Power Tools Reviews
JET 708360 JWL-1642EVS-2 16-Inch Swing 42-Inch between Centers 2 Horsepower Electronic Variable Speed Woodworking Lathe, 230-Volt 1 Phase
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 THE LAST ONE FOR ME ! Owned this Jet 2 HP lathe model 1642 over two years now and haven't any regrets. Very heavy duty for the price and compared to a Oneway, what's the difference, price or the bragging rights like the review said below. This is built like a tank, but runs like a Cadillac, very smooth while passing the nickel test over and over. I had test drove the 1 1/2 HP Jet and the 2 HP Oneway before buying this and for $100.00 more then the Jet 1 1/2 HP and $1500.00 less then the 2 HP Oneway, no brainer. Even tested the two delta 2 HP lathes same price, no thanks on steel beds, I only like iron cast. The Nova was nice to, I just don't like the snap together bed for the price. Saved my money for nice wood and more turning tools, also banking the extra dough. a very fine, well designed lathe This lathe is a sleeper. Truly. I have researched lathes for months because i wanted exactly the right lathe. My requirements were, smooth operation, variable speed, quiet, vibration free and heavy. After much research and hands on evaluation I decided on and purchased the jet jet 1642-2EVS (708360) 2 hp lathe. It is the first machine that I have ever purchased that was not assembled and at first was somewhat annoyed that is was still in the crate but assembly was relatively simple. I removed the parts piece by piece from the truck. the legs are very heavy and luckily i had help. The bed was very heavy and somewhat of a challange to get it up on the legs, but assembly was very simple. Every hole was perfectly aligned. It was in a crate, very well protected and neatly packed. Before i go into the details of the lathe i would like to give you some information on the prodcuts that i did evaluate and consider. The first unit was the NOVA. It was ok, i thought rather light and expensive for what it really was. Everything was an add on, and it started at nearly $2,000. It didn't impress me. The DELTA was a nice lathe. Very clean design but it just didn't have the weight. It would have been my second choice. The ONEWAY. It was just too darn big. Really nice machine if you win the lottery. It just kind of screamed "look what i got" Too yuppie. It was my last choice. So, anyway, i purchased the jet. I went for the two hp model only because i wanted a 220 unit. They have lower operating costs and the dollar difference wasn't that great. I was surprised that they do not come with a plug, but that was no big deal. Tonight i cleaned it up and got it running. After all the research i did, i didn't realize it wouldn't take my Delta chuck. It has a 1-1/2 x 8 screw and my Delta accessories have a 1 x 8. No big deal, they have an adaptor. Phew!!!!!!!!! Everything was in perfect allignment. I turned it on and just stood there admiring the smooth operation. I have no vibration at any speed. The lack of noise impressed me very much. I just cut a bunch of trial pieces. Magnificant. I can't express enough how happy i am with this selection. Everything about it is quality. BEST LATHE Had the Jet 2hp 1642 for about a year now and have tried to write a review, maybe because I did not buy online. Well worth the money, very heavy and designed for the professional wood turner. If you like to brag, buy a Oneway, if you like to turn, buy a Jet 2Hp 1642 and save your money to buy nice wood. In my shop, I buy different makes of tools for how well they are built and to have the very best out of them, not the cost. What goes around comes around. I don't understand why no one has written a review of this lathe. Something fishy about that. So here goes: This lathe is the most expensive single tool purchase in my shop. So, you can imagine that I was pretty careful about researching my decision. Unfortunately, I live where I couldn't go and personally look at a selection of lathes. Only one tool store carries the $700.00 version of Delta and I did see in New Mexico a $2000.00 version. The cheap version is absolute crap! I won't go in to details. For the money I would buy a small Vicmarc. The other didn't impress me. I thought it was pretty light weight. In general, I think Delta has lost its edge on the tool market. I would not buy anything from Delta these days. It's mostly made in China. I considered the three big alternatives to Jet-Oneway, Vicmark, General (not International) and Nova. To be honest, if I could have afforded it, I would have folded under review pressure and