is this lathe any good Birmingham YCL-920/1126 Series Lathes

[bigrich954rr]

im looking for a lathe would like to buy a new one. trying to find a ok lathe not the best but some thing i can do good work on.will be doing a good amount of thread cutting. would like to to be a a smaller one cause im low on room in shop.

[Linear Thinker]

Rich,

YCL920 looks identical to most Chinese 9x20 lathes as sold by Horror Fright, Enco etc. I used to have the Enco version, got it on sale for $700 or so. AFAIK, they are all made in the same factory. Birmingham version looks to be nicely tooled, which probably explains why they want more $$.

Nice things about it:
It's very light. I was able to install it without help.
You can either bolt it to the bench or get a metal stand
It has a gearbox, no more messing with gear charts

Not so nice:
It's very light. Light cuts only. Don't expect tenths accuracy.
I am not so sure the leadscrew was inch. My threads felt just a hair off. Didn't matter as I always chased with a die afterwards.

The build quality was typical Chinese - indifferent, but functional. With light cuts, it produced nice finishes.

As small lathes go, it's good value for the money.
I wound up selling it. It was too big for small jobs like trimming/neck-turning brass and too small for barrel jobs.

LT

[rachelhporter]

Hi,

You can find information about Birmingham lathes at Birmingham Lathes (http://www.findamachine.com/machine_tool_manufacturer/BIRMINGHAM)

It gives you Birmingham dealers,specifications and contact details

Hope this is of some use
RP