mentioned: you could get a long travel dial indicator but the DRO adds simplicity & speed. Just depends if that is worth the cost to you. For me the most usefulness of a DRO would be carriage positioning; the cross-slide dials are good enough for the type of work I do. I'll be getting one eventually.

Like mksj pointed out: if you are considering a smaller lathe with DRO or larger w/o DRO: go for the latter. The improvements due to size & specs is worth it. After playing with a 10" for a few months I immediately realized some drawbacks and upgraded to a 12x36.

 

[i4Marc]

keeena,

My buddies talked me into going for a championship last year so I could upgrade my amateur racing license to expert and race with them (they are all experts). So I did the CCS Lightweight Formula 40 and GT lights series in the Atlantic and Mid-Atlantic regions last year on a Suzuki SV650. I came away with second place in both regions in GTL and won both regions in Formula 40 as well as got track champion at NJ. The tracks are on the East Coast - CMP, VIR, Summit Point, NJMP. There are still some mods I want to do to the bike so the lathe would come in handy and give me small projects to practice on.

I do not have the space or budget for the 12X36.

 

[Aaron_W]

Ok, thanks everybody for the information about DROs.

Does anyone have experience or knowledge about the Weiss lathes sold by DRO PROs, particularly the 11X29? Are they good people to deal with? Good customer support, etc.? Seems like a slightly better machine than the PM but comes with less stuff.

DRO-PROs is 2-3 hours from me but I have no personal experience with them. A lot of the import lathes are made in the same factories with the individual sellers choosing different options. For example I have a 9x20 Enco lathe made in 1994, I have bought parts from Grizzly for their 9x19 version G4000 and they work on my lathe. Jet sells the same lathe in both a 9x19 and a 9x29 version, but theirs has a 1-1/2" spindle instead of a 39mm thread.

Weiss and PM appear to sell the same lathe. There was a post recently asking this question. Matt from PM said theirs is different, but didn't go into detail.


I also have a basement shop, but I only have 1 step to deal with since it is an outside entrance. I still have very limited access having just a single regular width door, narrow walkway and a low ceiling making moving heavy objects fun. Lathes and mills can be disassembled. I have a 950lb 11x24 lathe and two 900lb-ish mills that I have got into the basement with just my wife and I. The lathe was the most difficult, as the mills broke down into far more manageable packages.

I broke the lathe into several pieces, the bed and headstock being the most challenging since that section still weighed around 350lbs and that was after I pulled the spindle and gears from the head, and the tail stock and carriage from the bed. The base split in half, the side with the motor weighing about 200-250lbs, the empty half probably about 100lbs.

Personally I think the 9" and 10" lathes are a nice size, particularly for a beginner but don't think you can't get a larger down lathe there if you find you really need a bigger lathe. The PM 11x27 or 12x28 will give you a 1-1/2" spindle bore for not a whole lot more weight. The 10x30 is 395lbs, the 12x28 is 490lbs.

My most used lathe is a 3.5x17" Sherline that weighs under 50lbs, so size isn't everything.


and yes, if you read through this post I refer to 3 different lathes, I bought the Sherline lathe because I didn't have the room for a big lathe, and now I have 3 lathes, 3 mills, an electric press and a shaper... I got very creative with my space. This may also be why I tend to advocate for something smaller to start out. You can always go bigger down the road after you have experience and really know what you need.

 

[i4Marc]

Thanks Aaron. I really don't need a 12X36 or even the 11X29. Heck, I don't even need the 10X30. I'll probably only be making small parts like pommel nuts, screws/bolts, bushings etc. for a while. A 7X12 would likely get me by. But I'm looking at middle size machines for the quality/features, steadiness, parts/accessories availability. A larger machine would be overkill for me.

Does anyone have a link to the thread discussing the difference between Weiss and PM?

 

[macardoso]

I happened across a 12x36 at a good price and have moved it down a really awful set of basement stairs. Total weight is around 1000lb and it wasn't too bad, however it did necessitate the purchase of an engine hoist for assembly (Harbor Freight $100). I did all the moving with one buddy and some ropes and 2x4s on the stairs to make a ramp. Took an afternoon and a 6 pack.

I am an advocate of the largest machine (within reason) that you can go for. At a minimum it makes working on small stuff easy, but it really shines as your work grows and you need to do the occasional larger part. The extra mass of a larger machine also dictates what tools you are allowed to use (from a rigidity/chatter standpoint) and how much room you have to get into the machine to work and measure. I have never come close to needing the 37" between centers on my lathe, but you can rest assured that the entire bed gets used often when I have a big drill and want room to measure my part.

 

[stioc]

I bought a 7x14 for my first lathe and frankly it wasn't a good experience. It was just too cramped for me and always felt like a toy. A lot of folks love them and there are even smaller lathes out there and they all have their place. However, the 9x20 is a good size for a starter machinist who has interest in motorsports etc. Lots of following and mods to make them work even better. BTW I added a cheap $60 DRO on mine a couple of years ago and use it all the time.
I wish I had a bigger lathe for rigidity but for the room this one takes and for the cost it's been a solid choice. Goodluck!