Looking for new lathe.

A

Aqua-Andy

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I'm not sure if this post is acceptable here or not, if it is not please feel to delete it. I know that this should be in the other machining forum but when I tried to post there in the past I was basically told that I was not worthy. This forum is much friendlier. With that said, I was tasked with purchasing new lathe for our shop at work. I along with one other mechanic will be the primary users of this machine. At the moment we have a Jet 1440 with some letters after the numbers, it also has a 3" bore and a gap bed. This lathe has been crashed a few times and has had some major repairs done in the past but now it is making more noises than usual added to all the other issues it has. The machine get used probably two hours a day on average with some days it will be running for most of the day. The size of the machine we currently have is about ideal for our needs, larger would be okay but smaller would cause some issues. So I'm not sure if we should be getting pricing on rebuilding our current machine or just or just purchase a new machine. From the little research I have done so far It would cost close to $20K to replace what we have with the same brand. Are there other brands I should be looking at that are higher quality/better value? I still have a lot of research to do but I thought I would through this out here.
 
Welcome @Aqua-Andy, it's completely acceptable, we're a friendly bunch here!
There will be some folks come along and ask you questions about the kind of work that is being done etc to help them narrow down your needs.
We're all here to help :)
 
Sorry, not a gap bed and spindle bore is smaller, do you use those features or just what you currently have?
 
:welcome:

You will not be told you are not worthy here or told to go somewhere else no what what machine you ask about. Any size, make, COO, is welcome here.

As mentioned, take a look at Precision Matthews. Matt @qualitymachinetools is a site sponsor here so you will get support from QMT as well as the great members here. And I'm not recommending PM machines just because he is a site member. I purchased my PM machines long before he became a site sponsor here & before I even joined this forum. Search around & you will see that QMT has a very good reputation not only for their machines but customer service as well.
 
The gap is used rarely but when we need it the piece come out. The spindle bore would be a tough one and would limit what we do with the lathe. Also I was looking at some of the lower priced machines and they all come in at around 2500 pounds, the lathe we have now weighs in at around 4500 pounds. I would assume that the extra mass would help with rigidity and chatter when working, am I wrong in this assumption?
 
A bit of my history. Up until about six years ago the only lathes I have used was for wood working or turning brake drums/rotors. I started a new job at a manufacturing facility and started playing with the lathe in the shop. After reading many books, way too many hours watching you tube videos and making chips when I had time , I still would not call myself a machinist buy any stretch of the word but I can hold my own with the machine. So I'm grateful for any help offered to this noob. I still have so much to learn but what I do know is it is just really cool seeing a part that you just made in a machine running.
 
The PM 1440TL has a 2.55 in boar, but otherwise might work for you. You might call and talk to them if you need a full 3" bore. They can probably bring something in for you.
 
I call first dibs if you were to scrap it out! :grin:

Aqua-Andy said:
I'm not sure if this post is acceptable here or not, if it is not please feel to delete it. I know that this should be in the other machining forum but when I tried to post there in the past I was basically told that I was not worthy. This forum is much friendlier. With that said, I was tasked with purchasing new lathe for our shop at work. I along with one other mechanic will be the primary users of this machine. At the moment we have a Jet 1440 with some letters after the numbers, it also has a 3" bore and a gap bed. This lathe has been crashed a few times and has had some major repairs done in the past but now it is making more noises than usual added to all the other issues it has. The machine get used probably two hours a day on average with some days it will be running for most of the day. The size of the machine we currently have is about ideal for our needs, larger would be okay but smaller would cause some issues. So I'm not sure if we should be getting pricing on rebuilding our current machine or just or just purchase a new machine. From the little research I have done so far It would cost close to $20K to replace what we have with the same brand. Are there other brands I should be looking at that are higher quality/better value? I still have a lot of research to do but I thought I would through this out here.
Click to expand...
:grin: :grin:
 
This Clausing lathe is for sale for $7K in Northern California. I know, it's far...but watch this video, especially the high speed traverse on X and Y and tell me you don't want this. 25" swing, 4.5" bore or some such, and 120" long bed.

 
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