Small Lathe Choice- Non VS vs VS

[Bill Splaine]

I'm considering a new midi lathe. Wow, would I love to be able to justify a Oneway.

But, I can't. I'm looking at both the Jet and the Delta 12" lathes. I think it's a tossup. My question is.. should I go for a variable speed. "Everyone" suggests VS is the way to go.

However, knowing just enough about electronics to be dangerous.. what if the circuit board goes belly up? How many years before Delta or Jet will no longer carry those replacement parts? That is my fear. With a manual transition lathe I should be able to get parts.. or have them made forever, so to speak

What say you all..

Bill

[Roger Chandler]

If you are serious about turning, the Jet 1221 Vs is a great midi lathe......I have the Delta 46-460 Vs, and got it before the Jet 1221 came out. If you just want to make a project now & then, the manual belt changing probably won't bother you. Variable speed with a controller [D/C] or inverter [A/C] is state of the art now.....They are fairly reliable, but keep them away from power surges/electrical spikes due to lightening, by keeping the lathe unplugged when not in use.

[Sid Matheny]

I have had both and have to say VS is the way to go!

[Prashun Patel]

Skip the delta 460. I have one. It's not the electronics but the reversing switch that goes on early models of this. Parts are notoriously hard to come by.

Mine still works fine with no issues, but if I were buying new I would consider newer models.

[Harold Balzonia]

My delta 46-460 has been bullet proof for 6 years and I've probably turned 500 bowls on it. Not one thing has ever given me pause or come close to breaking. And I have run it with crazy, wonky blanks on it and pushed its 12" capacity to the very limit. I can't recommend it strongly enough. My business partner switched from a jet to the delta and has had exactly the same experience with his 46-460 for the past 2 years.

as far as VS vs non-VS... go with the VS and don't look back

[Marvin Hasenak]

I think the VS and Non VS depends on what you want to do with a lathe. and your patience factor. I currently use a 1973 Delta belt changer and a 1940's Craftsman belt changer. I am not in a hurry, I can take the 15 seconds to change the speed. The '72 has a jack shaft so I can slow it down to less than a 100 RPM. I also have another motor that I can adapt to it that would give me zero to 3000 at the turn of the dial with reverse.

If I were you I would be making a trip to buy this one. It is an old, as in real old Walker Turner lathe that has a metal lathe cross slide with it for $300. https://sfbay.craigslist.org/eby/tls/6187590566.html Then buy a tool rest for it off of eBay. For less that $400 and have a lathe that will do about anything I would ever want to do.

[Robert Henrickson]

Variable speed! If for no other reason than that it allows you to adjust speed to minimize vibration, especially for out of round work. I did a demo just last weekend on a midi -- the VS was a lifesaver for initial roughing, even with relatively small blocks. I do own a mini without VS -- bought when VS was less common than now on small lathes. I've kept it simply to use for demos when necessary, since it is not too heavy to move around. This last demo, a friend brought his VS midi, so I was able to avoid my mini.

[Brice Rogers]

If all you are going to do are pens and smaller spindles, then a variable speed isn't as critical. It is still nice though.

But if you are planning on doing bowls, goblets, plates or anything of significant mass, it can be scary (and potentially dangerous) turning on the lathe with a brand new chunk of wood in it. My old craftsman belt changer was seriously scary if I had something out-of-balance. Its lowest speed was 850 rpm.

Even if you think you're only going to do pens, if the "bug" takes hold, you'll eventually try bigger things and will regret not buying a VS.

I think that the newer mechanically variable speed lathes (Reeve's sheave) all pretty much suffer from a lack of parts after about 5 years (or less). If you go the mechanical VS route, you would be wise to buy one or two sets of spare sheave components initially. There are a lot of people with older mechanical VS lathes who have trouble getting spare parts.

If you buy an electronic VS lathe and you fry the electronics, there are a lot of inverters that can be purchased off of ebay or Amazon.

[Lamar Wright]

Hi Bill, I have the Delta Midi lathe with VS and it has served me well. I used it just about every day for 4 years making pens and have not had any problems with the lathe. I am now changing course from making pens to make other things. It is still ticking along.

[Rich Colvin]

Bill, I'd go for the Variable Speed lathe because it can also go in reverse. I use that a fair amount on my bigger lathe, and realize how much I would have liked it on my older MIDI lathe.

[George Guadiane]

TO ME, the Jet 12/21 is the way to go. I have one, I mostly use it for demonstrations, but it is very much like my PM 3520
It's a little more expensive than the Delta, but I think it is worth the extra money.
VS is the onl.

[Dennis Ford]

The biggest issue I have had with variable speed is lack of power, the early models had the same size motor as the belt change models and were weak at slow speed. You get rated HP at full speed and less when the motor speed is reduced. I like variable speed with a decent size motor but still change the belt position to maximize power.

[Frank Drew]

For turning between centers variable speed isn't 100% necessary, but for face plate and bowl work I'd hold out for vs and reversing; once you get used to those features you'd really not want to go back.

[Thomas Canfield]

I have the Nova Comet II with VS as a midi and do like the VS. The Comet did require some modifications to get it set solid to a stand, and the low speed range has no power due to small pulley size. That said, it does a fairly good job in the mid and high speed ranges and makes a good travel lathe at a lower price and often with discount and free chuck or something. I also let new turners work on it and not my Powermatic 3520. You might also look at the VS Rikon compared to the Jet. To me, those would be the choice for a midi today.

[Bill Blasic]

I have purchased over a dozen 46-460s for myself (2), a club (4) and for club members. Not one of these has had a problem that I am aware of. Mine plus the clubs have been used in about 100 hands on with newbies and seasoned turners and have performed flawlessly. Switches for these lathes are readily available if needed (I have checked). I have also on a few occasions had the opportunity to do hands on using the Jet 12-21 and to be truthful I was not impressed (I have a Jet 1642 and a 3520b). You should go with variable speed to begin with because it makes turning easier and better.