Where to purchase an American Beauty - best vendor

[Nick Boyd]

I will be selling my Woodfast short bed 20 inch swing 1.5 VS lathe soon and purchasing an American Beauty Robust - please give vendor recommendation for this - best experence, no bad surprises,etc - who should I buy it from - I see conflicting issues re shipping and not seeing 3hp option on certain sites.....
Thank You

 

[Mark Hepburn]

Hi Nick,

I’ve been considering a Robust maybe a couple of years down the road to replace my Jet 1642. I bought my VB 36 from Craft Supplies USA and it was a very good experience. Hegner had just been sold to Steinert and they were good about keeping me informed.

But I feel you go to the Robust site, you can find a list of notable turners who sell the Robust lathes.

 

[hockenbery]

You might give Don Geiger a call. He is a Robust dealer who lives in Gainesville.

If you happen to be going to the Florida Symposium Don will be there.

Robust has a network of dealers and several woodturning stores sell the Robust too.
Don can answer all your questions help you with the myriad of options.
He also often has a lathe availble for imediate delivery. His web site says he has a 3hp now

http://www.geigerssolutions.com/

With Don you have a personal contact. Don is friend. He is also just one of the good guys.
Don is quite well known among florida woodturners.

 

[Nick Boyd]

You might give Don Geiger a call. He is a Robust dealer who lives in Gainesville.

If you happen to be going to the Florida Symposium Don will be there.

Robust has a network of dealers and several woodturning stores sell the Robust too.
Don can answer all your questions help you with the myriad of options.
He also often has a lathe availble for imediate delivery. His web site says he has a 3hp now

http://www.geigerssolutions.com/

With Don you have a personal contact. Don is friend. He is also just one of the good guys.
Don is quite well known among florida woodturners.

Thank you ill give him a call

 

[Nick Boyd]

You might give Don Geiger a call. He is a Robust dealer who lives in Gainesville.

If you happen to be going to the Florida Symposium Don will be there.

Robust has a network of dealers and several woodturning stores sell the Robust too.
Don can answer all your questions help you with the myriad of options.
He also often has a lathe availble for imediate delivery. His web site says he has a 3hp now

http://www.geigerssolutions.com/

With Don you have a personal contact. Don is friend. He is also just one of the good guys.
Don is quite well known among florida woodturners.

.

Thanks

 

[Hy Tran]

Brent English would be happy to sell to you direct, at the same price that any of his dealers give. If you buy during/or/near AAW symposium time, Brent offers the upgrade from 2HP to 3HP (you'll need a dedicated 220V outlet, see other discussion), but if you're shelling out $8K-and-change, you shouldn't cavil at $1K for 2 outlets on separate breakers (add 1 outlet for a dust collector). This same upgrade deal will be available from any of the Robust dealers, including the larger commercial enterprises such as Craft Supplies.

Personally speaking, I'd rather support a nearby professional turner who's a Robust dealer, or a professional from whom you have taken (or will take) lessons, but that's a personal choice.

As Al H. states, Don Geiger is one local-ish dealer in FL. I bought mine through Trent Bosch, after having spent time turning on Craig Lofton's lathe, and talking the specs out with Brent. Craig Lofton bought his through Dave Ellsworth (and he showed me Dave Ellsworth's quote for the Robust AB, which was totally hilarious--pencil scribblings on a board). Note that in my case, I asked for some minor modifications (all done at no charge) with Brent, and told him the order would go in through Trent Bosch. No problems at all.

Some of my personal mods: After spending time on Craig Lofton's Robust AB, I decided I wanted a slightly longer cord for the motor hand control. No sweat; added 18" (I think) at no extra charge. (I think that had I asked for 200" longer, Trent might have wanted to both examine my head and charge me some $). I asked for capability to lower the legs 2" below his normal spec. (I'm a bit shorter than Craig L, and much shorter than Trent B). No sweat, no extra $. One of my NM colleagues and I both ordered a few extra holes drilled for mounting things, and Brent did that at no cost (again, thru Trent B). Not guaranteeing that he will do that for you, but that was very nice.

I did order the swinging tailstock, but not the hydraulic cylinder. My NM colleague ordered the long bed, tailstock, and cylinder. I figure my back and legs are still good for another 15 years; when I want the hydraulic cylinder, I'll order it and do a self-install. Brent says that if you can drill a hole thru standard steel plate, you can install the hydraulic lift yourself. You are the best judge of your back's health.

