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Interesting that there is no mention of Vicmarc lathes in this discussion. The VL240 with an extension bed would more than meet your expectations. Even the new smaller VL150 lathe which I have purchased will do all that you mention, or perhaps the VL175 is more the target size. Both the VL175 & 240's have rotating headstocks.Originally Posted by Mike Holbrook
http://www.woodworkersemporium.com/M...arc_V00758-3US
http://www.vicmarc.com/default.asp?contentID=602
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because they read this in the original post: Lately I have been thinking about buying one of the better, premium, North American made lathes.
Contributor
If both are rotating at the same RPM, a point on the 16" bowl rim would be traveling at 8x the ft/min of a point on the 2" diameter spindle (circumference is 8x greater). At 1000 RPM, the point on the bowl would be traveling somewhat more than 4000 ft/min, on the spindle roughly 500.For speeds, since bowls are larger diameter than spindles, they turn at much slower rpm than spindles which are smaller diameter. It would be interesting to see the feet per minute rates of a 16 inch bowl, and a 2 inch diameter spindle.
[OP]
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I think Vic marc is made in Australia? I did try looking them up on the internet but I did not find nearly as much info. on them so I assumed they were not strong in the US market. The YouTube videos I saw of people using them seemed to be by Aussie turners. Thanks for the links Geoff, I will check them out. Shawn is correct though, I was trying to look at lathes made in North America. Robust & Oneway seem to be the favorites. I find Stubby/Omega lathes, another Aussie product, mentioned sometimes but thus far I have only found limited information on them too.
I have found that tools which are popular with a large number of SMC posters are usually good reliable products. I have been considering Robust lathes largely because they seem to be very popular with SMC turners. Oneway is also a very well made lathe but I have noted that they are not as popular among SMC posters.
Brent at Robust mentioned the stainless steel "ways" on the Robust lathes as possibly being a feature which might be of benefit to a turner who plans to turn green wood like I do. He seemed to think Robust lathes were the only lathes that use this type of steel on all their standard lathes. I'm just not sure if others products may handle the moisture issue in other ways. I can also see that the Robust lathes have very thick rugged finish on them. Many lathes seem to loose a great deal of their finish relatively quickly. Again these features may benefit a turner interested in green wood.
Last edited by Mike Holbrook; 05-25-2015 at 5:09 PM.
In Memoriam
I'm interested in what folks mean when they say the Oneway is a two belt system. My Oneway has one flat grooved belt with three pulley speed raNGES. My lathe stays on the high speed range giving me speeds of less than 50 up to around 4000 rpm. I've never bogged down the two hp motor on that setting.
The sliding headstock on some of the newer lathes is a wonderful feature. Being able to stand upright, facing the piece to hollow bowls and HFs is the only way to go. Not only more comfortable and easier on the back but safer. I accomplish the same thing with an outboard bed on my Oneway.
When I bought my Oneway Robust had just come on the market and I examined one at a symposium. While the Robust is a high quality lathe as is the Oneway, and the price tag is about the same I felt that the Oneway fit my needs better. I've never regretted my choice. My lathe is my 9th lathe over a long period of years and at age 94 it'll be my last.
I get a chuckle out of young folks who say they are buying a lathe that will last them forever. There have many great improvements is recent lathes on the market and we have no idea what's in the future.
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;-) You could look at it from the "Lately I have been thinking about buying one of the better, premium, .... lathes" & not asian?Being Australian & a proud Queenslander I support locally made as much as you guys support made in USA or made in Canada. That's why I purchased a Queensland manufactured Vicmarc VL150 to compliment my original Woodfast M908 and "Kiwi made" Nova Mercury (well that's a bit of a stretch on the Nova). Seriously the Vicmarc will stand in good stead against the Robust's & Oneway's and given the very good $US to $AUD conversion I would think that they are very good value in North America at the moment.
Vicmarc are machined and assembled in Queensland from cast components that are poured/made in Thailand I believe. Check out their Facebook page for some snaps of WIP.
I have no affiliation with Vicmarc whatsoever other than being a very satisfied customer and one that likes to use a quality product and to see successful small family owned businesses thrive internationally.
[OP]
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Thanks for the info. Geoff. My wife's cousin will be here next week from New Zealand. The wife's mum was a Kiwi which makes my wife a Kiwi by birth. It is good to know the Vicmarc is at least machined and assembled down under. I saw a couple YouTube videos from your part of the globe and they were very big on Vicmarc which is why I was trying to look up info. on them. I will do some research on them as well. My only concern about Vicmark being getting parts for what appears to be a metric machine. I know the rest of the world should just convert to metric but I think it will take a while. Were I on the other side of the globe I might have misgivings about Robust or Oneway for the same reason.
