Is an old domestic lathe worth the same as a new import lathe?

More newbie perspective. What the newbie really has to do is determine what they would like to do with a lathe. What I have done so far with my lathe could have probably been done on a 7x10 mini-lathe. I suspect that most hobbyists don't need and will never use the capability of the 12x36 lathe that I bought. Same goes for a mill. A round column mill/drill even with all of its issues is still probably all a hobbyist would ever need. We hobbyist are not trying to make a living at this and rarely will make more than one of something. As an example the only thing that I foresee me making multiples of is tool holders for the Norman style tool post that I am making. I plan on making 8 tool holders.

The main reason I bought a 12x36 was so that I could rebarrel some old mausers that I have. Even with that parameter in mind while I was searching for a lathe I figured out a way that I could do what I wanted to with a smaller lathe. I think that the chances of finding a decent smaller lathe is pretty good because a smaller lathe would not typically have been used in a production shop. During my search I ran across several smaller lathes that looked promising. But they were either in the San Francisco bay area or down south in LA. Going to either of those areas is a 500 to 600 mile round trip from where I live in the foothills 50 miles east of Fresno. I ultimately found what I was looking for not far from my house.
 
Must be bad in nj I posted about free Hardinage lathes and no one even wanted one on here. Place is giving them away if Any are left I don't know . I'd like one but not able to get it , physically not able. I'd pay for gas and some extra of course but it is what it is.
I'd get the pm from Taiwan if I were you.
 
I don't believe NJ is nearly as devoid of old American Iron as some may think. I just went to Craigslist and found Atlas, Comet, Bridgeport, Brown & Sharpe, Lagun, Cincinnati, and Tree mills for sale. There were also a few European built machines listed. There were also several South Bend lathes as well as Rockwell, Clausing, Hardinge, Sheldon, Seneca Falls, and Logan machines currently for sale. There were far more American built machines listed than either Asian or European built ones.

Some had hefty asking prices while others were quite reasonable. Keep in mind an asking price is just that. The final price can be considerably less. To put things in perspective I have only once paid the asking price. In this case the machine was in such good condition and came with so many accessories I thought the asking price was quite reasonable. In most other cases I have paid far less than the asking price. In one case the seller reduced the price of a saw by over 50% before I even asked if the price was negotiable. I have found in most cases the owners want the machinery gone and will entertain any reasonable offer.

I do not consider myself an accomplished negotiator. I just do my research before looking at a machine and offer what I consider to be a reasonable price. I don't try to belittle the machine or the owner, or point out defects in attempt to get a lower price. I just know going into the process what I am willing to pay. If we can't arrive at an acceptable price for both parties I just thank the owner for their time and move on.
 
SSage said:
I looked at a few South Bends and Logans in the SE and the prices were too high for well worn machines. I wanted a bigger lathe, so having it shipped to my house was a major plus.

I'm tired of fighting old iron, my fairly small 1200 pound or so PM1236 is less hassle, easy to read dials, warranty, yep... Buy new. I spent less on the 1236 with tooling and accessories than some of the SBA 9's went for around here with modest tooling.

My first Asian lathe, it's nice and new, 3 year warranty. It's more precise than the old iron I've been around. It's a Chinese made machine, so the paint is typically china style finished, but I'm making good parts on it.
Click to expand...

I went the both ways. My Lathe is a Grizzly G750g (the gunsmith model) again for the same reason ease of getting up and everything working. It replaced a Lathemaster that I out grown.

Now when I wanted a bigger mill. I seriously looked at the PM large bench mills but decided that the biggest thing I wasn’t happy with was the z axis range of travel. So I started looking for a knee mill. I got lucky and found my Lagun FT-2 close to home and in great shape. Yes I had it moved by riggers, installed x axis power feed and a DRO. Those items were removed in the business by one of the machinists there ( he was hoping the machine was going to be offered to him at scrap price).

So it’s a crap shoot on the way to go. I would have not gotten the mill but I could get it up and running the way I wanted to with out major repairs yes I paid more than up north but par for CLT area used machine prices.

The thing is there is something to say about purgatory new machine and being able to call the seller ( I had good experiences with both Grizzly and PM) for assistance


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
The lathe work as day they are made
Even small 9" & 10" Where made with quick change and tapper atchement

I do not see any smaller China lathes that have tooling need even lot of large do not have the tooling

Some will say the old does not come DRO but most of new China do not come with DRO. But can put on both.
On a lathes I found DRO do not live long.