I don't know your skill level--I considered myself at the time an advanced novice (skiing terms: greens, easy blues). In addition to the lathe budget (and the electrical and the dust collector etc.), I also budgeted a 3-day class with Trent Bosch. I won't say that it was Trent, but I now consider myself an advanced intermediate turner (solid blue slopes, maybe a black slope if the snow is just right). So, depending on your self-assessment, also consider budgeting time for a workshop with an instructor.

Best,

Hy

 

[Bill Boehme]

I was going to suggest Don Geiger, but I see that Al already mentioned him. He is a really knowledgeable and helpful guy. You can also deal directly with Brent English. I don't know if you save on shipping if you go with a local dealer. I bought mine directly from Brent. I have been extremely pleased with the support and service that I have received.

Once upon a time I skied the double black diamond slopes and some of the time I even made it all the way down without losing my skis. That would put me solidly in the foolhardy class.

 

[George Guadiane]

I would second that. Don is your guy.

 

[Nick Boyd]

Thank you all - I will be calling Don first

 

[Nick Boyd]

Thank you all - I will be calling Don first

I do have some questions of them - Hurricane Ivan put nine feet of water on our area and, if it happened again, it would get all the electronics wet. One of the reasons I’m asking for a American Beauty (instead of a PM for example) is so I can take the headstock off and put it higher dryer before evacuation. I need to find out if I can do the same with the control box that sits under the left-hand side under the headstock - make it more portable or go ahead and mount it high, on the wall.

 

[hockenbery]

instead of a PM for example) is so I can take the headstock off and put it higher dryer before evacuation.

Some one gave you bad information.

Powermatic wins on this criteria.
The headstock of the powermatic has everything electrical in it or bolted to it.
moving the head stock moves the controller, motor, on off switch and power cord.
Take out the safety bolt Slide it off move it. I would suggest moving the tailstock to higher ground too.

From the Robust site
“The motor drive (aka: “VFD” or “Inverter”) is housed below the lathe in the leg assembly, “

Don can tell you what is required to unmount the box and disconnect the wiring to the head stock.

I have taken the box off my ONEWAY it is held on with 4 bolts.
Disconnecting the wiring is slightly bigger task.

 

[robo hippy]

The motor and headstock are hard wired into the frame on the Robust, so removing them is a chore. Having those being 'plug in' style would be an upgrade as far as I am concerned...

If you get a Robust and pick it up at the symposium, generally you don't have to pay for shipping.

robo hippy

 

[Bill Boehme]

If you're thinking of the American Beauty, the inverter is located in an enclosure beneath the bed on the left side, although it could be relocated to a remote high and dry location. This is something that Don could work with you to customize. The motor and headstock are very heavy. It might be easier to move the entire lathe ... I have the wheel kit so I can quickly attach the wheels to move my lathe.

I grew up on the Texas gulf coast and moved to north Texas because I decided that I prefer tornadoes and hailstorms to hurricanes. I do miss the great salt water fishing, but armadillos and possums, properly cooked, aren't too bad. And, I can catch them right in my own back yard.

 

[JeffSmith]

I took delivery of mine after the symposium in San Jose in 2012. Saved shipping to the west coast. Brent set it up with disconnect plugs on the headstock to controller wiring. made the job of removing the headstock much simpler. This was his idea (along with taking delivery at the symposium) and it worked out great. I hauled the lathe to Seattle in a trailer with the headstock and tailstock removed to make it easier to handle when unloading.
Word of warning - the 3hp headstock is a big chunk to wrangle - have help handy.
By the way, by taking delivery out of state I also saved the state sales tax (Washington State). That alone paid for the trailer rental, gas and hotels for the trip to pick it up. Add in the savings on shipping and it paid for the whole symposium, meals and all.

 

[john lucas]

Yes the Powermatic headstock can be removed with all the wiring. Just loosen the lever that lets it slide and slide it off. However, and I assume this is roughly the same with the Robust, the headstock on mine weighs 157lbs. Not something your going to want to lift very far. I think I would look at lifting the house 9 feet like they are doing in New York.

 

[Nick Boyd]

Some one gave you bad information.

Powermatic wins on this criteria.
The headstock of the powermatic has everything electrical in it or bolted to it.
moving the head stock moves the controller, motor, on off switch and power cord.
Take out the safety bolt Slide it off move it. I would suggest moving the tailstock to higher ground too.

