Made a decision

[Mel Joines]

I saw the HF coupons listed on another thread. and went to HF here in the Asheville area. I purchased the 14 x 40 in. lathe/with 6 in. sander at a huge discount. Thanks for posting the Couponsccasion1. No Shop Smith going individuale machines.
Mel:gar-Bi

 

[rickc]

When contemplating a project, sometimes the hardest part to make is "a decision"! Hope you have fun with your new lathe!

 

[FredP]

hey mel.
dontmean to be the beaarer of bad tidings man but run [dont walk] back to HF and return this one. the 14 40 with sander is not the one everyone raves about here.:no: this is the one everyone loves. http://www.harborfreightusa.com/usa/...o?itemid=34706

I have had some experiance with the 14 40 HF lathe and none of it was good!:nah: the one in the link is cast iron and a fairly solid machine.:icon_thum The 14 40 made me not want to turn for a long time. it was frustrating to say the least. I wound up giving it away just to have it gone. no offence meant but I dont believe you will be happy with it. I wasnt. YMMV.

 

[erasmussen]

Yes listen to Fred
And make sure to get
[FONT=arial, sans-serif]ITEM 34706-4VGA[/FONT]


Thats the good one everyone has

 

[TracyP]

I will have to agree with the others here, the 34-706 is a good lathe, the 14x40 is the same one that I had years ago, I really can tell the difference between the two. The quality of the 34-706 is superior to the 14x40.

 

[JimmyC]

If there is a good lathe at HF it is the 34706, it has pretty much been a gem.:icon_thum

 

[Mel Joines]

What were the reasons You did not like the 14 x 40 lathe (p/n 45276)?
Mel

 

[CarvedTones]

I did not have that specific model, but a little brother to it that has the same construction. It was not as rigid as I would have liked. When I tightened it all the way, the spur drive would chew into the piece because it was ever so slightly off plane. The "slow" speed on that lathe is 1125 which limits you to safely turning only about 4" (IMO as someone without a lot of experience; I know some old hands would do 6" or more at that speed).

 

[FredP]

the tubular bed ways were way too flexy. everything vibrated badly. all the set screws stripped the first time I had to loosen or tighten them. I replaced that all. the motor was very weak. cast iron dampens vibration whereas tube steel seemed to enhance it. as a side note the sander did not run even close to true on the one I had. The guy I gave it to hauled it to the dump. maybe I just got a bad one but it realy turned me off on a lathe and to HF for a long time. you have to be real carefull at HF. they have a few gems but they also have a whole lotta junk. But they will take it back for I think 30 days so if you want you could try it out. maybe the one you got is better than the one I had.:icon_thum

 

[CarvedTones]

Ah yes - the set screws. I assume you mean the ones on the sheaves; keeping them aligned and attached to their respective shafts was an adventure. I did not mention the vibration since I had the smaller one - I can comment on most of the parts as they are exactly the same but I hoped the extra mass of the larger one might have helped with the vibration. I clamped mine to a bench and in retrospect I probably should have bolted it to something solid (like the anchor of a garbage scow ). My infamous broken gouge picture I blame partially on vibration (it "hopped" out of one of the clamps) but largely on operator idiocy.
The one thing I would stress is that I think the capacity far exceeds the capability on these. Here is an article on speeds:
http://www.woodturnerscatalog.com/woodturners/Images/safe_lathe_speeds.pdf
It says my previous number was conservative, but not by much.

 

[Mel Joines]

Thank You for Your input. When I set this unit up in a shop not built yet. I will be certain to mount this lathe on a solid bench and re-enforce the ways to reduce the chance of flex and dampen the vibration. It will be fun stabilizing this piece of equipment. Braces and brackets work wonders.
It may not be until spring. need to save $$$$$$$$$$. And I have physical limits so I won't turn anything larger than 6 in. dia.
Thanks again
Mel