bought the Oneway. Problem is, the 16" Oneway cost twice as much as the Jet1642 and when I started thinking about how I would use the lathe, I had some serious problems with it. The head is fixed and there are significant costs in setting the lathe up to do outboard turning. The Vicmark pretty much suffers from the same limitations and IMHO is overpriced. The General is a bit old fashioned and expensive. The Nova DVR was a serious contender. I said no because they seem to have thrown all their marketing into DVR technology. The lathe is a bit lightweight (less than 200 pounds) and the $2200.00 price tag is just the start. The lathe isn't long enough to do spindle work and I don't like the idea of having to buy an extension to do basic spindle work (add another $250.00). It does not come with a base (add more dollars and/or work). I really obsessed over this (as you can see). After reading other opinions in online forums, I got the feeling that there is a lot snobbery surrounding the choice of a lathe. The Canadian and Australian lathes seem to dominate market opinion. True, they are not made in Taiwan or China (so they say) but I don't believe that is a valid final criterion anymore. Taiwan has caught up with Japan in many areas of manufacture and is arguably now making quality tools. I believe that tool makers need to think carefully about their designs. I believe Jet has done just that. So here is what I got and how I feel about: I ordered the Jet1642 with a 2HP motor, which is really a 3-phase motor with a converter, and an extra banjo assembly (for spindle turning) with free shipping to my door. The cost was very close to an even $2000.00. The lathe came packed in a single box that really impressed me. The lathe weighs 450lbs and the box only 25lbs. But there was no doubt in my mind that the lathe was undamaged. Jet does an incredible packing job. Everything I ever ordered from Delta came damaged because their packing is absolutely horrible! I took some advice from those forums, and moved the lathe into my shop (my wife was the only help I required) one piece at a time-first the legs, then the bed, then the head and tailstock. Everything cleaned up nice with mineral spirits and bolted together easily. The fit and finish of the lathe is excellent! I compared it to other cast iron tools in my shop made in USA and could not fault any part of the Jet. I had to buy a 220 volt plug before I could turn it on, but when I did the lathe performed perfectly. If there is any vibration at all then it is very slight and exists at around 1500 rpm where the lathe seems to resonate. But I would not really call it vibration. You cannot feel it unless you put your hand directly on the headstock. It isn't really fair of me to mention it. The only reason I do is because it is purely relative, and otherwise, I can't feel a thing when the lathe is running. Tools do not vibrate off the bed when I am working anymore and the lathe is very, very quite. The lathe is heavy! Yeah! The cast iron legs are great! I built a platform and loaded it down with lots of wood blanks, adding about 200 more lbs to the lathe. I checked the indexing and can tell you that the positions are accurate and rock solid. All the locking mechanisms are solid. The tailstock is massive and self ejecting (a feature not mentioned on many lathes). I pushed the tail up to the head with centers installed and the alignment was perfect everywhere on the bed. I am looking forward to pushing the head to the end of the bed and doing some serious outboard turning, and at no extra cost! So, in general, I got everything I wanted. If there is anything I would suggest to Jet it is the following: (1) I would put the reverse switch somewhere where it can't be bumped or lock it. (2) The indexing pin, which screws into the index hole (a nice feature), is too easily lost. It needs to be attached to the lathe. A small issue, but I wouldn't want to have to go through the hassle of ordering another one. I'm going to make a rotating attachment on the end of a chain. (3) The headstock is a bit cumbersome. It interferes with an overhand grip when working close to the spindle. This can be very annoying. But to be fair, this is minor because an overhand grip is unnecessary for spindle turning and it is not an issue for bowl turning. A small note: The 1642 is really a small version of the Powermatic. It is the same design, just smaller. So for about $700.00 more you can upgrade to a 20 inch lathe. I would be more cautious concerning the 24 inch model. It been known to have problems and is designed differently. | |||||||||
