And one more thing... There are only about 5-6 basic styles of lathe bed and gearbox among the "modern" machines and this is true of lathes, mills and similar equipment. There are a smaller number of foundries in China and Taiwan who produce the raw castings. From there, there are a few more manufacturers who purchase the raw castings, do the heat treating, grinding and final assembly. You'll find that the beds among say a 36" lathe is the same as what's used on many brands. The differences are the selection of knobs (fancy vs. basic) and other basic options such as spindle bore diameter, variable speed options, paint job, etched numbers instead of labels etc... From there, a US distributor gets to pick the quality level which includes the level and consistency of heat treating, quality in closeness of grinding specifications and quality of leadscrew. Think about a 1911 pistol... The pattern is made by many and the parts are (with a little fit and finish) interchangeable. You can buy custom parts or generic stuff that fits every frame. It's pretty-much the same deal with this kind of equipment...
The quality that ends-up in the customer's hands depends on what the importer pays the factory to produce and how much of a relationship they have with the manufacturer to ensure good quality. Some US distributors check each and every machine before they go on the truck. Others don't and play the numbers game that some flaws will go undetected by less experienced users.
Also keep in mind there are "light industrial" lines of equipment and "pro-quality". Pro-quality stuff will weigh a little more, the gears in the gearbox will be heavier duty, you'll have chromed leadscrews, better scraping under the carriage, higher rockwell on the hardened parts, balanced internal gears, wider roller bearings or three or four bearing on the spindle instead of two, higher horsepower motors, pressurized oil systems instead of splash distribution etc. This pushes you about up about 30% - 50% more in price.
Both types of machines are only as good as the operator and both cut well. The main difference is what you need/want. Toyotas have always been good enough for me and a Mercedes would only interest me if I were a wealthy traveling salesman who drove the Autobahn every day...
Ray