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dr_clyde

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For that kind of money, you can get a very nice American made engine lathe. I would look for a Clausing Colchester 15". You can usually snag one for less than 5 grand, and it will be 10x the lathe that Enco will be. Even for occasional use.

I would keep looking on the used market, IMHO.
 
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kazlx

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Tustin, CA
I bought this for $3500. The lathe, not the kid. The kid is way more expensive :(

I don't think there's anything wrong with the lathe you posted, but you can get more machine for way less money. I think especially with a $5k budget, it shouldn't be hard to find something.

10626458_10152762871929168_6145011269638601749_n.jpg
 
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laser3kw

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I have the Enco model for 20 years now. Had a couple of issues when it was brand new, but Enco took care of it right away. Cuts straight and to size. Get a quick change tool post and good tools. But if you are only using it once in a while, maybe you can find a good used one for way less.
 
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Kevin54

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I have a JET 13x40 which is very close to what the Grizzly is, which is close to what the ENCO is. The basic difference.....color.

If I had to do it over, I would hold out for a good used lathe. Do I like my lathe? YES. Can I hog with my lathe? NO.

I have slowed mine down just drilling a 5/8" hole. If I take a cut in aluminum of .100, it will either slow the lathe down, or stall it.

Is the JET accurate? YES. I can hold some tight tolerances.

What I don't like is that there is not a lot of adjustments in the belts to keep things tightened up so the belt doesn't slip when taking a big bite, or drilling a large hole. I had to swap out gears to run a ******* thread. All in all, it probably took close to an hour by the time the gears were swapped, and things adjusted to where there wasn't a lot of play between the gears. It's not a simple 5 minute process.

Would I buy another JET lathe? NO. At least not a 13x40. I would hold out for a good, used Hardinge or a Leblond.

Also, if you buy the ENCO lathe, you will really need to buy a Quick Change Tool Post and the toolholders to go with it if you don't have any from your previous lathe. Any of the Chinese lathes you get, come with the square toolholder that you have to shim the cutters.

But that is just my opinion of things about the lathes. All of the new 13x40's you run across will be almost identical except for a few knobs here and there. If you plan on doing large parts, even though they are "Gap" lathes, they lack the rigidity of the larger older lathes. Also, you are limited on the bore through the head for your barstock. I think my thru bore is 1 3/4".

For a home hobbiest though, depending on what you intend to do or make, the ENCO may very well suit you. I looked at those, I looked at JET, and I looked at Grizzly. The only reason I settled on JET was because they were running a special at the time. I got mine from http://www.tools-plus.com/ Right now they are running a special on free shipping with orders over $50. And this is the lathe that I bought. It's a 13x40 belt drive bench lathe, but I bought the optional stand for it http://www.tools-plus.com/jet-321360a.html

Like I said.......that's just my $.02 on it. Just make sure you read through the specs on all three, ENCO, JET, GRIZZLY, for that size of lathe, see what your shipping is, see if the stand is optional or comes with it, and anything else you need to compare with. I would print off the specs of all three and place the printed out specs side by side, and look them over to see what your best deal is. At the time, mine was JET, but I sure would rather have a Leblond or Hardinge sitting in it's space
 
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kkroger

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Same as the other chinese machines, looks like the Grizzly 4003...
My Grizzly is the 4003G Gunsmith lathe, larger thru spindle bore, and they spec Timken Bearings and the castings are made in Taiwan instead of PRC... Quite Accurate and weighs about 2000#... It also comes with the "Stand" and the QC Tool Post, Shop Fox has a similar Gunsmith model.
 
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sanddan

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Oregon
I have the 12x36 version of this Enco lathe and like it fine. The Grizzly version is slightly better in fit and finish but when I bought mine all of the other suppliers for these lathes were out of stock and could not say when new stock would arrive. I would pass on the stand as they are not worth the money. If you have a welder you can make a much better one yourself. As to older equipment, in my area (pacific northwest) they very seldom come up for sale and draw a heavy price. I looked for a year without success so bought the Enco on sale with free shipping. $2995 to my door.
 
