First I should point out that I am not much of a turner and am still learning.
When I first got my lathe it had a 1/6 hp motor and I made quite a bit of shaving with it while trying to learn how to use a skew. I now have a 1 hp motor on it but the belt slips so bad it is worse than the 1/6 hp motor.
I would suggest if you already have the 1/2 hp motor use it. If you are buying a new one going with a larger motor may be the way to go.
Universal M-300 (35 Watt CO2)
Universal X-660 (50 Watt CO2)
Hans (35 watt YAG)
Electrox Cobra (40 watt YAG)
Glass With Class, Cameron, Wisconsin