This is a review of the JWL-1221VS Jet midi lathe. This is a nice lathe but there are a few design problems. The lathe had to be disassembled to get it into the shop. That was expected due to its weight. Half of the hardware was SAE instead of metric. You do not expect a lathe made in China to be anything but metric. This was confusing.
The lathe is held down with 5/16"-18 SAE bolts. Holes are tapped into the bottom corners of the lathe. Most lathes are held down with ears and thru bolts. If the lathe is attached to the Jet metal stand everything is fine. However, if it is mounted on a wooden stand, the holes in the bench must be perfect. Lining all this up with holes you can't see and about 130 pounds of lathe on top is EXTREMELY difficult! Jet should have included a full-sized, printed footprint template instead of a 8" x 4" picture of the layout dimensions. Keeping holes that are 29" apart square and perfectly spaced is not fun. Using oversized holes and fender washers did not help very much.
Once the lathe is mounted ( a two hour chore for two people), it is very sweet. The only cosmoline was on the machined surfaces of the ways. It did not smell like fish oil. The drive and tailstock points line up perfectly. The speed ranges are about 5% wider than advertised. The forward/reverse switch can be done HOT while the lathe is running. The spring loaded belt tightener works good after you figure out how it works. There is little explanation in the manual, only a drawing with a couple of arrows. The 6 groove poly V belt should not slip. The banjo and tailstock hold-downs work well with little force.
I tested the motor by trying to stall the lathe in the middle belt range. The ~2" diameter faceplate was on. At 0% pot position, I could stall the lathe with leather gloved fingers around the faceplate. At 5% pot position I could not stall the lathe. I did not want to tear my arm off. I have done this same assembly with four other lathes, I am glad that I don't have to do it again. This is Mama's lathe, she is HAPPY!
The lathe is held down with 5/16"-18 SAE bolts. Holes are tapped into the bottom corners of the lathe. Most lathes are held down with ears and thru bolts. If the lathe is attached to the Jet metal stand everything is fine. However, if it is mounted on a wooden stand, the holes in the bench must be perfect. Lining all this up with holes you can't see and about 130 pounds of lathe on top is EXTREMELY difficult! Jet should have included a full-sized, printed footprint template instead of a 8" x 4" picture of the layout dimensions. Keeping holes that are 29" apart square and perfectly spaced is not fun. Using oversized holes and fender washers did not help very much.
Once the lathe is mounted ( a two hour chore for two people), it is very sweet. The only cosmoline was on the machined surfaces of the ways. It did not smell like fish oil. The drive and tailstock points line up perfectly. The speed ranges are about 5% wider than advertised. The forward/reverse switch can be done HOT while the lathe is running. The spring loaded belt tightener works good after you figure out how it works. There is little explanation in the manual, only a drawing with a couple of arrows. The 6 groove poly V belt should not slip. The banjo and tailstock hold-downs work well with little force.
I tested the motor by trying to stall the lathe in the middle belt range. The ~2" diameter faceplate was on. At 0% pot position, I could stall the lathe with leather gloved fingers around the faceplate. At 5% pot position I could not stall the lathe. I did not want to tear my arm off. I have done this same assembly with four other lathes, I am glad that I don't have to do it again. This is Mama's lathe, she is HAPPY!
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