Turncrafter Commander 12 in. Variable Speed Midi Lathe
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Description
The most advanced, powerful and easy to use lathe in its class. Powered by a 1.5hp high performance induction motor (our largest) & an SBC microprocessor developed for automotive applications delivering precision control and lasting reliability. And is now ETL listed and has been tested to nearly 200 safety and performance standards.Includes a heavy duty live tailstock center and two toolrests (6" and 12"), spare drive center and safety goggles. Optional extension bed increases turning length to over 40".
Features include:
- 1.5 hp variable speed motor provides superior power and performance
- SBC microprocessor technology delivers pinpoint control and reliability
- Vary speeds from 500 to 3800 RPM for shaping or finishing with the turn of a knob
- Digital readout lets you work at precise speeds and is easy to read
- 24 indexing positions with spindle locking
- Convenient work light with 18" flex cable makes it easier to see even the most intricate work
- Cast iron base is sturdy, stable and accepts optional extension bed for turning projects to over 40"
- Included heavy duty, ball bearing tailstock center provides great grip with much less stress to avoid splitting
- Tool storage rack keeps chisels and other tools close at hand
- Designed for easy belt access and removal
- Weight: 106 pounds
- 3" Faceplate
Joe K.
Verified Buyer
4.0 star rating
07/01/23
Extra parts.
Review by Joe K. on 1 Jul 2023 review stating Extra parts.
Instructions need to be better. Some parts have no info on where they went. After talking to a few that bought this same lathe They all had this issue with none finding where it went. Bolt/knob/spring thingy goes to left side to keep door shut. Also had loose parts in box (clip washer and screw).
On Turncrafter Commander 12 in. Variable Speed Midi Lathe
Kenneth V.
Verified Buyer
5.0 star rating
01/29/23
Went from a 1/2 hp
Review by Kenneth V. on 29 Jan 2023 review stating Went from a 1/2 hp
Went from a 1/2 hp lathe to this 1 hp. Really like the variable speed. Haven't found anything that I do not like with this lathe. Shipping was fast. Had this about a month so far
On Turncrafter Commander 12 in. Variable Speed Midi Lathe
Happy T.
Verified Buyer
5.0 star rating
12/22/22
Love my lathe!
Review by Happy T. on 22 Dec 2022 review stating Love my lathe!
Love my lathe! When I decided to get it in Jan 22', I had a very strict budget and did quite a bit of research. It's the only only one I found with a full 1HP motor that is still benchtop and has a 12" swing. The light - I noticed in reviews people were complaining about hot bulbs, bulbs that stick out to far or are not bright enough. So, I went with small LED bulb (you know the color changing type with the flat end). These are bright, can be controlled with a remote. It comes with a tool mount that I put to use right away as it also comes with 2 different tool rests (6" and 12"). It also sports the common 1" x 8TPI MT2 Headstock and Tailstock. OH! and, speaking of the Headstock, it has a spindle lock with measured indexing. And as for the Tailstock, it too has measurements, up to 4". Solid Cast Iron makes this heavy enough to hold steady large pieces and will last for many years to come!
On Turncrafter Commander 12 in. Variable Speed Midi Lathe
Happy T.
Verified Buyer
5.0 star rating
12/22/22
Love my lathe!
Review by Happy T. on 22 Dec 2022 review stating Love my lathe!
Love my lathe! When I decided to get it in Jan 22', I had a very strict budget and did quite a bit of research. It's the only only one I found with a full 1HP motor that is still benchtop and has a 12" swing. The light - I noticed in reviews people were complaining about hot bulbs, bulbs that stick out to far or are not bright enough. So, I went with small LED bulb (you know the color changing type with the flat end). These are bright, can be controlled with a remote. It comes with a tool mount that I put to use right away as it also comes with 2 different tool rests (6" and 12"). It also sports the common 1" x 8TPI MT2 Headstock and Tailstock. OH! and, speaking of the Headstock, it has a spindle lock with measured indexing. And as for the Tailstock, it too has measurements, up to 4". Solid Cast Iron makes this heavy enough to hold steady large pieces and will last for many years to come!
