Where can I obtain a small hobby lathe for rod building work, either on line or from some mail order compNY

The Jet/Delta/Frisch wood lathes in the $200 to $300 range are great values in small wood lathes. They'll allow to turn cork, reel seat inserts and grips with ease. For metal working, the Taig is a tremendous value in a highly accurate and very capable machine at an extremely reasonable price.

You can also look at the Grizzy hobby lathe which uses a power drill for a turning source. It's very inexpensive and is fine for cork and some other turning work.

Penn State Industries, Grizzly, most wood working shops. Toolcrib.com and many others all sell these lathes. Anglers Workshop has the Taig.

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My vote would be for the Penn State Idustries Turncrafter Pro with extension bed for $175. Go to Photo page above and type in lathes to see pictures of mine. Love it.
Mike

I use the Jet mini lathe and really like it very much. Right now at www.woodturnerscatalog.com, they have it for $199.00.

I vote for the Grizzly Hobby Lathe, at least for turning cork. I bought mine including the drill when they were on sale for a total of less than $75, reg price is less than $100. Works great, and is light enough to be portable, I take mine outside to use (as do many others), so the only cleanup of cork dust is a quick whoosh with the leaf blower.