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I am hoping the collective knowledge could help identify this lathe and also let me know your thoughts on it. It's my hope to get into turning soon and this one came up for sale near me. It's 110v according to the listing, and I did inquire but have not heard back as of yet.
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Greatly appreciate any insight.
Jimmy
I don't remember the model number, I'm sure it could be found at OWWM. We used to refer to it as the Delta heavy lathe. A step up from the 4 speed models. (it was also the lathe I wanted and couldn't afford when I bought my first one) It's a lathe that has served many turners well over many decades. It is, however, primarily a spindle lathe, the speed on the Reeves drive starts pretty high, not great for an out-of balance bowl blank. The bearings are not sized to take a beating from daily out of balance bowl turning. Some have reported problems with the Reeves drives, I'm sure you can and should read more about that. I believe it has ball bearings in the headstock, which are easy to replace. If it has Babbit bearings they can be re-poured when worn, but that may be more of a project than you'd like
Were I to buy one today I'd probably find a 3 phase motor and variable frequency drive to provide better speed control-- unless you're turning ballusters, in which case it's probably fine as is. It's a nice machine and would probably compare favorably to a mid-entry-level imported lathe in both price and quality.