On Turncrafter Commander 12 in. Variable Speed Midi Lathe
Happy T.
Verified Buyer
5.0 star rating
12/22/22
Love my lathe!
Review by Happy T. on 22 Dec 2022 review stating Love my lathe!
Love my lathe! When I decided to get it in Jan 22', I had a very strict budget and did quite a bit of research. It's the only only one I found with a full 1HP motor that is still benchtop and has a 12" swing. The light - I noticed in reviews people were complaining about hot bulbs, bulbs that stick out to far or are not bright enough. So, I went with small LED bulb (you know the color changing type with the flat end). These are bright, can be controlled with a remote. It comes with a tool mount that I put to use right away as it also comes with 2 different tool rests (6" and 12"). It also sports the common 1" x 8TPI MT2 Headstock and Tailstock. OH! and, speaking of the Headstock, it has a spindle lock with measured indexing. And as for the Tailstock, it too has measurements, up to 4". Solid Cast Iron makes this heavy enough to hold steady large pieces and will last for many years to come!
On Turncrafter Commander 12 in. Variable Speed Midi Lathe
Happy T.
Verified Buyer
5.0 star rating
12/22/22
Love my lathe!
Review by Happy T. on 22 Dec 2022 review stating Love my lathe!
Love my lathe! When I decided to get it in Jan 22', I had a very strict budget and did quite a bit of research. It's the only only one I found with a full 1HP motor that is still benchtop and has a 12" swing. The light - I noticed in reviews people were complaining about hot bulbs, bulbs that stick out to far or are not bright enough. So, I went with small LED bulb (you know the color changing type with the flat end). These are bright, can be controlled with a remote. It comes with a tool mount that I put to use right away as it also comes with 2 different tool rests (6" and 12"). It also sports the common 1" x 8TPI MT2 Headstock and Tailstock. OH! and, speaking of the Headstock, it has a spindle lock with measured indexing. And as for the Tailstock, it too has measurements, up to 4". Solid Cast Iron makes this heavy enough to hold steady large pieces and will last for many years to come!
On Turncrafter Commander 12 in. Variable Speed Midi Lathe
Everett S.
Verified Buyer
4.0 star rating
08/29/22
Good
Review by Everett S. on 29 Aug 2022 review stating Good
So far I have used it a little bit. And I am liking this machine very much. It is much quieter then the delta midi that I used previously.
On Turncrafter Commander 12 in. Variable Speed Midi Lathe
William S.
Verified Buyer
5.0 star rating
07/24/22
Terrific lathe
Review by William S. on 24 Jul 2022 review stating Terrific lathe
Just started back with woodworking. Lots of research on midis before I picked this lathe. Totally happy. It's working great. Have done a few pens so far, but wanted to try a small bowl also. I surprised myself on first effort. Cut a glued rounds from a piece on 1x6x24 red oak.
On Turncrafter Commander 12 in. Variable Speed Midi Lathe
William S.
Verified Buyer
5.0 star rating
07/24/22
Terrific lathe
Review by William S. on 24 Jul 2022 review stating Terrific lathe
Just started back with woodworking. Lots of research on midis before I picked this lathe. Totally happy. It's working great. Have done a few pens so far, but wanted to try a small bowl also. I surprised myself on first effort. Cut a glued rounds from a piece on 1x6x24 red oak.
On Turncrafter Commander 12 in. Variable Speed Midi Lathe
Aaron B.
Verified Buyer
5.0 star rating
02/17/22
Very impressed
Review by Aaron B. on 17 Feb 2022 review stating Very impressed
I have used this lathe every day In the month since it arrived and I?m very happy with it.
On Turncrafter Commander 12 in. Variable Speed Midi Lathe
David J.
Verified Buyer
4.0 star rating
02/02/22
Good lathe for pens, bowls and plated, VS is a great upgrade.