From the Robust site
“The motor drive (aka: “VFD” or “Inverter”) is housed below the lathe in the leg assembly, “

Don can tell you what is required to unmount the box and disconnect the wiring to the head stock.

I have taken the box off my ONEWAY it is held on with 4 bolts.
Disconnecting the wiring is slightly bigger task.

no one gave me bad info - I just incorrectly assumed the AB electronics were easier to take off simce it was a sliding headstock

If you're thinking of the American Beauty, the inverter is located in an enclosure beneath the bed on the left side, although it could be relocated to a remote high and dry location. This is something that Don could work with you to customize. The motor and headstock are very heavy. It might be easier to move the entire lathe ... I have the wheel kit so I can quickly attach the wheels to move my lathe.

I grew up on the Texas gulf coast and moved to north Texas because I decided that I prefer tornadoes and hailstorms to hurricanes. I do miss the great salt water fishing, but armadillos and possums,
properly cooked, aren't too bad. And, I can catch them right in my own back yard.

noted and thank you and funny

 

[Nick Boyd]

Yes the Powermatic headstock can be removed with all the wiring. Just loosen the lever that lets it slide and slide it off. However, and I assume this is roughly the same with the Robust, the headstock on mine weighs 157lbs. Not something your going to want to lift very far. I think I would look at lifting the house 9 feet like they are doing in New York.

I already had the house raised 8 feet (after it was flooded from Ivan after I bought it in 2009) but the garage/workshop is still on the ground 6.36 above sea level the residential at 15+

I will find a way to get electronics high and dry - I do have a metal beam installed for lifting up to the ceiling like 8 ft

 

[Bill Boehme]

I recently installed a remote foot operated stop switch which is pretty straightforward, but working inside the electrical enclosure while on my hands and knees was quite a chore because of crowded quarters. I do like the remote foot-switch for stopping the lathe. I have another mod yet to finish ... adding a braking resistor. I would classify this as mostly unnecessary, but the engineer's creed says, "if it ain't broke, fix it anyway".

 

[hockenbery]

no one gave me bad info - I just incorrectly assumed the AB electronics were easier to take off simce it was a sliding headstock

I think I misinterpreted your earlier post.

Just to summarize

The sliding headstock of the Powermatic has all the electronics attached to the headstock and the electronics come with the headstock when it is removed. Easy

The sliding headstock on the AB cannot be removed far without disconnecting the electronics which are in a box mounted on the legs. Hard - options might be available to make it less work

Both lathes have a motor attached to a large cast iron headstock which makes for a heavy unit.

 

[john lucas]

I really feel bad about not taking into consideration how bad flooding can be. Wish you all the luck in dealing with that problem. Don't know what I would do. A lot of people in Nashville got really screwed by the insurance companies. They had flood insurance but it only covered the house, not the contents. Many didn't know that and lost everything. I've been trying to think of other solutions for you but running dry right now. Short of having a semi with trailer standing by so you could load everything in and get the heck out of dodge I don't have a solution.

 

[Bill Boehme]

I really feel bad about not taking into consideration how bad flooding can be. Wish you all the luck in dealing with that problem. Don't know what I would do. A lot of people in Nashville got really screwed by the insurance companies. They had flood insurance but it only covered the house, not the contents. Many didn't know that and lost everything. I've been trying to think of other solutions for you but running dry right now. Short of having a semi with trailer standing by so you could load everything in and get the heck out of dodge I don't have a solution.

I know what you mean, John. It's a problem that doesn't have an easy solution.

I already had the house raised 8 feet (after it was flooded from Ivan after I bought it in 2009) but the garage/workshop is still on the ground 6.36 above sea level the residential at 15+

I will find a way to get electronics high and dry - I do have a metal beam installed for lifting up to the ceiling like 8 ft

I think it would be very good to have MIL-DTL-38999 type connectors so that everything could be quickly unplugged.

 

[john lucas]

When you have a flood that only happens once every 100 years it's just hard to predict and do anything about. I think the flood in Nashville was supposedly once in 500 years. We are still waiting for the huge earthquake that is overdue. It was so strong it changed the flow of the Misissippi last time it happened. I'm sure people won't be prepared for that but then how would you.

