Ready to purchase a lathe

Thanks Eddyde , Thinking more and more about this and just keep it simple.
 
Well looks like it may be your typical machine tool it will get there when it gets there. Being the distance it is it isn't just the price which is a concern on both parties although the price isn't cheap. It's the worry of third party carriers and being shifted about more than need be being a top heavy item. So a little more investigation or even wait for a few more machines to be headed east to also help with the cost. Eisen are willing to pay half the top rate if it was my wish and send it right now. From the start I was just hoping to have it by the winter. Read quite a bit about deliveries so figured to almost expect it and its easier to take that way. They have been great so I figure we might as well wait to cut the costs a bit and to help stabilize the load with less shifting about.
So I am going to buy a Tormek T8 as my first machine. A Wet water precision grinder with an array of jigs. Figured I would be getting this way later. I want to do sharpening as well. A tool for a buck here and there and also a way to drum up business as well.
Plan on doing knives, chipper blades, mason bits, and your general twists drills. I work at an arena complex with a dining rm, ballroom, dormatories and cooks and chefs are hired all the time for weddings and functions. There paying 80$ a pop for knives and the few I've asked said they'd use the service. Small town so there's only so many that are hired. A fella I know has a 120hp cummins chipper that grinds his blades with a hand grinder and breaks things all the time. So I figure it is what it is and can run solo for now. If I can make 200$ in a year great. Maybe 400$ next year and help to pay for a few little things but also to get some relationships going for some machine work down the road when I am capable.
 
Good day all, well finally have all the nitty gritty done and should have the lathe in the garage the first week of aug. I have to say i am super impressed with Eisen. Got the final invoice today and another 300$ under what i agreed to. I think they feel my pain with the dollar. Also the other day in conversation i am asked what i am comfortable at paying for shipping. I hesitae and he says how about six hundred and we ll cover the rest. Well the rest is about 1200$. They won t send it with a cheap carrier. Want to make sure it get s here across the country safe. All total under eight grand. A few hundred more than the return i looked at earlier.
I ordered that tormek t8 and quite a few jigs. Have a few chipper blades lined up. Yes a crazy expensive hobby that hopefully can pay for it self.
 
Good news Mark, and the dollar just got about 5% better in the last few weeks.

David
 
Yesterday I took the time to go through my tool box and see what i have to work on the lathe. I was pleasantly surprised after over fifteen years away from maching I still have some hss, carbide, even some form tools i made way back and a few thousand dollars worth of measuring instrument and some setup equipment like parallells and such. It is funny but my very first day of starting my apprentiship my mentor Scottish boss gave me an eight inch Mitutoyo beam scale caliper. Thought i needed the dial then the electronic caliper and in the end when i need to trust my calipers it was and will always be that beam scale caliper I went to. For some reason it s the one i trust and always go to. So for now i need to get a drill and a tailstock. Looking for a decent three bearing mt3 tailstock live center. Any suggestions.
I have to say this has become a pretty scary Endeavor. I spent way too much money on the lathe. I didn t want to feel that pressure and i must admit i feel i need to make money now and that isn t what i wanted. Still,want to keep it as a hobby but man it seems to take off and before you know it your in deep debt. Almost went out and bought the rf31'rong fu mill/drill and came to my senses and want to stick to doing some milling on the lathe. I figure i will learn quite a bit about setup and also will stretch my abilites after some fixtures are made to mill on the lathe. Man i can ramble. Just super excited. Have a good day all.
Also could anyone tell me if there is any benefit or a downfall to using a derated 10hp vfd or use a proper single to three phase vfd. I am wondering on the hitachi wj200 10hp version or the true single to three phase polyspede 5hp vfd. Anyone with experience with polyspede. They are an american company and i do try to buy American over,imports when i can even though i am Canadian. It seems like a decent vfd nut i am clueless at this stage,with vfd's. I believe it is the pc-150
 
My wife and I say that if you don't feel sick to your stomach then you made the wrong choice, because you played it safe

Hang in there, relax, take stock of the key important things in life, family, friends

I rooting for you from Alberta, where things are pretty bleak for many right now.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Thanks KD. Someone once said to me if it isn t going to change your life don t worry about it. Still going to sleep in the same bed with the same woman and **** on the same pot. I knew after thinking about doing this for a few years it isn t going to happen overnight and it would be harder and take longer then i could ever imagine so I have to keep an even keel and enjoy the ride no matter what kind of curve balls get thrown and keep the finances in check.
 
Good day, I recieved the Tormek t8 precision sharpening machine and about 1500$ worth of jigs to go with it. I have to say i am super impressed. Very well engineered even the manual has impressed me. Already have a few things lined up to sharpen for people.
I plan to start a thread about my journey and once the lathe is here i ll do a little more of a review on the t8 on that thread.
Have a good weekend. Make the most and play safe.
 
Again I am dumbfounded how well i have been treated by Eisen through my lathe buying ordeal going way back to when I was interested in there 1236gh. Anothe Liang Dei Machine. I mentioned earlier in the thread about the coolant pump being a three phase pump. I asked about the possibility of a single phase coolant pump and in my last conversation before i ll see the lathe I was told they threw a single phase pump in the crate and didn t have time to take the three phase one out. I was willing to send it back and was told to just keep it. In this day and age it s been a great experience dealing with Eisen and thought they well deserved to be mentioned.
 
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