Review by David J. on 2 Feb 2022 review stating Good lathe for pens, bowls and plated, VS is a great upgrade.
So far, very happy with this lathe. My older 8" mini lathe died after about 10 years. I was looking to upgrade, tired of manually changing belt locations for different speeds. This lathe had mostly what I was looking for, variable speed and larger diameter capacity. I've enjoyed making all kinds of pens and many other projects from Penn State, the last several years have been turning all different kinds of bowls (segmented and economy) and plates of varying sizes.
The lathe came well packaged and in good condition. It did take a couple of weeks to receive order. (I ordered a week or so after New Year's Day and PS was still catching up on big holiday sales according to rep I spoke with, she told me my order would be shipping the following week, it did.
Assembly was pretty straightforward (this wasn't my first lathe assembly). Took some time to get head and tail stock lined up decently, head stock needed a few taps to get lined up, very close now. I mounted the tool caddy behind the headstock, would have been in the way for me if I had mounted near tailstock side. I remove the tailstock quite a bit making bowls and plates for more room to work.
Both the banjo and tailstock slide almost effortlessly, huge improvement over my last lathe. Both tighten down nicely and stay in place as they should.
The variable speed is my favorite feature. When starting larger projects I can run around 350-400rpm until I get them trued up, then just dial up a higher rpm and keep making saw dust.
The lamp for me just gets in the way, maybe if it had a longer neck, I could use it. Probably just going to remove it down the road. I use several flexible LED lamps with magnetic base to put the light right where I need it.
I choose this lathe because of the features listed in the PS description section. I already had a chuck that works with this lathe and quite a few upgraded tool rests for making bowls.
This was my one issue with the lathe, it states that the diameter for the tool rest post is 5/8" which is what all my other tools rest post diameter are. The 2 shipped tool rests and banjo are all 1" diameter. I called and got transferred to a tech that wasn't there but did leave my name and number and described the issue, but no call back. PS does sell a tool rest insert to accommodate a 5/8" diameter rest post. I was hoping to have one shipped to me for free because of the difference in their description of stated diameter, but I needed to get to work right away so I picked one up at Rockler the next day and off to work I went.
Today, a couple of the small rivets that mount the name plate came loose and almost fell out, tapped back in for now, might need some CA glue if they loosen again.
The lathe came well packaged and in good condition. It did take a couple of weeks to receive order. (I ordered a week or so after New Year's Day and PS was still catching up on big holiday sales according to rep I spoke with, she told me my order would be shipping the following week, it did.
Assembly was pretty straightforward (this wasn't my first lathe assembly). Took some time to get head and tail stock lined up decently, head stock needed a few taps to get lined up, very close now. I mounted the tool caddy behind the headstock, would have been in the way for me if I had mounted near tailstock side. I remove the tailstock quite a bit making bowls and plates for more room to work.
Both the banjo and tailstock slide almost effortlessly, huge improvement over my last lathe. Both tighten down nicely and stay in place as they should.
The variable speed is my favorite feature. When starting larger projects I can run around 350-400rpm until I get them trued up, then just dial up a higher rpm and keep making saw dust.
The lamp for me just gets in the way, maybe if it had a longer neck, I could use it. Probably just going to remove it down the road. I use several flexible LED lamps with magnetic base to put the light right where I need it.
I choose this lathe because of the features listed in the PS description section. I already had a chuck that works with this lathe and quite a few upgraded tool rests for making bowls.
This was my one issue with the lathe, it states that the diameter for the tool rest post is 5/8" which is what all my other tools rest post diameter are. The 2 shipped tool rests and banjo are all 1" diameter. I called and got transferred to a tech that wasn't there but did leave my name and number and described the issue, but no call back. PS does sell a tool rest insert to accommodate a 5/8" diameter rest post. I was hoping to have one shipped to me for free because of the difference in their description of stated diameter, but I needed to get to work right away so I picked one up at Rockler the next day and off to work I went.
Today, a couple of the small rivets that mount the name plate came loose and almost fell out, tapped back in for now, might need some CA glue if they loosen again.
