Any info on the HF lathes

[Brett Sundlof]

Can anybody give me some info on the HF lathe. Want to purchase one and have heard good things about it for the price. Any and all info would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks
Brett

 

[DaveO]

I have one and you are more than welcome to come by and give it a spin. The only wood lathe worth getting at HF is the 34706 - http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=34706

It uses standard #2MT and 1" x 8tpi accessories than can easily be moved to your next lathe when you upgrade. I find it to be a very capable lathe able to turn up to it's max swing capacity and down to the thinnest pen barrel. I have not tried outboard bowl turning yet, but that is a nice feature. It's about the best value in a lathe that you can find. It is regularly on sale for $190 and there are many coupons available to bring that price even lower.
Dave

 

[DavidF]

I have one and you are more than welcome to come by and give it a spin. The only wood lathe worth getting at HF is the 34706 - http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=34706

It uses standard #2MT and 1" x 8tpi accessories than can easily be moved to your next lathe when you upgrade. I find it to be a very capable lathe able to turn up to it's max swing capacity and down to the thinnest pen barrel. I have not tried outboard bowl turning yet, but that is a nice feature. It's about the best value in a lathe that you can find. It is regularly on sale for $190 and there are many coupons available to bring that price even lower.
Dave

That lathe looks like it should be on my shopping list.
http://www.ncwoodworker.net/forums/showthread.php?t=11344&goto=newpost[/font]

Is it one of those tools; like clamps, that each one needs to be inspected for quality or do you think that the build quality will be resonably consistant? I am thinking of tail to head stock alignment mainly.[/font]

 

[jimwill48]

I also have one. IMHO all you need to do is take the package home, the build seems very consistant. I looked at several in the store's (Pineville & Charlotte) which I think is the worst possible place to look at anything and they all had perfect alignment. Mine when I got it home was also perfect in point to point (tail/headstock). If I have only one suggestion its put a piece of ply on the legs to make a shelf and put a couple or three 80 pound bags of cement on it to add weight. All in all a great lathe at a true bargain price.

JW

 

[DavidF]

I also have one. IMHO all you need to do is take the package home, the build seems very consistant. I looked at several in the store's (Pineville & Charlotte) which I think is the worst possible place to look at anything and they all had perfect alignment. Mine when I got it home was also perfect in point to point (tail/headstock). If I have only one suggestion its put a piece of ply on the legs to make a shelf and put a couple or three 80 pound bags of cement on it to add weight. All in all a great lathe at a true bargain price.

JW

Ok, looks like this one makes the shopping list!

 

[garymuto]

I'm interested too. I will review the manuals, but they look very similar. $200 - 15% even better. I wasn't really looking for a lathe until next year though.

 

[garymuto]

I looked at the model in the store as Jim suggested. I also did some research comparing to the Jet JWL 1236, at least the specs. I haven't seen it in person.
The HF model was actually assembled well, except the center was missing from the tailstock. In general the lathe quality looked good, except for burrs previously mentioned on the tool rest.
Based on input from NC woodworker members, I decided to go with it. This site has been very informative and entertaining. Thanks to all.

 

[Badabing]

I just got one a week ago and am very happy with it. I used a 20% coupon and bought the 2 yr replacement guaranty for $35 so my final price was $206! You cannot beat that deal :icon_thum

Alignment is perfect. Only suggestions I would make are to upgrade the live center on the tailstock (mine was not very 'live'), and upgrade the tool rest. The stock tool rest is too big to turn pens and gets nicked very easily. I tried filing it down some but didn't help much. These upgrades cost me about $50 total. I also bought the HF 8 pc lathe tool set for $50. Not really impressed with it, the Windsor Design set they have is $36 and seems to be just as good. Either set has very sharp edges on the tool sides so I suggest grinding a chamfer on 'em.

Next I will put the plywood shelf on the legs and make some kind of storage for chisels, etc.

Hope that helps!

 

[garymuto]

Joe,
It does help. I'm getting excited about getting one. Other than learning how to use a lathe fro metal cutting while I was in college, I've never used one. I won't count brake lathes, but I can turn your rotors and drums if your brakes are pulsing.
Thanks!