Be Bold, Buy Old
This is not your typical
product review. I’m not going
to tell you about a brand new
product, a cutting edge piece
of technology, or a product
that will revolutionize the way
we all work. I’m not even
reviewing a single product.
Instead, I am going to look at
the subject of old lathes and
why you should buy one.
Robot builders have many
tools available to them, and
many of the fantastic machines
appearing on these very pages
are a product of well-equipped
engineering workshops — both
amateur and professional. The
home builder, however, will
have made many decisions
about tools, justifying every
purchase, and giving a lot of
thought into what they really
need to buy if they are to
succeed in robot combat. You
may be in the process of
making decisions right now.
Whatever stage you are at
in the decision making process,
the fact that our hobby uses so
many rotating parts — such as
wheels, shafts, gears, screw-threads, and flywheels — that
rely on precision engineering
means that a lathe has to be
on the "must have" list of any
serious builder.
New Tools
There is something
satisfying about opening a box
and finding a nice new tool
inside (Is there such a thing as
"new tool smell?"), and nothing
looks better than a beautifully
painted lathe shining in the
workshop lights. This is what
we would call a "pro" when
weighing the pros and cons of
buying a new lathe.
Other pros include a
warranty, the assurance of
having all of the parts in the
box, a green light to begin
working on the tool without
worrying about maintenance
for a while, and let's never
underestimate the comfort of
an instruction book.
Thanks to China, India, and
other such countries, the cost
of many things in our lives has
come down over the past
decade or so (though that trend
is beginning to reverse now), so
many home builders have easy
access to relatively cheap lathes
of various sizes and capabilities.
Companies today also
understand that a product must
have a finite life or it will be
unlikely for them to sell you
replacement parts, or when the
time comes, another machine.
These two factors have led to
one simple truth: Cheap tools
don't last. This has not always
been the case, however.
In my previous workshop,
we had a number of lathes —
the youngest of which was
older than I am now. The
difference between the cheap
imported lathe in my garage
and the machines at work was
noticeable in every aspect of
their use. Precision was far
better in the pieces (thanks to
Old School Lathes
; by James Baker
ProductReview
A well-maintained old lathe like this Harrison will allow you to make almost anything.
The Harrison M250 is a classic lathe.
This Smart and Brown 1024 tool maker’s lathe is my personal favorite, and uses a leather drive belt from the motor.
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