First lathe advice

[Natlai770]

Hi all,

I'm looking at purchasing a first lathe as an Xmas gift. I've a budget upto £300. Research I've done says a swing of 12 inches but im at a loss as which one is good and if I need a chuck to go with it to start off ?

Any advice would be great.

Thanks

Natasha

 

[Colin Hovland]

I would suggest looking for a second hand lathe as you may also find there would probably be various tools included. I would advise you to join a woodturning club in your area to benefit from the experience of other members. Look up the AWGB on google for woodturning clubs.

 

[Chris152]

Hi all,

I'm looking at purchasing a first lathe as an Xmas gift. I've a budget upto £300. Research I've done says a swing of 12 inches but im at a loss as which one is good and if I need a chuck to go with it to start off ?

Any advice would be great.

Thanks

Natasha

Have you seen this in the for sale section? I think you'd struggle to do better for the money (tho I've not seen the lathe).

https://www.ukworkshop.co.uk/threads/woodturning-lathe-myford-ml8.150411/

 

[alex robinson]

Hi all,

I'm looking at purchasing a first lathe as an Xmas gift. I've a budget upto £300. Research I've done says a swing of 12 inches but im at a loss as which one is good and if I need a chuck to go with it to start off ?

Any advice would be great.

Thanks

Natasha

I would definitely suggest getting a chuck. Unless you only want to do spindle stuff, faceplates alone are frustrating for bowls.

They are expensive, so factor that into how good a deal a second hand lathe is.

Also, have you considered how you are going to sharpen your tools? It can be alarming how much you need to spend on the essential trimmings as well as the big machine itself.

 

[Agent_zed]

Hi all,

I'm looking at purchasing a first lathe as an Xmas gift. I've a budget upto £300. Research I've done says a swing of 12 inches but im at a loss as which one is good and if I need a chuck to go with it to start off ?

Any advice would be great.

Thanks

Natasha

Forgive me if you know this already but a couple of other things you should get/consider -

A full face shield/mask. Something like this https://www.screwfix.com/p/site-face-shield-clear/6540d which is B rated (Most safety specs are lower rating and don't protect your entire face). Bowl turning is the more dangerous one as if it comes apart you get a chunk of wood thrown at your head.

Tools. if you are just starting out I'd recommend spindle turning to start with so you'll need a roughing gouge, spindle gouge, parting tool and a skew (although you could prob get away without one for a while).

Be aware that spindle gouges look similar to bowl gouges but are different.

I bought a second hand lathe for £100 with tools and it's been great to learn on. I've made loads of things. The only problem with it is it has an odd thread so I can't get a chuck easily. I'm going to have to get a thread adaptor made specially. Although it's only now I'm thinking of turning some bowls that I am getting to needing a chuck, I've managed without so far. I've made spade handles, trowel handles, chisel handles, whistles, Christmas trees, Snowmen, most of a reindeer, Nutcracker soldier amongst other things.

I have only been turning for 18months or so, so I am far from an expert so others may have better advice.

 

[Paul Hannaby]

Get the biggest lathe you can afford as the bigger they are, the more robust and stable they are and generally, the more powerful the motor is.
Bear in mind that any of the "antique" lathes you see for sale will probably have an odd spindle thread which may make it difficult to obtain chucks etc. and when you decide to upgrade, may leave you with a load of accessories you need to replace when you get another lathe with a different spindle thread. Some chucks have thread inserts so those go some way to future-proofing.

You don't absolutely need a chuck. You can turn between centres or with a faceplate or you can use jam chucks and sacrificial glue blocks. You will ultimately decide that chucks just make life easier!

The other thing you will need is a decent bench grinder to sharpen your tools. You could sharpen by hand but when you discover just how often you need to sharpen, you will want a machine to help.

There are plenty of lathes, tool and accessories out there on the second hand market. Before buying anything second hand get someone who knows what they are looking at to tell you if it's a good buy or not.

 

[Mike Fletcher]

Facebook marketplace has a number of lathes on offer. As mentioned above you will need all the "other stuff" that goes with it, including a grinder sharpening setup which isn't cheap.

 

[Dave Moore]

Have you seen this in the for sale section? I think you'd struggle to do better for the money (tho I've not seen the lathe).

https://www.ukworkshop.co.uk/threads/woodturning-lathe-myford-ml8.150411/

The Myford ML8 is a great little lathe. I had one for several years and it was great.

 

[Blister]

I would avoid the ML8, Old tech , limited swing over the lathe and you need to keep vacuuming the shaving out of the channel , Look for a Record Power CL3 , A few on Facebook market place with extras.

 

[ThornOfCamorr]

I’ve been in a similar boat than OP a few weeks back. I kept an eye on eBay getting a used lathe (performance CCL) with a lot of accessories/tools.