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A_Pmech

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The link is dead, but I'm assuming from the discussion that the budget is around $5,000.

That's late-model B pattern Pacemaker territory. :D

EDIT: Hmm. Logged into Enco and it works now. ???

I would be looking for a machine like a Clausing 4900 or similar.
 
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laser3kw

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I have slowed mine down just drilling a 5/8" hole. If I take a cut in aluminum of .100, it will either slow the lathe down, or stall it.
Click to expand...
Really? I have never had that happen. Ever have the motor tested? That just doesn't sound right.
On my Enco 13 x 40, I frequently run up to 1-1/4" drills with no problem. I regularly drill/ tap 1/8" ~ 1/2".
I can take a .100" cut on aluminum and run it down the bed. On steel, I might go .060 depth of cut, just because that is half a rev on the feed handle.
Yah, it will pull the rpm down a little, but never enough to concern me.
 
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Kevin54

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laser3kw said:
Really? I have never had that happen. Ever have the motor tested? That just doesn't sound right.
On my Enco 13 x 40, I frequently run up to 1-1/4" drills with no problem. I regularly drill/ tap 1/8" ~ 1/2".
I can take a .100" cut on aluminum and run it down the bed. On steel, I might go .060 depth of cut, just because that is half a rev on the feed handle.
Yah, it will pull the rpm down a little, but never enough to concern me.
Click to expand...

It's not the motor, it's the belts slipping. I've adjusted the cam to the lever that you use to release the tension on the belt so you can change it on the pulleys. The belt has stretched though. The drive belt that goes to the motor also is slipping, and to remedy that, I'm going to have to remove the rear shield, a side shield, and then see if there is enough adjustment in the motor mount plate to tighten the belt.

Also, when the zerts get greased, some of the grease gets on the gears in the gearbox, and the belt on the pulleys is right in there with the gears. THat lets the grease get slung onto the belt, and allows it to slip. I did read though where the newer 13x40 JET, has an enclosed gearbox, so that may remedy part of the problem. I'll have to take a day, and tear into things and try to get the problem fixed.
 
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shocwav3

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Clifton NJ
I am all for keeping American iron alive. Most of my machines are exactly that, and they are the superior machines, even at 50 years old.

Some points worth considering
1. Each person needs to consider what they are doing with the machine, and if a slightly less accurate machine will serve their purpose.

2. When you buy an Enco, Grizzly or the likes it will come with all the accessories to start turning parts right out of the box. Steady rest, 4 jaw, 3 jaw, tool post, basic tool set, dead center, live center, drill chuck, ect. If you find a used machine, and need to go hunt these items down later your overall investment can go through the roof really quickly.
 
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TheEquineFencer

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shocwav3 said:
I am all for keeping American iron alive. Most of my machines are exactly that, and they are the superior machines, even at 50 years old.

Some points worth considering
1. Each person needs to consider what they are doing with the machine, and if a slightly less accurate machine will serve their purpose.

2. When you buy an Enco, Grizzly or the likes it will come with all the accessories to start turning parts right out of the box. Steady rest, 4 jaw, 3 jaw, tool post, basic tool set, dead center, live center, drill chuck, ect. If you find a used machine, and need to go hunt these items down later your overall investment can go through the roof really quickly.
Click to expand...

The out of the box is a big plus. With my old South bend, it seemed I was always buying something for it.
 
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Kevin54

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shocwav3 said:
I am all for keeping American iron alive. Most of my machines are exactly that, and they are the superior machines, even at 50 years old.

Some points worth considering
1. Each person needs to consider what they are doing with the machine, and if a slightly less accurate machine will serve their purpose.

2. When you buy an Enco, Grizzly or the likes it will come with all the accessories to start turning parts right out of the box. Steady rest, 4 jaw, 3 jaw, tool post, basic tool set, dead center, live center, drill chuck, ect. If you find a used machine, and need to go hunt these items down later your overall investment can go through the roof really quickly.
Click to expand...

