I have alot of hobby type lathes and mills. And some other lathes and mills that are small but not hobby type. Like the bridgeport and monarch 10ee. Like the monarch, it doesnt have a very large working envelope, but it has tons of power and more importantly, its super accurate, one of the most accurate small lathes out there.
But it is limited on the length of a shaft that can be turned. Thats when I go to my southbend 10" lathe. And it was only 900 bucks. It has a 48" bed so I can put a 36" bar between centers. The extra length helps alot. And its a small lathe still. Easily moved by one person.
The 900 dollar southbend lathe gets most of the work. It has the power that a hobby lathe doesnt. I can take heavy cuts in all the steels. And it still holds to a decent .001" within a 12" length of cut. And for shorter pieces I can cut a parallel shaft to within .0005" with some careful adjustments.
Id hold my very old southbend lathe up to any of the new chinese lathes in a second. Oh, and it cuts threads that are spot on. In any material.
If you want to cut steel get a heavier lathe thats not a bench lathe. And yes, Id buy a chinese jet, birmingham or grizzly lathe before Id buy a bench top hobby lathe for car work.
But Id buy an old southbend before buying any of the chinese lathes. Only for the cost. Those three lathes are the same lathe, and they are good lathes. But it would be hard to find a decent one for under a 1000 bucks. You can get an old SB lathe for under a 1000 bucks. And if yer lucky, its all tooled up. 5C collet closer, taper attachment and the works.
If you want to cut steel, remove some metal from a three inch dia bar. Or cut some threads on the OD of a 2" bar then the bench lathes wont do it. The 900 dollar SB will make a bench lathe. The bench lathe cant make a SB 10" lathe. JR
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