Will this...

[Geoff Whaling]

In answer to your original question, there are certain people who will always be Grizzly haters. They are either tool snobs or they hate the fact that most Grizzly tools are made in the Far East. Neither the quality nor the value of these tools makes any difference.

Art we don't even get Grizzly products here in Oz but we are now seeing the Harvey /Laguna machines here. Most of these lathes appear to be clones of very similar design & specification, so close that it is very difficult for the average punter to be able to distinguish the differences.

In my home state of Queensland Australia we have Vicmarc lathes, a small family manufacturing business, that produces a range of lathes and other wood turning products at a fair price for the quality supplied. No they aren't cheap but neither is an imported Powermatic lathe here.When Vicmarc products are stacked against any opposition they hold up extremely well except on price. Price is relative as I have regularly used 20 to 25 yo Vicmarc VL100 & VL200 lathes that have had a hard life in a club environment. Small Jet lathes and some of the Asian clones of the larger lathes barely last 4 or 5 years in the same environment.

A lathe that will last 25 years is hardly a selling point to many purchasers but a lathe that will last a reasonable time, that has a reasonable specification level and adequate safety features is a sure winner to most wood turning folk.

So it is good to have choice and a range of machines at various market price points that make wood turning an affordable pastime for all. In fact the US market is probably spoiled for choice far more than any other market in the world. As John says time will tell just how good some of these lathes are. Miles on the road sort of stuff ....

[John Grace]

To chime in on the Grizzly. Quite some years ago I owned a Chevrolet Blazer...it was made when GM was still struggling with quality control, etc. I switched to mostly foreign made products since though I did own two Saturns along the way. Friends who worked for the big three pleaded with me to come back and give them a try and while I know over-all quality has improved dramatically since then, the car buying guides still list the Toyotas and Hondas as being better for what I look for and can afford. So what's the point relative to Grizzly? We spend small fortunes on our tools and most of us can readily recall our most disastrous purchases. Furthermore, we can't typically afford to repeatedly make the same mistakes over and over again. That's why, I believe, it's a hard feeling to get past no matter how many great reviews one reads on new tools. Put it in the category of fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice...shame on me.

[Roger Chandler]

It always has puzzled me that the ones who poo-poo Grizzly lathes for the most part are the ones who have not owned nor turned on one of the newer models, such as the G0733 nor the G0766. I have turned on several makes, 3520b's, Jet 1642 EVS models, Robust American Beauty, Delta & Jet midis, minis and some old iron. I have close friends who own Oneway's, 3 of them in fact, and one owned a Hegner lathe from Germany as well.

I try to make intelligent decisions based on performance......of which I have first hand knowledge of the up close and personal kind. That experience and knowing what I was looking for gave me confidence to make the Grizzly purchases I have made....also true about the Grizzly bandsaw I own.

Certainly, not every person who discusses Grizzly tools, their design, features & performance is negative, but it seems to me that actual owners have given credible testimony to the performance of these higher end units from Grizzly. John's observation about time will tell related to proven performance is valid, but I have no doubt that these units will stand that test.

I don't think any of the G0733 or G0766 owners are trying to say that their lathes are a Robust American Beauty, nor a Oneway 2436, but what they are saying is that they will hold their own with the current offerings of the other Asian makes. I have a friend who owns and has turned on his 3520b for years........he visited my shop and saw my G0766 and was impressed with it!

A good number of Grizzly units have been in use in shops around the country for years, and have been reliable units. That is my experience with my former G0698, which I just saw again yesterday at our club meeting. I turned it on and listened to it run, just for old time sake. It is being used by numerous people in our club, and is used heavily as a teaching lathe......still performing just fine.

Using the car analogy that was mentioned by the previous poster......some people for their own reasons will not own a Chevy, some will not own a Ford, some will not own a Toyota or Honda, but that doesn't make all Hondas or Fords a bad automobile......quite the contrary......most are very good cars! The same holds true with these higher end, featured Grizzly lathes. They may not be a fit for every single turner, ergonomically.....it would be nice if every lathe sold had adjustable height legs, so every turner could find that sweet spot for their particular style of tool presentation and height, but then the price tags would start to soar. For the most part, they will serve most of us just fine.

[David Walser]

It always has puzzled me that the ones who poo-poo Grizzly lathes for the most part are the ones who have not owned nor turned on one of the newer models, such as the G0733 nor the G0766. ...

Roger -- John, above, addressed what puzzles you. The reason many are skeptical of Grizzly lathes is because of the poor quality of the lathes Grizzly produced prior to the G0733 and G0766. As John explained, many of us owned Grizzly's other woodworking machines and bought their prior lathes based on our faith in the Grizzly brand. Those lathes did not live up to expectations. Every few years, Grizzly would introduce a new lathe that supposedly addressed the concerns with their prior models. Those lathes were disappointments, too. Wash, rinse, and repeat for 15 years. Now, you tell us Grizzly has learned their lessons from prior mistakes and are now making quality lathes. Great!

While we've heard that story before, let's all hope it's true this time. However, I hope you can understand why more than a few are a tad skeptical of Grizzly's ability to produce a quality lathe. Grizzly earned that skepticism. Get back to us in a decade or so. By that time, Grizzly's new models may have earned a reputation for quality and dependability (such as the reputation enjoyed by Grizzly's other woodworking machines).

[David C. Roseman]

Roger -- John, above, addressed what puzzles you. The reason many are skeptical of Grizzly lathes is because of the poor quality of the lathes Grizzly produced prior to the G0733 and G0766. As John explained, many of us owned Grizzly's other woodworking machines and bought their prior lathes based on our faith in the Grizzly brand. Those lathes did not live up to expectations. Every few years, Grizzly would introduce a new lathe that supposedly addressed the concerns with their prior models. Those lathes were disappointments, too. Wash, rinse, and repeat for 15 years. Now, you tell us Grizzly has learned their lessons from prior mistakes and are now making quality lathes. Great!

While we've heard that story before, let's all hope it's true this time. However, I hope you can understand why more than a few are a tad skeptical of Grizzly's ability to produce a quality lathe. Grizzly earned that skepticism. Get back to us in a decade or so. By that time, Grizzly's new models may have earned a reputation for quality and dependability (such as the reputation enjoyed by Grizzly's other woodworking machines).

Gotta love these threads on Grizzly lathes. Doesn't take long to go off the rails. Roger sums it up quite well.