My JET didn't. It came with the typical cheap toolpost, and I had to buy a drill chuck. I already had a live center, and there were no turning tools with it. I hate having to shim cutters to get them on center, so I bought a quick change tool post setup with the toolholders.

Now I did get the 3 jaw chuck, the four jaw chuck, a couple dead centers, and a face plate, but it didn't include any dogs with it. It's been years since I ran anything off of a faceplate, but if I do, then I'm going to have to make a couple of dogs up. Oh, and I did get two steady rest with it. One is a closed steady rest, and the other is the open steady rest.
 
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JohnK007

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Downers Grove, IL
dr_clyde said:
For that kind of money, you can get a very nice American made engine lathe. I would look for a Clausing Colchester 15". You can usually snag one for less than 5 grand, and it will be 10x the lathe that Enco will be. Even for occasional use.

I would keep looking on the used market, IMHO.
Click to expand...

I don't think Clausing lathes are made in the U.S anymore. Their drill presses maybe but not their lathes.
 
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TheEquineFencer

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Here's what I got for the time being at an auction...
 

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TheEquineFencer

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I've been up here at the shop doing paperwork for this new job for about 4 hours and quit for the night. I started to go up to the house and figured I'd look in the "box" that was under the lathe. Here's some pictures of what I found...I'm about 99.9% sure they are carbide bits, I'm not sure what brand they are or what they cost though.
 

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kazlx

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The carbide looks like import stuff, but not 100% sure. The other box has some decent tooling. Multiple steady rests, even though you'll probably never use them. Some drill chucks, a boring bar, lantern tool holder, drill bits and some other hand tools that aren't lathe specific.
 
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Shadowdog500

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If you are just using it to fart around I'm sure that lathe will work fine for you.
If you are going to get a new asian lathe, how about something like this from grizzly.
https://www.grizzly.com/products/14-X-40-Gunsmith-s-Gearhead-Lathe/G0709

The one you posted is really limited on the threading range, the grizzly seems to have better options as well.

I think we would all like to have a hardinge or some other old high quality lathe. But for most of what people do in thier home garage, this is probly more than enough lathe to get the job done.

Chris
 
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TheEquineFencer

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Shadowdog500 said:
If you are just using it to fart around I'm sure that lathe will work fine for you.
If you are going to get a new asian lathe, how about something like this from grizzly.
https://www.grizzly.com/products/14-X-40-Gunsmith-s-Gearhead-Lathe/G0709

The one you posted is really limited on the threading range, the grizzly seems to have better options as well.

I think we would all like to have a hardinge or some other old high quality lathe. But for most of what people do in thier home garage, this is probly more than enough lathe to get the job done.

Chris
Click to expand...

LOL, I think this is the one I may order, I'll check with Linda before I order it. I'm heading out to work for another two days now. If I get a chance I'll see what I can get ordered this weekend. GTG.
 
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A_Pmech

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Changing the threading range is as easy as changing the banjo gears...
 
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macgyver37

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Pittsburg, Kansas
It looks like one of them might be a follower rest, can't see the base of it for sure. The other two are steady rests and can be quite useful, I have used both a follower and steady many times. It really depends on what type of work a person ends up doing on a lathe. Some people will never use a taper attachment in their whole career and others don't go more than 2 days with out using one.
Looks like there is a drill chuck on an R8 shank and some parallels etc that will be useful for the mill.
The morse taper tooling can be used in the tailstock.
 
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dr_clyde

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Holland, MI
JohnK007 said:
I don't think Clausing lathes are made in the U.S anymore. Their drill presses maybe but not their lathes.
Click to expand...

I may have been slightly misleading in my statement. I meant an older American made lathe or a Clausing. The Clausing colchester lathes were always made in England anyway.

I think the only US manual lathe manufacturer currently is Monarch. And you will pay dearly.
 
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