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Laguna Lathes/Nevermind

1674 Views 2 Replies 3 Participants Last post by  pcswoodchick
Boy am I finding a use for the extra space in my new shop.

I have the option to pick up a demo model of the Laguna platinum 18/47 lathe. Usually go for about 2k - this one is $700 with tax and shipping (and still has some of the original warranty). I was wondering if anyone has one of these and can let me in on the pros and cons.

It appears to be a nice machine…with a nice swing 18" and a fairly long bed. The motor is 2hp 220 volt which is not a problem these days….and it comes with a stand and some demo tools (which I will prob give or trade to someone - I have all custom tools that I make/use).

I have had lathes for many years and trust my overall judgement…these are certainly not stubby, robust or
other super top of the market lathes…but they do not have the high price tags that those imports carry…

I'd certainly welcome your imputs…thanks

NEVER MIND ON THIS….AFTER READING SEVERAL REVIEWS OF THE LATHE PRODUCTS FROM LAGUNA AND SEVERAL REPORTS OF THEIR POOR CUSTOMER SERVICE - I HAVE OPTED TO LOOK FOR A USED POWERMATIC 3520
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That is one of the great things about having such a large community here, the diversity of comments and reviews is great.
I will tell you a little something about Laguna Tools. My BF and I bought a wood lathe off of them and before we even ordered it we had some questions that we needed answered. Well to say the least they will tell you anything you want to hear. One of the main questions was about whether or not the centers were true. We were told that they were perfect and when we received the lathe the centers were off by 1/4". When we ordered it we were told that it would ship in 2 days but it took 2 weeks for them to ship it and it took another 2 weeks for it to get here. When I called in they made an excuse that they had to do inventory. Once we discovered the problem with the centers we noticed even more. The headstock just flopped around and wouldn't stay locked(according to laguna that is the way it is supposed to be), the tool rest and tail stock never stayed locked either. The bed wasn't machined right and had high and low points. We had contacted Laguna several times and all we were told was that they lathes they had there didn't do what the one we had done. We had to demand for our money back and finally after three weeks they had contacted us to make arrangements to have it shipped back to them. Thus another nightmare. They had sent a bill of laden to us for the truck driver and after waiting 2 weeks to hear from them I made a phone call. I was told that the company that was supposed to pick it up didn't have the type of truck to haul it so they sent it to another company, then that company said the same and sent it to yet another company. Well at this point I was fed up so I called Laguna again and was hung up on. So I of course called back and was told that they would have it picked up that day. I was late for work because of waiting for the truck to pick it up. Finally, Three days later a truck did show up for the piece of crap this only after I threatened to cut it up into tiny pieces and send it back through the us mail. It took yet another 2 weeks for them to get it back. They even tried to sells us another(not even in their dreams!) After calling for the past few weeks did we get our money back. So after my experience with Laguna tools I wouldn't even recommend them to my worst enemy. It took 3 months for them to make things right after fighting with them! You will not find many reviews for them but when Googled there are a few and they are not good. So everybody please save yourself a nightmare and a headache and pay the extra and get a good lathe or any other tool!
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