 

[Nick Boyd]

I really feel bad about not taking into consideration how bad flooding can be. Wish you all the luck in dealing with that problem. Don't know what I would do. A lot of people in Nashville got really screwed by the insurance companies. They had flood insurance but it only covered the house, not the contents. Many didn't know that and lost everything. I've been trying to think of other solutions for you but running dry right now. Short of having a semi with trailer standing by so you could load everything in and get the heck out of dodge I don't have a solution.

Thank you

 

[Paul Grenier]

how about building a water tight container for the entire lathe so that when the floods come and time is of the essence, you could simply roll the lathe onto the base of the crate and then complete the assembly of the crate.

 

[Mike Johnson]

Noah's Crate.

 

[Nick Boyd]

Thank you for all of your concern when a storm heads my way I will be pulling the headstock off elevating it and when I get the lathe which by the way I ordered I will be taking the controller out and installing high on the wall and wiring it accordingly with plugs the rest of the lathe can get washed down from salt water and wiped down with oily rag

haha re noah’s crate

 

[hockenbery]

how about building a water tight container for the entire lathe so that when the floods come and time is of the essence, you could simply roll the lathe onto the base of the crate and then complete the assembly of the crate.

This might work with some thought.
An issue with water tight containers is they float. Many a floating steel dumpster has breached a concrete block wall. A floating box with 6-700 lbs of steel inside can do significant damage if it were to float into something even at a slow speed. So the water tight container needs to be moored in such a way that it won’t break itself apart or damage the structure it is in.

 

[Mark Hepburn]

... I grew up on the Texas gulf coast and moved to north Texas because I decided that I prefer tornadoes and hailstorms to hurricanes. I do miss the great salt water fishing, but armadillos and possums, properly cooked, aren't too bad. And, I can catch them right in my own back yard.

And armadillos come right in their own handy roasting pot.

 

[Mark Hepburn]

This might work with some thought.
An issue with water tight containers is they float. Many a floating steel dumpster has breached a concrete block wall. A floating box with 6-700 lbs of steel inside can do significant damage if it were to float into something even at a slow speed. So the water tight container needs to be moored in such a way that it won’t break itself apart or damage the structure it is in.

Right you are, Al. We had more of those than you can imagine after a few hurricanes down here. They usually just haul them away anymore because of the damage they can cause

 

[Bill Boehme]

Just in this last week I reinstalled the headstock and motor on my lathe after having Robust do some maintenance work. I installed it in three parts: bare headstock first then the motor and finally the spindle. I wouldn't have been able to lift the whole thing if I had assembled everything on the floor. The hardest part was installing the very heavy motor. I made the task much easier by inserting 5/16" fluted dowel pins into the threaded holes of the motor C face. The 5/16" dowel pins can be easily screwed in using the thumb and index finger. With these makeshift alignment pins it was much easier to get the motor correctly lined up. Once in position I was able to install the bolts that fasten the motor to its mounting bracket. An alternative approach would be to use headless ⅜" bolts. After installing the spindle and congratulating myself for being so clever, I had to partially remove the spindle so that I could install the belt. I have a few bruises from wrestling the motor.

 

[Gary Beasley]

This might work with some thought.
An issue with water tight containers is they float. Many a floating steel dumpster has breached a concrete block wall. A floating box with 6-700 lbs of steel inside can do significant damage if it were to float into something even at a slow speed. So the water tight container needs to be moored in such a way that it won’t break itself apart or damage the structure it is in.

I watched a video once where they built a house into a barge and had it moored with loops around tall poles on each end as it sat on dry land. Any flooding resulted in it lifting and riding up the poles but staying secured in place. It was a clever solution for an area prone to frequent floods.

 

[hockenbery]

I watched a video once where they built a house into a barge and had it moored with loops around tall poles on each end as it sat on dry land. Any flooding resulted in it lifting and riding up the poles but staying secured in place. It was a clever solution for an area prone to frequent floods.

Like a floating docks that have huge “U” bolts around pilings?
They can sit in the bottom during low water.

 

[Bill Boehme]

And armadillos come right in their own handy roasting pot.

Did I mention that they taste like chicken? So does possum ... sort of. Gator also tastes like chicken. Of course, being a chef, you already know all about alternate chicken.

 

[john lucas]

Well if I ever get a flood at my house in Middle Tennessee you guys had better have an Arc. Just about everything in Tennessee is below me except the Smokey Mountains themselves.