Enco 109 lathe input

[L5wolvesf]

There is a Enco 109 lathe available. I would love to get some input on those.

It would be my first and I have no expectations of making anything huge so small works for me, for what I'll do and to learn on.

The asking price is $400 ad says
"nice little lathe for the small shop , tool maker , etc , varible speed motor , if you have the time it will make any thing , cuts all axes , theards , all , there is nothing wrong with it , just needs to fine some one with the time , ever thing is there"

Thank you

 

[dogzbody1]

I know nothing about them but if that were in WI I'd be all over it for that money!

 

[LXCam]

For that price it'll be a great learning experience. At least you'll learn if you like machining or not and if you get into it, jump into a better mill and lathe and sell that for what you bought it for.

 

[454ragtop]

That's what is known as a 3 in 1, lathe drill mill machine. Sort of a jack of all trades, master of none. Some people are able to do good work with them, within their limitations.

 

[L5wolvesf]

For that price it'll be a great learning experience. At least you'll learn if you like machining or not and if you get into it, jump into a better mill and lathe and sell that for what you bought it for.

That is pretty much what I was thinking

 

[rsanter]

Those are a better lathe than they are a mill but you can do some light milling in them just fine.
If you will be sticking to small stuff then you should be good.
Price is about average for those

Bob

 

[mikegt4]

We had one (Smithy) at work that we inherited from another division. Sorry to say it was a real POS compared to every other machine that we had. You could do small jobs but it was very crude and rough. Like comparing a 1930's pickup truck to a new one. The shop manager finally got rid of it when it "accidentally" got knocked over to the floor.

 

[L5wolvesf]

Thank you for the input.

As I mentioned it would be a learning tool so part of the learning would be learning how to fix/improve it if it needs those things. I also realize that at the prices I can afford right now I won't be getting top of the line, nor do I really need it.

I'm gonna try to work the price down some as I figure most asking prices have a built in cushion. I figure 10% is usually doable, sometimes more.

 

[gte718p]

I personally don't like them, but they are a decent way to get into machining at a reasonable cost. I wouldn't expect to get it much cheaper. That is actually fairly low, and they do seem to sell. The benefit is when you outgrow it, and you will out grow it, you can get most of your money back.

 

[L5wolvesf]

I personally don't like them, but they are a decent way to get into machining at a reasonable cost. I wouldn't expect to get it much cheaper. That is actually fairly low, and they do seem to sell. The benefit is when you outgrow it, and you will out grow it, you can get most of your money back.

Good to know . . . thank you