the "serious" machinists will say its worthless, but it aint.
it may be a great machine for a guy(like me) doing small one off & custom stuff. not production stuff.
Nice to see someone else with the same train of thought.
That's what I'm referring to when I use the term lathe elitism. It's amazing how many will knock the smaller machines, saying they're practically worthless. A lot of people just can't/don't realise that not everyone either wants or needs a large machine which can take an 1/16" or more off in one pass or suchlike. There are an awful lot of people out there who don't have space for anything big, don't need anything big and will/can merrily spend time working within the limitations of a smaller machine. There's been plenty of good kit turned out on small lathes.
what's odd is that the smaller models actually often bring bigger $ than the larger ones. maybe because the smaller ones are not as heavy and take up less space
Seems to be a common thing across the board with machinery. Pound for pound, the less poundage in weight, the higher the poundage in money per pound of metal, as a rule. The industrial second hand dealers are generally the exception, with their prices. The industrial stuff has a limited market because not many have three phase, (although the downward trend in the price of VFD's has negated that point somewhat, these days), the space, the need etc. However, a small machine will fit anywhere, hence they appeal to a far wider market.
We all tend to overlook the point on occasion, but there really are a lot of people out there who would think themselves lucky to have a home with a bit of garden, ne'er mind enough space for an actual shed, garage or workshop. For those people, small truly is a Godsend, as it's all they can utilise. I'm guessing we're even worse on that front over here than yourselves, as we have nowhere near the same land mass as you for chucking houses on. You probably couldn't even swing a mouse, ne'er mind a cat, in any of the rooms in most new build houses these days, for example, and builders seem to begrudge supplying gardens with new houses as they class that as wasted space where they could build more houses. Small truly is necessity for some, if they want to pursue their hobby or the like.
