about to buy Rutland lathe £159.00 - opinions?

[Matt@]

as title

http://www.rutlands.co.uk/sp+woodworkin ... 0wodS_0CpA

I only want to turn up small stuff ie knobs, finials etc. is this lathe any good? It seems a good price. Weight assembled is 35kg.

 

[marcros]

i am not a fan of rutlands, but i think that lathe will do you perfectly.

very similar to the jet mini (1014 or 1015), standard sized mt and threads. go for it.

 

[Bigbud78]

as title

http://www.rutlands.co.uk/sp+woodworkin ... 0wodS_0CpA

I only want to turn up small stuff ie knobs, finials etc. is this lathe any good? It seems a good price. Weight assembled is 35kg.

personally I'd buy used and try to get some kit with it, you'll spend more on tools and sharpening than the lathe. Also a chuck costs £100

something like these

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Record-DML36- ... SwTdJXRX8Z

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Woodturning-l ... SwNsdXTE9t

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Woodturning-l ... SwwpdW1vb5

 

[marcros]

a valid point on the chuck. this chuck is what i use with my jet and is a nice little thing for small objects http://www.dm-tools.co.uk/product.php/s ... 1GEn_krJpg

i got mine on an offer which included another set of jaws i think. worth looking around.

 

[Matt@]

I do take your point (bigbud) about secondhand but I tend to prefer to buy new as 1) I'll be keeping it long term so cost less of a consideration 2) I can guarantee its working and not worn 3) I can get it delivered to my door within 24hrs. 4) I can pay with a card over the phone without messing about with cash and private sellers. Got most of the tools I need, its just the lathe I want and dont think I'll need a chuck. I'm not a hobbyist but a pro in a related field and just need a lathe for the odd job ( a dozen times a year!) .. I think I will buy it, its got good reviews on the Rutland site as well. I have till 4pm for someone to change my mind lol

 

[Bigbud78]

I do take your point (bigbud) about secondhand but I tend to prefer to buy new as 1) I'll be keeping it long term so cost less of a consideration 2) I can guarantee its working and not worn 3) I can get it delivered to my door within 24hrs. 4) I can pay with a card over the phone without messing about with cash and private sellers. Got most of the tools I need, its just the lathe I want and dont think I'll need a chuck. I'm not a hobbyist but a pro in a related field and just need a lathe for the odd job ( a dozen times a year!) .. I think I will buy it, its got good reviews on the Rutland site as well. I have till 4pm for someone to change my mind lol

Just be warned I believe Rutlands might censor there reviews, looks like the same lathe as axi. I've not used or seen it but Axi customer service is really good http://www.axminster.co.uk/axminster-ho ... the-501245

 

[Matt@]

ouch £25 extra, think I will err to Rutlands...

now ordered from Rutlands and arriving tomorrow, thanks for advice, I hope its ok

 

[Rhossydd]

ouch £25 extra, think I will err to Rutlands...

I'd pay a premium greater than that for Axminster's after sales service myself.
Best of luck.
If it arrives complete, working and undamaged, it should be a good little machine.

 

[Stiggy]

Maybe you could give us a review so others could benefit from your experience - with the lathe AND the company?

 

[Matt@]

well, cant fault Rutlands so far - they were very helpful on the phone when I enquired about it to start with. I've bought a few things from Rutland in the distant past and have had loads of stuff from Axminster - as people say Axminster very good. Anyway, its on its way and I can track it., so far so good!

 

[Matt@]

lathe arrived 10am this morning (ordered 3.30pm yesterday) . Can't fault it really. I read the reviews on Rutlands website about the difficulty of following the enclosed instructions but I can say that putting this together was simplicity itself and I never even opened the instructions so I dont know why people have had so much trouble in this respect. Lathe is very heavy and sturdy and very quiet. The paint finish is bit dribbly and the castings a bit rough but for the price I think this is an excellent machine and I dont know how they produce them for the money even if it is made in China. I've yet to use it but dont expect any issues, it sits rock solid on a flat surface and everything runs true. If I was to be super critical I'd be mindful of the locking handles for the tailstock and tool rest stripping their threads in the future as they are threaded through the casting and threads are quite sloppy.

So 10/10 for Rutlands and 10/10 for the product!

Edit
for those for which this could be an issue, be aware that the hammerite type paint is flaking off on the leading edges of the bed. You can easily pick the paint off with a fingernail as if it were not keying very well.. Doesnt bother me but I can see that some will be disappointed by this and the logistics of getting this sorted via any supplier must be a bit daunting as presume it would need to be posted back!

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Assembly was easy ... because you ignored the instructions.

 

[Matt@]

haha yeh I know, I hate intstructions! , I always read them afterwards to make sure I've not missed anything important! Wrong way round I know...but seriously I reckon this is the easiest thing I've ever had to put together, I mean why would you need to read which pulley the belt goes on and then complain that the instructions are back to front?!