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Would a Clausing 10" Model 4914 be a good first lathe for a beginner?
- Thread starter simspace
- Start date
- Joined
- May 3, 2017
- Messages
- 1,997
That's what I'm guessing, too.
- Joined
- Nov 17, 2012
- Messages
- 48
So the guy in Tampa sold the Clausing Colechester lathe before I could get down there.
That caused me to slow down, take step back and rethink what tools I want vs what tools will work for me as a beginner hobbyist.
In the meantime a 2/3 mill in great shape, super tight, with some great tooling, and at a great price became available locally (20 mins from my house), so I decided to start there and picked that up last week. It turns out the Central Machinery Lathe #35305 is actually a Nantong X6320A which is the same as the Enco X6320A and the Grizzly G6760/X6320A. I know there are lots of opinions on Chinese mills. But I'm pretty impressed with how tight this mill is and the backlash on the compound is really minimal. It will be a great start for me.
My patience also really paid off, because an Emco Maximat Super 11 lathe also with great tooling was posted two days ago on FB Marketplace and it was only 1 hour from my house. It too is in great shape and was not used heavily. So I picked it up yesterday.
My machining adventure begins today. I'll be adding a 220v circuit in my garage. Then need to figure out wiring so both machines can share (but not at the same time) the 3HP VFD I purchased.
That caused me to slow down, take step back and rethink what tools I want vs what tools will work for me as a beginner hobbyist.
In the meantime a 2/3 mill in great shape, super tight, with some great tooling, and at a great price became available locally (20 mins from my house), so I decided to start there and picked that up last week. It turns out the Central Machinery Lathe #35305 is actually a Nantong X6320A which is the same as the Enco X6320A and the Grizzly G6760/X6320A. I know there are lots of opinions on Chinese mills. But I'm pretty impressed with how tight this mill is and the backlash on the compound is really minimal. It will be a great start for me.
My patience also really paid off, because an Emco Maximat Super 11 lathe also with great tooling was posted two days ago on FB Marketplace and it was only 1 hour from my house. It too is in great shape and was not used heavily. So I picked it up yesterday.
My machining adventure begins today. I'll be adding a 220v circuit in my garage. Then need to figure out wiring so both machines can share (but not at the same time) the 3HP VFD I purchased.
Last edited:
- Joined
- May 3, 2017
- Messages
- 1,997
You look like a happy camper! Nice score - you should have fun with those.So the guy in Tampa sold the Clausing Colechester lathe before I could get down there.
That caused me to slow down, take step back and rethink what tools I want vs what tools will work for me as a beginner hobbyist.
In the meantime a 2/3 mill in great shape, super tight, with some great tooling, and at a great price became available locally (20 mins from my house), so I decided to start there and picked that up last week. It turns out the Central Machinery Lathe #35305 is actually a Nantong X6320A which is the same as the Enco X6320A and the Grizzly G6760/X6320A. I know there are lots of opinions on Chinese mills. But I'm pretty impressed with how tight this mill is and the backlash on the compound is really minimal. It will be a great start for me.
My patience also really paid off, because an Emco Maximat Super 11 lathe also with great tooling was posted two days ago on FB Marketplace and it was only 1 hour from my house. It too is in great shape and was not used heavily. So I picked it up yesterday.
My machining adventure begins today. I'll be adding a 220v circuit in my garage. Then need to figure out wiring so both machines can share (but not at the same time) the 3HP VFD I purchased.
Regards,
Terry