Any of you have a Rikon mini? What are your opinions of it? How much does it weight? Is it portable enough to take out sometimes to a work bench outside. Which attachments should a rod builder get for it> Thanks

See the posts made on the Rikon day before yesterday.

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Bear in mind that a good mini lathe is not a lightweight piece of equipment. I have a Jet that weighs about 70 pounds and would not want to have to carry it outside to use it, especially since I use it nearly every day.

Attachments: depends on what you plan to use it for. At a minimum you should have a 4-jaw scroll chuck(Penn State has some good prices). If you plan on using Andy Dear's mandrels, you also need a 60 degree live center-most wood lathes come with a live center but they are rarely 60 degrees. Those are the only two accessories that you really need. As far as tools are concerned, again it depends on what you want to do with it. If you're only working cork, you can get by with nothing more than sandpaper. If you want to do reel seat inserts, that's a whole different issue.

Well thats the second time Rikon's come up recently...being in the market for something a little more capable for turning than a rodbuilding lathe, I'll have to look further into Rikon. 1/2HP standard motor already seems like a great feature.

Gerry, thanks for accessory info with the 4 jaw and live center.

Mike,
email me if you want any other information.

Would like to take a look at this Rikon mimi lathe.Who sell it??

I don't turn but a few grips and my Grizzly Hobby lathe handles that just fine.
However just in case I should decide to fenture out I just might put the Rikon
on my wish list. Thanks <<<DON>>>

I know Woodcraft sells it. I'm sure there are others selling it also, but since my Jet is less than 2 years old, I'm not in the market for a new one so I haven't looked.

One means of taking it outside is to mount the lathe on a sturdy bench fitted with power tool capable rolling casters. Larry Tysinger has done this on his 1224 OneWay and we'd be talking closer to 200lbs there, I think. Obviously you can't do much with this on stairs, but if you have a level surface for making the move outside, and perhaps a concrete patio or driveway then it is a nice option.

Do make sure the casters will securely lock in place once the machine has been moved to where you want it.

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