Reply To: Buying lathe parts seperately

[tmac1956]

Randy:

Although I have a Levin 8mm which I love, if I had to do it all over again, I would go the Sincere route. By the time you add up all of the costs of tooling up (of which the lathe is negligable), you will easily spend more and get less – and that less (with the exception of three and four jaw chucks) will be used. I think Starrett is still making 8mm collets but when I finished off my set several months ago, the dealers where in a funk because everything was on back order.

However, if you decide to go the used route there is no better time than now as there are so many Horologists in Europe retiring (or even worse) and their stuff is everywhere for sale. Once this glut is over however, that’ll will probably be the end of the market.

If you are a member of NAWCC, they have a great video on the ins-and-outs of buying a used lathe. 728 – HOW TO BUY A WATCHMAKERS LATHE which may be found on their site at Video Resources/Digital Video Archive.

Just my 2 cents…

Good luck!
Tom