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Where to Buy a Lathe?

D

Desert Pete

Joined
Apr 11, 2007
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I have been turning for awhile and I am getting the itch to upgrade. The Powermatic 3520b seems to fit my needs. The local Woodcraft store has one on their floor on sale. They want $599 to order the outboard turning stand which I consider a pretty high price based on what I have seen on the web.

Who are the reliable sellers of lathes on the web? What about delivery times? Delivery charges? When all is said and done, where is the best place to buy?
 
john lucas said:
I had excellent results with www.toolnut.com They were the least expensive and very nice to deal with. I also bought a bed extension from them.
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I had the same experience with Toolnut when I bought my Jet 1642 EVS from them AND they offer free shipping.
 
I would say this. Woodcraft and Craft Supplies have both been excellent to deal with and I highly recommend them. It's almost 2 hours to Either Woodcraft store near me and I go there when I can to purchase items. When it came to the lathe my friend and I bought ours together and it simply came down to dollars and cents so I ended up buying it from the Toolnut. I prefer to buy from my local Woodcraft or Craft Supplies when I can because they back what they sell and are knowledgeable enough to help you with questions.
 
john lucas said:
Woodcraft and Craft Supplies have both been excellent to deal with and I highly recommend them. I prefer to buy from my local Woodcraft or Craft Supplies when I can because they back what they sell and are knowledgeable enough to help you with questions.
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For what it is worth, Woodcraft has a 10% off everything (including the PM lathe) sale twice a year. Typically on Saturdays around the first week of March and a week or two into December. When these sales are underway, their price is about as good as any I've seen. Out of curiousity, I priced Toolnut against the 10% off price on a JET 1642 a year ago, and they said that was a good price, apologized, and said they could only beat that price by $10. Toolnut seemed like good people to deal with, but had I actually been in the market, I would have gone with "brick and mortar" over mail order.

Of course, taxes and transportation are factors that favor Toolnut.
 
Desert Pete said:
I have been turning for awhile and I am getting the itch to upgrade. The Powermatic 3520b seems to fit my needs. The local Woodcraft store has one on their floor on sale. They want $599 to order the outboard turning stand which I consider a pretty high price based on what I have seen on the web.

Who are the reliable sellers of lathes on the web? What about delivery times? Delivery charges? When all is said and done, where is the best place to buy?
Click to expand...

I got mine from Osolnik Machinery. Talk to Joe. The 3520 was built by Powermatic to Joe's father Rude's specifications. I don't know if it is still on sale but it was on sale in a package that included the extension and a couple of other things a couple of months ago in a Powermatic celebration of 40 years in biz.

Stoppy
 
Desert Pete said:
I have been turning for awhile and I am getting the itch to upgrade. The Powermatic 3520b seems to fit my needs. The local Woodcraft store has one on their floor on sale. They want $599 to order the outboard turning stand which I consider a pretty high price based on what I have seen on the web.

Who are the reliable sellers of lathes on the web? What about delivery times? Delivery charges? When all is said and done, where is the best place to buy?
Click to expand...

Pete, take a look at the VICMark Outboard Bracket. Part number 191 8008 on the Craft Supply Web site. $299.99. It will fit the jet and powermatic lathes if you are willing to drill holes into the legs at one end. I looked at someones setup who used it on a Jet 1642 and it works great. Plus it was more stable than the Jet outboard stand I had played with. Both are good mind you, but I preferred this setup and will probably go with that when I am ready to turn outboard on my Jet 1642. This was also way cheaper, both to purchase and to ship.

Dave
 
KEW said:
For what it is worth, Woodcraft has a 10% off everything (including the PM lathe) sale twice a year. Typically on Saturdays around the first week of March and a week or two into December. When these sales are underway, their price is about as good as any I've seen. Out of curiousity, I priced Toolnut against the 10% off price on a JET 1642 a year ago, and they said that was a good price, apologized, and said they could only beat that price by $10. Toolnut seemed like good people to deal with, but had I actually been in the market, I would have gone with "brick and mortar" over mail order.

Of course, taxes and transportation are factors that favor Toolnut.
Click to expand...

Toolnuts brick and mortar location is local so color me lucky! Thay have alot more than Powermatic lathes. They seem to carry everything including stuff I've never seen anywhere else.
 
I have sent Toolnut two requests for a quote and received no answer. A bit of a downer given their apparent reputation.
 
How about http://www.southern-tool.com/ as a source. When I was in the market for capacity, they were highly recommended. When requests aren't honored prior to sale, has to make you wonder about after. Were they at the symposium or something?
 
were to buy a lathe

My name is roy knapp and i live in putnam county, carmel ny.

I just bought the POWERMATIC 3520b last month Toolnut and got the best price from them.

call 1-914-621-0200 and ask for Peter James he is off mondays :)
 
If you want a quote from Tool-Nut you need to call them don't try to do it on line. I got mine lathe from them and I agree with everyone else they were great and fast. I had my lathe with in a week.
 
Re: Desert Pete

Desert Pete,

Call them. 1-877-toolnut

It's pretty much widely known that the best way to get a quote from them is via telephone.

Jason

/ Ordered PM3520B from toolnut
// Delivered within 10 days for $500 less than local cost when taxes are included.
 
Several

Craft Supply....my favorite and great Customer Service
Toolnut....Never dealt with them but know people that have that are pleased
Amazon..Good prices, don't know how they are with customer service needs later
Southern Tool...I've heard they're a good outfit
Packard...fast shipping
And don't overlook Woodcraft. Though I don't buy much from them, my buddy just scored a great deal on a Jet 2 HP 1642, delivered for $1600
Osolnik Machinery....Joe is a good guy. Bought My Vicmarc VL100 from his Dad's estate sale and Joe made it a very easy deal

Mike
 
Stoppy said:
I got mine from Osolnik Machinery. Talk to Joe. The 3520 was built by Powermatic to Joe's father Rude's specifications.
Stoppy
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I can second this. Joe is top notch and he was the cheapest at the time when I got the PM2000 and the PM 3520b.
 
OK, so new question on the same old thread.

I am hearing a lot about OneWay. Is it that much better than the Powermatic? Somehow, the difference in price does not seem justified unless there are some serious differences in features that are not obvious to me.
 
Desert Pete said:
OK, so new question on the same old thread.

I am hearing a lot about OneWay. Is it that much better than the Powermatic? Somehow, the difference in price does not seem justified unless there are some serious differences in features that are not obvious to me.
Click to expand...

I have a PM 3520A and for me it is the only lathe I'll need. Having said that and having used several Oneways I gotta say, yes, it's worth the money, if you have that much to spend. "Features," and their value, are in the eye of the particular user. I could have saved another year or so and took 24/36 plunge. I didn't want to wait any longer. So I bought the lathe that most closely matched my needs and cash. It also offered the shortest forced residential stay on the back porch. :D
 
Another cosideration for some, myself included is that the Powermatic is fairly easy to disassemble and reassemble. It might mean the difference in getting it to a basement shop for instance.
That said, having seen the Oneways as well as the Powermatics in person I can't see the justification for basically doubling the price. The PM is well finished and It looks as though nothing has been overlooked. They are more mass produced than a Oneway which may seem good or bad to some folks but that seems to be where the economic advantage is.
I think one advantage a PM has is that the sliding headstock allows turning from the end of the lathe instead of standing to the side constantly. A consideration for me since I have a bad right shoulder that appreciates ergonomic relief when I can get it.
 
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