What's new
What's new

New lathe recommendation

DirtyDusty

Plastic
Joined
Jun 3, 2021
Company I work for is looking at purchasing a new lathe for light industrial. Probably a 15-60 manual. What’s are some good options for new lathes in this size range?
 
Last edited:
Hard to answer this without a budget and intended use.

Brand new anything will be expensive. Lightly used is probably half the cost.

General maintenance and fab work? A Clausing Colchester will go a long way, as will a Standard Modern.

Takisawa or any of the Moriseiki knockoffs like Yam or Webb would also be a good lathe for a general use machine.

Once you start to specialize or need fussy tolerances, swing, bed length or spindle bore the price shoots up and the selection goes down.
 
It will be used in a maintenance shop. Using a 13-40 now, but it’s undersized for what we do. Build lots of shafts out of 1.5” and 2” square stock. Plus many one off parts. Budget probably around $20k-$30k. Ideally would like a 3” spindle bore, but 2.125” is minimum.
 
Over 3" spindle bore
Sharp Industries 16" x 40" Vari Speed Precision Lathe - 1640LV - Penn Tool Co., Inc

Sharp Industries 12 Speeds & Variable Speed Precision Lathes, 16" and 18" - Penn Tool Co., Inc

Just wonering.. do you run shadts beteen centers?

I don't know beans about sharp lathes but they do make ok/good grinders.

*This one from Taiwan has DRO but lists a smaller spindle bore?..country Taiwan.
Used NEW SHARP 1660L GEARED HEAD ENGINE LATHE for sale - 157398

but Located in Chino, California
 
I don't know beans about sharp lathes but they do make ok/good grinders.

We have a pair of the 1640 vari speeds at my day job and I ran a smaller one for years at a past job. They're a decent machine, made a lot of close tolerance parts on them. I dislike the vari speed feature though. They do not have the power in certain speed ranges that the regular ones do. Unloaded/loaded speed can change by 100rpm or more easily. If I were to buy a new Sharp lathe I'd get the plain gearhead model like that 1660L.
 
If you budget is 20-30k it would seem you could find a super nice used lathe. I have seen a decent amount of large Clausing Colchester lathes for sale for under $10k. I do not have much experiences with the lathes but they seem nice. There is one I know of a few for sale up here in Ohio which is probably the size you are looking for and are under $10k. Would make a huge budget for some nice tooling :)
 
Emailed sharpe industries and Penn tool co., neither have responded with prices. Called Penn Tool and the guy said they will respond back later, but haven’t heard. . Looks like the 16/60L has all the features I need.
 
Emailed sharpe industries and Penn tool co., neither have responded with prices. Called Penn Tool and the guy said they will respond back later, but haven’t heard. . Looks like the 16/60L has all the features I need.

QT OP: [neither have responded with prices.]

It is hard to understand where salesmen/ladies are, inept like they are too busy playing with their computer(or something to do their job...many don't even call you back..no wonder the USA gets in a slump.

For a $20k deal, a guy should work through lunch or work a half-hour over.

Q: how much extra is the taper attachment?
(X) Is the 3jaw, 4 jaw, and steady in the list price? NOT->comes with a 10" 3jaw, and a steady. (NO 4 JAW) taper atch optional.

*Likely they won't even send me my $20 commission..darn. I might as well go back to grinding.

It does look like a very nice machine

*Wait, Are the dials in inch or MM +, does that matter to your needs?
 
Sales guy from sharpe industries responded. He said the disks are imperial. Good point though.

A shop that does mostly inch work having dials in metric is just another reason to make errors.

At my first job back in the 60s had to run a metric mill..and it was a bugger..Yes, hand calculators were not availed and nobody had metric measuring tools.
 
Dials make no difference if you have a DRO, and in this day and age you really ought to in a shop that charges customers if you want to be competitive on pricing with other shops. They truly do save a lot of time and frustration.
 
Oh, and forgot to say, having run Sharp and other similar import machines as well as the mentioned Clausing Colchesters and on through the good old U.S. iron, I'd go with a Clausing 15" or 16" x 60" any day if you don't want to go through the hassle of trying to find an unworn older U.S.- made machine. The CC is quite a sight better than the commonly available Taiwanese or Chinese lathes and generally a little easier to find and a bit more modern than most of the better class older U S. machines. I'd still rather have an American or Monarch though, heh.
 
Company I work for is looking at purchasing a new lathe for light industrial. Probably a 15-60 manual. What’s are some good options for new lathes in this size range?

I can't say I have much experience with the new machines. But I have purchased a couple old machines out of maintenance dept that updated the equipment. Then got a call trying to buy them back as the new machines fell apart.
You mentioned turning square shafts this is very hard on headstock and carriage drive. Also if you are turning weld buildup down it beats the machine.
Just a word of advice maintenance and repair is a whole different animal than turning nice new round shaft with no keyway or bolt holes to cut across.
One company sold me a 1950s monarch they bought new ,replaced it with a new summit and less than 6 months wanted to buy monarch back already destroyed the summit turning welded up parts.
If you want new Dean Smith and grace I think is still building new on the older steel cast beds but they are pricy. I have a 30" nice machine.
 
It will be used in a maintenance shop. Using a 13-40 now, but it’s undersized for what we do. Build lots of shafts out of 1.5” and 2” square stock. Plus many one off parts. Budget probably around $20k-$30k. Ideally would like a 3” spindle bore, but 2.125” is minimum.

Give Belmont machinery or Machinery values a call and buy a good used machine. I would aim for a monarch as the factory support is there and much better than an import
 
Company I work for is looking at purchasing a new lathe for light industrial. Probably a 15-60 manual. What’s are some good options for new lathes in this size range?

Call Monarch Lathes
937-492-4111

They sell used machines and new ones and are good people.
 








 
Back
Top