So I got this cheap live center on eBay, and have some questions

[m1kemex]

You saying that, I just had my multi-tip unit apart... It has Three different types of bearing. Deep groove rubber sealed, open race and needle roller.

Surprised me to see so many bearings!

As regards the centre, if it is INAD or SNAD, return it. if it is defective, return it. If the seller refuses? open a case pshing for a return. If you do SEND IT TRACKED SIGNED FOR!

To be 100% honest, I do get a bit upset when people get draconian with the Chinese sellers. They sell at very low prices (and low margins), it's rare for a package to get lost, and when it does, they refund you, doubling their cost. The products may lack the refinement of higher end stuff, but they still contain a lot of value in the materials alone (see the post above). And some people still insist in treating them like some Nigerian scammer that takes your money and disappears.

Are we being really fair here? Why not put our money where our mouth is and pay the full price of the really high end stuff if that's what we're expecting?

 

[GrifterGuru]

Bottom line, if something is advertised as being in a specific condition, then that it what is expected, no ifs, buts, or ands about it. Accepting anything less is, frankly, ridiculous and allowing continuance of the shady practice of sub-par goods being sent out rather than what is listed/shown in the listing images/photographs.

I have had a couple of items from india, great stuff, well made, though a few sharp corners that needed knocking back. I expected that based on the photographs in the item listing and frankly, the overall quality was better than expected based on the images.

I also acquire items from CN regularly. Never an issue, quality is always either as listed or better and never had an issue with a seller either.

So to answer your question "are we really being fair here"? Yes, we are being fair in expecting exactly what was listed and represented for sale irrespective of the price point.

 

[woodchucker]

To be 100% honest, I do get a bit upset when people get draconian with the Chinese sellers. They sell at very low prices (and low margins), it's rare for a package to get lost, and when it does, they refund you, doubling their cost. The products may lack the refinement of higher end stuff, but they still contain a lot of value in the materials alone (see the post above). And some people still insist in treating them like some Nigerian scammer that takes your money and disappears.

Are we being really fair here? Why not put our money where our mouth is and pay the full price of the really high end stuff if that's what we're expecting?

Yes, I agree, but I was merely trying to find out if it were a kit or not. I consider Chinese stuff to be a kit, where you need to do the finish work, deburring, cleaning out the swarf. I don't view it as a detriment (mostly). I am a buyer of cheap stuff. I can't afford the top of the line as I don't do this for a living. I have said basically the same as you. But if you bought low priced, you got what you paid for. But we all ***** about it from time to time.

 

[RaisedByWolves]

Yes, I agree, but I was merely trying to find out if it were a kit or not. I consider Chinese stuff to be a kit, where you need to do the finish work, deburring, cleaning out the swarf. I don't view it as a detriment (mostly). I am a buyer of cheap stuff. I can't afford the top of the line as I don't do this for a living. I have said basically the same as you. But if you bought low priced, you got what you paid for. But we all ***** about it from time to time.

There’s a wide variety of quality even dealing with good well known brands bought through the big catalogs. 90% of Travers inventory can be found far cheaper on e Bay and even McMaster has a few different quality options on many items.

I wouldn’t let engineering by my Haimer from McMaster as they didn’t list the brand by name and I didn’t want to wind up with a knockoff.

The major difference aside from price is the after sales support if your widget comes in damaged or out of spec.

 

[projectnut]

My patience has grown very thin with offshore sellers. To that point I only do business with them when absolutely necessary. I've had a few run ins with them over the quality of their products. One time when I complained about a damaged tool, I was told "hat was to be expected since it was shipped all the way from China". In this case the damage was done before the tool was packaged.

On another occasion I was told I was mistaken about who sold me the tool. They tried to deny they had sold it even though I had the receipt from their company in hand.

As for live centers check to see if there are used equipment dealers in your area. I've purchased Royal and Riten live centers for less than $50.00 each. A couple years ago I purchased a like new Skoda MT3 live center set from a used equipment dealer for $245.00

 

[mmcmdl]

What taper size Wobbly ?

 

[RJSakowski]

When shopping for cheap we should be hoping for quality, surprised and delighted if we get it and not disappointed if we don't.

Price can be an indicator of quality but many times it isn't; there is no guarantee. There is no question in my mind that manufacturers and dealers capitalize on name brand. In some cases it doubles the selling price of a product,

Not that there aren't unscrupulous parties out there and eBay is loaded with them. They are the modern version of the rag pickers of old, buying up factory seconds and selling as 1st run products. In many cases, the sellers really don't know what they are selling. A good indication is a dealer selling machine tools who also sells costume jewelry and swimwear. Most of them clip and past copy from a manufacturer's website.

A recent example for me was a drain pump for our dishwasher. The manufacturer had discontinued the part but I had a part number. A search of common appliance parts houses indeed showed it no longer available. I managed to find one dealer that claimed to have the OEM part in stock and ordered it. What I got was a different part number that did work although other sites listed it as a substitute but our dish washer was not in the list of compatible models. The price I paid for the pump was more than double what was available from other sites and it took an extra nine days to get the pump.. This was deceptive advertising in my mind but we needed the dishwasher to be put back in service so I ate the higher cost and chalked it up to experience .

 

[WobblyHand]

Been busy this morning, doing some cooking. So hadn't wanted to get bluing on my hands. Thinking about this, the bearings just feel crappy, they are not smooth.

Oof, that took a long time. Made some hummus and some baba ganoush. The baba came out superlative, and the hummus is excellent as well. Having some now.

 

[WobblyHand]

What taper size Wobbly ?

MT3. Was looking for a long nose or slim one to make a taper. The fat live centers make it tough to get tooling close enough without excessive stick out.

 

[WobblyHand]

Yes, I agree, but I was merely trying to find out if it were a kit or not. I consider Chinese stuff to be a kit, where you need to do the finish work, deburring, cleaning out the swarf. I don't view it as a detriment (mostly). I am a buyer of cheap stuff. I can't afford the top of the line as I don't do this for a living. I have said basically the same as you. But if you bought low priced, you got what you paid for. But we all ***** about it from time to time.

I wasn't expecting the moon. Not mad about the TIR, but was disappointed. But a similarly inexpensive live center I have has decent bearings, they present some friction, are tight and move smoothly, which I'm assuming is the proper behavior. Comparing the two units, the new one has significantly worse bearings, at least by feel.

This afternoon I will check the taper. If it's within the MT3 taper within reason, I may chalk it up as a bad decision. If the taper is only contacting the nose of the tail stock socket, it's going back, as that's harder for me to correct.