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srfallsallot

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Hi all. I am not a machinist. I have made some one off parts at work. I have a lot of experience in CAD modeling and everything I have made at home both wood and metal are first 3d CAD modeled. I just got rid of a 40 yr old drill press. Replaced it with a PM932M PDF 3axDRO. What joy to use for simple projects. Big enough to do wood working too. I am looking at a PM1440BV 2ax DRO lathe. The variable speed is a big draw. I have the space and the power. I have wanted a metal shop forever and time is getting short. This is not a business. I have no idea what I will make with this so I am thinking it should be the biggest machine that will fit my space.

Am I going to big? Should I be looking at something smaller? Advice would be very appreciated.
 
If you're going for something in that size I would really recommend finding one with cross-slide powerfeed, not sure if the PM1440 has it.
I've always been of the opinion to get the biggest and most powerful you can afford and have space for.
 
MrCrankyface said:
If you're going for something in that size I would really recommend finding one with cross-slide powerfeed, not sure if the PM1440 has it.
I've always been of the opinion to get the biggest and most powerful you can afford and have space for.
Click to expand...
It does have the power cross feed. I am also looking at the PM1340GT
 
srfallsallot said:
Am I going to big? Should I be looking at something smaller?
Click to expand...

If you have the space, 14x40 is just right for hobby/amateur. Plenty of power and rigidity, plus the bed length to work on gun barrels, tractor parts, etc should the need arise.
 
srfallsallot said:
I have no idea what I will make with this so I am thinking it should be the biggest machine that will fit my space.

Am I going to big? Should I be looking at something smaller? Advice would be very appreciated.
Click to expand...

It might help to know what hobbies you enjoy and whether you are a gun guy or live on a farm or in the suburbs, etc. If you don't know what you're going to do with the lathe then choosing the right one is going to be difficult. As you can see, there is the "buy the biggest you can fit/afford" school of thought and it is probably the prevailing one on the forum. Then there is the "get the right tool for the job(s) at hand" group, of which I am one.

My suggestion is to put a lot of thought into what you think you will need to do with the lathe, then buy the best size and quality you can afford to suit your needs. You should also know which features matter on a lathe and make sure the one you choose has those features.

Once you home in on one or two lathes, ask the guys who own those lathes for feedback and they'll give it to you. The reason this matters is that you have to live with a lathe to really know the lathe. Spec sheets, pictures and hype do not give you the real stuff but the guy who owns one will tell you exactly what you need to know.
 
Difficult question, but I would say the sweet spot looking at function and usability is a 1340 or 1440 lathe which is the most common size format. It also always folds back to mass of the machine for rigidity. I had a 1340GT and was very capable machine able to easily hit 0.0005" tolerances. I eventually ended up with a heavier 1340 which is more rigid, you can take heavier cuts. Size wise you need to think about what will fit through the spindle, one area where Quality Machine Tools seems to provide some of the largest spindle bores compared to other brands. I like the attributes of the variable speed on the fly and some of the other VFD features, but people have been getting by w/o them for decades.

Major difference between the two lathes you are looking at beyond the specs. is the fit and finish which tends to be better on the Taiwanese machines. But overall size wise, if you have the space I would go with either a 1340 or 1440 lathe. Basic VFD installs on the 1340/1440GT is not too difficult if that is a consideration.
 
The PM machines that end in T, PM-1340GT etc are made in Taiwan and generally considered better quality than the Chinese made machines. Whether the $5000 PM-1340GT is actually better quality than the $6200 PM-1440BV I have no idea.

Without knowing what you want to do it is pretty much impossible for someone here say what is right for you. If you have the space and budget for a 14x40" lathe, great, but if a 12x36" is all you really need you could apply the more than $2000 savings towards more tooling or supporting tools. If instead you should have gone with something bigger, or you get to fondle a PM-1440GT and wish you had sprung for the extra $2500 that is an expensive lesson since the resell value on a machine drops to about 50% of retail as soon as it rolls into your shop.
 
Space, power, transport and cash permitting - a 1440 is a very nice size machine for general mucking around. My first lathe (still the goto lathe) was a 15x60 and it has met 99.9% of my lathe needs. The only "nice to have" would have been a larger spindle bore - I've a D1-4 mount so just over 1.5" hole. I've since acquired a very sweet, classic toolroom 11x24 lathe that is well kitted out - but I still go to the larger machine even though the majority of what I do would work find on the smaller machine. A second lathe is extremely useful, so as not to disturb set-ups, or for certain specific features (the little S&B is great for threading, collet work, higher or lower speeds),

The 1440 would be a great machine. Can you get it with a ~2" spindle bore?

Let us know how you make out.
 
I got the PM1440HD 3 years ago. Glad I got that size. At about 2700#s ship wt. it doesn't have any vibration problems even when I get carried away with heavy cuts. These machines would be very difficult to put in a basement! My machine has a 1.5" bore. A few times I've wished it was bigger. I don't have variable speed but speeds are easily changed. I got the taper attachment and a very nice collet chuck and collet set at the same time from QM. After having the DRO I'd hate to do W/O. I use it when setting the taper to get very nice MT fits. The accessory package included was good. I need to change the brass tips on the steady to rollers. I opened all the gear boxes to check for grit, notorious on Chinese machines, but they were clean. Gear shifting was stiff originally but is good now. I bought some extra PM and Shars tool holders, both seem fine. Changing gears for doing metric threads is kind of a PIA, not difficult just greasy.
You will find you need a mill and a lot of accessories to complete most projects. I do a lot of repair work and there always seems to be something else I want to add. I added a Shars single point tool grinder (Deckle knock off, OK, ) a Grizzly 8" bench grinder that is terrible, a Vertex 8" rotary table that is nice, a Jet 9 X 49 VS mill (used.) Got a Craftsman roll around cabinet & chest on clearance, seems fine but I now need another, maybe a HF. The list goes on & on! It's fun trying new things. I had no prior experience at metal machining. Have used YouTube university. I recommend "That Lazy Machinist" channel. Have fun, Be safe.
 
I'm at much the same stage as you - trying to choose the right lathe. I would recommend two things:
1) Read and watch as much as you can, and make yourself a list of of things you want on your lathe. Anytime you see a video or read a post where someone says, "I really like this feature" or "make sure you get", add it to your list.
2) making yourself a spread sheet for each model you consider. Check your spread sheet data against your list. You will quickly eliminate lathes that don't have what you want, and narrow it down to the ones that you do. Price points will then be apparent too.

I started out looking at the 1022 and 1127 lathes, but I don't want change gears, so that took them off my list. I'm now looking at the 1236 with preferred package, vs the 1236GT, vs the 1340GT. The 1440GT is just too much for me to justify. The 1236 with preferred package is $4k. The 1236, by the time you add in all the stuff in the preferred package, is ~$1260 more. Same size lathe, but Taiwan vs china. The 1340 is $1500 more than that.

Haven't decided what to do yet, but it makes the decision easier to think about.
 
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