Dave

Dave
tyronejk said:
Around where I live outside of Atlanta, I frequently find old lathes on Craigslist listed for about the same as new import lathe (using PrecisionMatthews lathes as a reference, since they're supposedly one of the good import lathes). The lathes I'm looking at are around 10"-12" by 20"-28".

I see a lot of guys find old South Bends and the like for $600-800 up north, so I'm not sure if $2500 for an old South Bend (and most don't seem to come with much tooling) is worth it. I have a couple of years of experience machining as a hobby, so it's not enough to be able to restore a really beat-up machine and I'd like to get started making parts rather than turning the lathe itself into a project.

So for roughly the same cost, would you recommend sticking with old iron or new chinesium? I'd be using the machine for hobby projects. 90% of it will probably be aluminum - 1 thou is probably sufficient.
Click to expand...

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-J320A using Tapatalk
 
FYI I have had to work on both old and new to 0.0001" to fit bearing

Dave

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-J320A using Tapatalk
 
I have a Logan 2555V lathe built in 1968 and a Dyna-Myte 2400 CNC Vertical Milling machine built in 1969. Both are American Made. The lathe is as original and the CNC Mill is original except the electronics has been updated. I am a Mechanical Engineer and use them to prototype parts that I design. I have checked them both for their precision and they are both right on the money.
Speaking of money, The lathe came at a cost of $1400 and the CNC mill cost was $1500. Both came with some tooling. I live in Upstate New York and not too far away in Connecticut are numerous Machinery dealers. I had my choice of many lathes and Milling machines. The only major work that was done to the lathe was replacement of the motor which was originally a 1 hp 240 volt 3 phase with a 220 volt 2 hp single phase.

Recently I visited a rather large local machine shop. Almost all of their machines are vintage American made. They do have two large lathes made in Taiwan. The General Manager told me that the new lathes are two years old and have been giving them problems. The day I visited, they were waiting for some parts and did not expect them for at least two more weeks. I had the same problem with a Bolton lathe. Parts were not immediately available. When I need parts, I need them NOW! Not two to three months from now.

Being that I have two machines that are fifty years old, I have been checking online for parts availability for my machines. Both Logan Engineering and The new owners of Dyna-Myte machinery have an abundance of parts available.

Please do not take this wrong, but I avoid buying anything made in China, Taiwan & Mexico. I feel part of my job is to keep Americans working. Anything I design MUST be made in the U.S.A. That is in my contract.

Buy American
The job you save
May be your own!
 
I bought my 12x26 Craftsman at a farm auction for $110. It was used hard and needs lots of cleaning up and replacement parts. But as I do the work of fixing and cleaning I learn more about the part of the machine, how the machine works and how it is adjusted. Would I like to actually be using it right now.....yes of course but I am learning along the way.
 
Depends, depends , depends. Like any second hand machine a lot rests on the condition. If you can get a good second hand machine from a reputable maker that would be a great choice.

On the other hand If looking at imports be very wary of chinese made, I know there are some good ones out there, but it appears to be very much a lottery. Taiwanese machines, on the other hand have a well deserved good reputation, and are still relatively affordable, that is / was my choice as I couldn't find a decent second hand one at the time.
 
I'm glad I did try an Asian import. I have American iron too, but its worn and you must play with them much more than my manual Chinese machines. I don't see anything American in the same ball park price wise.

I've used the PM-1236 for over a year. I run it for 8 hours a day sometimes. Then it sits for a few days, but I run it weekly. The 12x36 was a great value, can't beat the Precision Mathews Preferred Package with the coolant, quick change tool post installed and the brake is nice to have IMO. Previously my projects were made on a 10" Logan.

I'm no expert at all, so having a warranty and good product support is a huge advantage. I looked at Gizzly, Bolton, DRO Pros lathes etc. Precision Matthews won my sale, well two sales now. I bought a PM-727M too. Haven't had any issues really in operation. Just had a bad coolant pump on the lathe that was DOA, I just put a mister on it and ended up liking that better anyway. They replaced the pump, it took a while coming from China as you would expect.

I like the dials and the overall size of the lathe, it takes up less room than the old Logan.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top