Wally which Oneway did you buy? It seems like everyone on SMC who has one has either the 1224 or the 2436. I have been trying to get a report on the mid size 1640.
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Well, 2 American turners that I know of that use the Vicmark are Mike Mahoney and Dale Bonertz. You could include Stuart Batty in the mix because he lives here, even if he came from the UK.
As for a difference in the lathe bed, my PM, when I sold it had a nice black patina to the ways. I have read more than once of some who prefer it a little black because then the tailstock locks down tighter. I have had problems with the banjo and the hole for the tool rests. Lots of moisture gets down in there, and I have to sand it out every once in a while because the tool posts get kind of sticky. I have tried Boeshield, WD 40, Top Coat, and lithium grease. Still have to sand it out once in a while. I would think that stainless posts, and a sleeve in the banjo would be very expensive. I can live with that part.
For longevity, well, if I live to be as old as Wally, and my birth certificate hasn't expired, I don't think I will be able to wear out my Robust. Hmm, sounds like a challenge....
robo hippy
[OP]
Member
Should I worry about any lathe without stainless ways since I will be working a good deal of green wood? I'm not exactly sure what Reed is implying in regard to black patina on ways? I have had some positive experience with Renaissance Wax as a protection from rust but not on the scale of lathe ways.
I am confident the Robust ways will stand up, not so sure about the rest?
Member
I wouldn't worry about it.
I turn green wood, and also do CA finishes and wet sanding on my PM. I put a towel down while wet sanding and wipe down ways to remove water when finished.
if the ways get gunky - and yes, sometimes a bit of rust, I clean it up with WD40 or Boeshield. If it's really bad, I use a high-speed die grinder fitted with a Scotch-brite roloc pad with WD40 as a lubricant.
These are the pads I use: http://www.amazon.com/3M-07486-Scotc...cotch+brite+3m
Member
If you are turning a lot of wet wood stainless ways are awesome. I have two lathes without stainless ways and one with. No questions which one I would pick if I could only keep one.
Member
By a nice black patina, I mean that your lathe, and ways are nice had shiny bright when they get to you. If you live any where with any amount of humidity in the air, your cast iron ways never stay shiny bright. They darken with age. Some seem to be obsessed with keeping them that way. The only real danger is if you let it rust and sit without polishing off the rust. Wax, WD40, and other similar things keep it from pitting. Other than that, I don't consider it some thing to worry about. After wearing out the headstock bearings on my PM (5 heavy use years of wet, chainsawn blanks and no tailstock support), I took the headstock in to get them replaced. Emergency situation of course. They had to torch and beat the bearings out because they had rusted in place.
robo hippy
Member
Mike,
The only thing metric on the vicmarc in America is the banjo, 30mm, and that can be ordered one inch. Everything else sold here is our standards, 1 1/4" x 8, #2 MT and etc. The 30mm tool post is actually kinda nice since it is heavier than the 1" we have as standard. I purchased two or three reducers for that rare occasion in which I may need to reduce to 1" for my odd sized tool rests I have in my possession. Parts are not a problem because Christian at Woodworker Emporium takes care of his customers as well as anyone.
[OP]
Member
Sounds like stainless steel ways are nice but not a requirement for working green wood. I heard stainless can be added to Oneway orders but it is a very expensive option. I know some of the Oneway tool rests are made of stainless. Someone suggested to me that the "mild steel" used in Oneway lathes might be more susceptible to rusting, especially compared to the Robust ways.
Good to know about the Vicmarc lathes Dale. I wasn't impressed with Woodworker Emporium in the one transaction I had with them. I was trying to get an answer regarding a tool I bought from them that I was having trouble setting up. There may not have been an "answer" though. Good to know that Dale has had positive experiences. I will check out the Vicmarcs at Woodworker Emporium.
The feature that is straining my brain the most at this point is the swing capacity. I started out thinking I would never be interested in turning large bowls and plates so swing distance did not concern me much. I see videos where guys are turning table bases, table tops etc., that are not bowls but take advantage of the larger swing capacity. It is the things I can't conceive of needing that worry me. Then again how many large objects might I really end up wanting to turn...
Last edited by Mike Holbrook; 05-27-2015 at 10:13 AM.
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I have an American Beauty. The stainless ways are not "necessary", but sure are nice. I turn green wood all of the time, and I mean a lot, and they still look like they are new. I just wipe them off with my hand. Like you mentioned before, there is not a whole lot of price difference once you get in this range, so I went ahead and got the big lathe. No regrets.
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