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What's your pick for lathe size if you could only own one?

deleted_user

deleted_user

Super User
As the title says....

You can only own one lathe your entire life. You have to take it with you to every home you'd have.

I am debating ordering a 1/2 or full container load of goods.
 
Degen said:
12x36 largest bore possible, foot brake if possible, no solid state crap that way it doesn't fail.
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I personally have a 12x37 with a 1.375 bore thru the spindle just because I thought trying to move anything heavier multiple times would kill me.
 
onlt one? My 16x60 Standard Modern. Heavy, super accurate, threading is a dream...but the controls are heavy and I like having 2 lathes
 
@TorontoBuilder: I would say for the size and such that a 12 x 48 would be very suitable in the 3 Hp range of power. If the 12” has a gap bed I think you would be all good.

On the ship we have a 13 x 24 with 10 Hp. It is a gap bed with variable speed. At times it is a bit short - we used to have a 72 inch lathe and it was way too long.

At home I have 2 lathes 10 x 24. But they are good for closer to 11. The 24” between centres has not been an issue for what I am doing but having the longer length might be a good thing if you are spacing the lathe life over 20 to 30 years.
 
Brent H said:
@TorontoBuilder: I would say for the size and such that a 12 x 48 would be very suitable in the 3 Hp range of power. If the 12” has a gap bed I think you would be all good.

On the ship we have a 13 x 24 with 10 Hp. It is a gap bed with variable speed. At times it is a bit short - we used to have a 72 inch lathe and it was way too long.

At home I have 2 lathes 10 x 24. But they are good for closer to 11. The 24” between centres has not been an issue for what I am doing but having the longer length might be a good thing if you are spacing the lathe life over 20 to 30 years.
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Yeah we have a gap bed lathe. Handy if you just need to have it.
 
Oh that is easy, 14x40. Fully loaded with all the toys. May settle for something smaller but very heavy duty US made. Can live with shorter bed. Maybe less swing but with gap. 14x40 is like ideal size for most projects. You can do fairly big stuff but its not so big as to be a problem for tiny stuff.
 
I‘d love to find a new 12”x24”. Grizzly G4002 and Charter Oak both used to bring them in. Same guts as the standard 12”x36”, just with a shorter bed. 1000 lbs, so not impossible to move, would fit in my shop without taking up all of my workbench space. Barring this, the 12”x36” is my next best choice.
 

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whydontu said:
I‘d love to find a new 12”x24”. Grizzly G4002 and Charter Oak both used to bring them in. Same guts as the standard 12”x36”, just with a shorter bed. 1000 lbs, so not impossible to move, would fit in my shop without taking up all of my workbench space. Barring this, the 12”x36” is my next best choice.
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A 1000lb 12x24 would be a pretty decent lathe for most home shops, 100%

i love my 13x40 Emco, awesome machine, but my bigger lathe saved my butt the other day. The 1660 SM also makes any thread, std or metric with no change gears, has leadscrew reverse during threading, which makes threading super easy. Its just big and heavy to operate all day. A good 10x24 and a 14x40-16x60 would be a great combo
 
whydontu said:
I‘d love to find a new 12”x24”. Grizzly G4002 and Charter Oak both used to bring them in. Same guts as the standard 12”x36”, just with a shorter bed. 1000 lbs, so not impossible to move, would fit in my shop without taking up all of my workbench space. Barring this, the 12”x36” is my next best choice.
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yeah I would have loved a shorter bed on my lathe. That size I can actually fit in my basement. 10x24 is just not enough swing for my projects
 
Well only one lathe my entire life? Hits pretty close to home. I'd prefer a smallish lathe (<12") with a pretty short bed (< 30") but very well made and rigid (possibly Standard Modern).

Most of my work is small stuff and I don't want to be running a big noisy lathe most of the time turning little dinky stuff. When big stuff beyond my lathes capability has to be turned, I farm it out.

I have a small lathe but wish it was a bit bigger and more rigid.
 
I have always dreamed of a 15 or 16 by 60 to 80 or so unit. I don't usually turn large diameter stuff but part of my future interest is in longer stuff like shafts so a longer bed would be good. As far as moving, even this last move required renting a zoom boom telehandler, so I'm ok with a bigger machine as if we move again another rental/borrow machine is in order again, lol.
 
I haven't came too close to maxing out the swing on my big lathe to be honest, about a 11" roller, it'll do 17", but it maxed the length. The weight makes a big difference on heavy cuts though. I'm not Abom, but a .375 DOC without any drama is kinda nice lol
 
dfloen said:
I haven't came too close to maxing out the swing on my big lathe to be honest, about a 11" roller, it'll do 17", but it maxed the length. The weight makes a big difference on heavy cuts though. I'm not Abom, but a .375 DOC without any drama is kinda nice lol
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When I was in Uni I spend some days helping in the shop where my brother was a machinist. They made pump parts for Darlington on massive lathes . Not once did I every see them take a deep cut. I swear at the time I thought this is the most boring effing job on earth.
 
Most time big cuts aren't the norm. Especially with cnc, many successive cuts. I had to make a few facemill arbors, with a major dia of 3" and a shank of 0.75. It didn't take long. All the cuts were at least .250, went fast. But i could have done the same job on a 7x12.
 
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