I agree with the others on sharpening. Really essential while also absolutely confusing to find the right tooling. There are several different ways on how to sharpen your tools and way too many opinions on how to do it right. Most confusing part for me so far.

 

[graduate_owner]

If you should see one of these for sale (in different colours and branded as vevor, lumberjack etc etc) then please do not buy. Do not be tempted. In other words DO NOT BUY. DO NOT BE TEMPTED. I have read a few positive comments, but many many more negative ones.

Follow the advice above and go down the second hand route. I disagree with the comment about the Myford ML8. It certainly is dated with limited capacity and no frills (been around for decades) but they are well built and will go all day, unlike. Axminster and Charnwood used to describe their hobby / basic / DIY class of lathes as being suited for a maximim of 100 hours per year with few, if any, periods of extended use. I am sure they get much more use than that but it does give a good idea of the build quality. The ML8 will still be around when many of the chaiwanese imports with variable speed etc etc have long since been consigned to the scrap heap. They cost around £380 in 1980, with another £250 for the stand, plus VAT. Tht wowuld be well over £1000 in toay's value, o you would expect quality and the ML8 certainly is quality. Not perfect, but solid.
I only stopped using mine after owning it for 40 years when I bought a Union Graduate, followed by a couple of Denford Viceroys. (Do I really need 4 wood lathes???)
Whatever you buy, make sure it is complete because spares can be silly prices. And don't overlook the value of accessories if in with the 'deal'. Gouges etc (if HSS) can be £50 upwards each. Again, don't be tempted to buy a set of 8 for £25 (Yandles?). They belong with the lathe in the picture (i.e. in the bin).

Currently the standard spindle thread is M33, so if you can get a lathe with that thread then it would be an advntage. The ML8 is 1" x 12tpi, graduate is 1 1/2 x 6tpi and viceroy is 1 1/2 x 8 tpi, all different which is a pain, and is one good reason to go for a more modern machine if you can afford it. But please do avoid buying one of those clarke clones - you will regred it.

K

 

[okeydokey]

Hi Natasha
As per previous advice do not buy one of the above lathes photod by Graduate Owner or even accept one if its being given away - unless it was being given with some tools and then keep the tools and scrap the lathe!

Any idea what you want to make? pens, spindle, bowls? do you have a particular target or just general stuff? Do you need a 12" swing thats quite a large diameter of item to be turned depending again on your turning thoughts?

I had a Myford ML8 and while it will last forever it is a heavy beast the electric motor usually hung underneath the lathe on its stand and wow its really heavy! The motor by itself needs a superhero to move it. Have a look at this link to see what is being spoken about. I wouldn't buy a 40 year old lathe particularly as others more easy to use are readily available!
https://www.lathes.co.uk/myfordwood/index.html

Have a look on ebay - used - to see what lathes are available near to you

Also Facebook marketplace (never used it myself) as allegedly they have lathes.

A chuck will be good if you can get one with the lathe otherwise you are limited to using a screw chuck or faceplate.

good luck
cheers

 

[Blister]

View attachment 194268If you should see one of these for sale (in different colours and branded as vevor, lumberjack etc etc) then please do not buy. Do not be tempted. In other words DO NOT BUY. DO NOT BE TEMPTED. I have read a few positive comments, but many many more negative ones.

Follow the advice above and go down the second hand route. I disagree with the comment about the Myford ML8. It certainly is dated with limited capacity and no frills (been around for decades) but they are well built and will go all day, unlike. Axminster and Charnwood used to describe their hobby / basic / DIY class of lathes as being suited for a maximim of 100 hours per year with few, if any, periods of extended use. I am sure they get much more use than that but it does give a good idea of the build quality. The ML8 will still be around when many of the chaiwanese imports with variable speed etc etc have long since been consigned to the scrap heap. They cost around £380 in 1980, with another £250 for the stand, plus VAT. Tht wowuld be well over £1000 in toay's value, o you would expect quality and the ML8 certainly is quality. Not perfect, but solid.
I only stopped using mine after owning it for 40 years when I bought a Union Graduate, followed by a couple of Denford Viceroys. (Do I really need 4 wood lathes???)
Whatever you buy, make sure it is complete because spares can be silly prices. And don't overlook the value of accessories if in with the 'deal'. Gouges etc (if HSS) can be £50 upwards each. Again, don't be tempted to buy a set of 8 for £25 (Yandles?). They belong with the lathe in the picture (i.e. in the bin).

Currently the standard spindle thread is M33, so if you can get a lathe with that thread then it would be an advntage. The ML8 is 1" x 12tpi, graduate is 1 1/2 x 6tpi and viceroy is 1 1/2 x 8 tpi, all different which is a pain, and is one good reason to go for a more modern machine if you can afford it. But please do avoid buying one of those clarke clones - you will regred it.

K

They are manufactured metal recycling .

 

[graduate_owner]

Take a look on facebook marketplace. There are usually plenty of lathes offered for sale there.

K