Debian,
I wasn't trying to compare size for size, but value for money.
My mill needed nothing doing to it by the way, it was ready to go from the off. All that needed to be done was level up and grind down a handle spring, as it was too strong for my feeble muscles to compress and hold.
What I was really trying to get over, is that machines are treated the same as designer labels.
Got a name for itself, certain people would pay for it, even if it was garbage.
Now to upset a lot of diehards.
Myford is a very good example. People crave for them, and boast that it is the best small lathe available, and pay silly money to own one. Why?
I have owned a Myford, OK it was an old one, and it did the job, but only like thousands of other lathes on the market. Why should I pay 5 times more than I paid for my lathe, and end up with a machine that was designed for the 60's & 70's and has improved very little since. The company are resting on past laurels, and hoping that people won't realise how far behind the times their lathe really is.
When you get to the Hardinge and Monarch, then yes, they are great machines, but are limited to who can afford both the cost of the machine and spares, and workshop space.
To me, a good machine is a good machine no matter what name it has, and I have found my cheapo far eastern machines are good.
I had some trouble with the original lathe I had delivered, but that was completely sorted by the importers, and now to me, it is the best machine I have ever owned, and wouldn't swap it for a designer lathe if it was offered to me.
So why the extra cost of a machine that will machine no better than the one I have got? I am sure that most people would prefer value for money rather than the so called designer machines.
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