On Turncrafter Commander 12 in. Variable Speed Midi Lathe
David J.
Verified Buyer
4.0 star rating
02/02/22
Good lathe for pens, bowls and plated, VS is a great upgrade.
Review by David J. on 2 Feb 2022 review stating Good lathe for pens, bowls and plated, VS is a great upgrade.
So far, very happy with this lathe. My older 8" mini lathe died after about 10 years. I was looking to upgrade, tired of manually changing belt locations for different speeds. This lathe had mostly what I was looking for, variable speed and larger diameter capacity. I've enjoyed making all kinds of pens and many other projects from Penn State, the last several years have been turning all different kinds of bowls (segmented and economy) and plates of varying sizes.
The lathe came well packaged and in good condition. It did take a couple of weeks to receive order. (I ordered a week or so after New Year's Day and PS was still catching up on big holiday sales according to rep I spoke with, she told me my order would be shipping the following week, it did.
Assembly was pretty straightforward (this wasn't my first lathe assembly). Took some time to get head and tail stock lined up decently, head stock needed a few taps to get lined up, very close now. I mounted the tool caddy behind the headstock, would have been in the way for me if I had mounted near tailstock side. I remove the tailstock quite a bit making bowls and plates for more room to work.
Both the banjo and tailstock slide almost effortlessly, huge improvement over my last lathe. Both tighten down nicely and stay in place as they should.
The variable speed is my favorite feature. When starting larger projects I can run around 350-400rpm until I get them trued up, then just dial up a higher rpm and keep making saw dust.
The lamp for me just gets in the way, maybe if it had a longer neck, I could use it. Probably just going to remove it down the road. I use several flexible LED lamps with magnetic base to put the light right where I need it.
I choose this lathe because of the features listed in the PS description section. I already had a chuck that works with this lathe and quite a few upgraded tool rests for making bowls.
This was my one issue with the lathe, it states that the diameter for the tool rest post is 5/8" which is what all my other tools rest post diameter are. The 2 shipped tool rests and banjo are all 1" diameter. I called and got transferred to a tech that wasn't there but did leave my name and number and described the issue, but no call back. PS does sell a tool rest insert to accommodate a 5/8" diameter rest post. I was hoping to have one shipped to me for free because of the difference in their description of stated diameter, but I needed to get to work right away so I picked one up at Rockler the next day and off to work I went.
Today, a couple of the small rivets that mount the name plate came loose and almost fell out, tapped back in for now, might need some CA glue if they loosen again.
The lathe came well packaged and in good condition. It did take a couple of weeks to receive order. (I ordered a week or so after New Year's Day and PS was still catching up on big holiday sales according to rep I spoke with, she told me my order would be shipping the following week, it did.
Assembly was pretty straightforward (this wasn't my first lathe assembly). Took some time to get head and tail stock lined up decently, head stock needed a few taps to get lined up, very close now. I mounted the tool caddy behind the headstock, would have been in the way for me if I had mounted near tailstock side. I remove the tailstock quite a bit making bowls and plates for more room to work.
Both the banjo and tailstock slide almost effortlessly, huge improvement over my last lathe. Both tighten down nicely and stay in place as they should.
The variable speed is my favorite feature. When starting larger projects I can run around 350-400rpm until I get them trued up, then just dial up a higher rpm and keep making saw dust.
The lamp for me just gets in the way, maybe if it had a longer neck, I could use it. Probably just going to remove it down the road. I use several flexible LED lamps with magnetic base to put the light right where I need it.
I choose this lathe because of the features listed in the PS description section. I already had a chuck that works with this lathe and quite a few upgraded tool rests for making bowls.
This was my one issue with the lathe, it states that the diameter for the tool rest post is 5/8" which is what all my other tools rest post diameter are. The 2 shipped tool rests and banjo are all 1" diameter. I called and got transferred to a tech that wasn't there but did leave my name and number and described the issue, but no call back. PS does sell a tool rest insert to accommodate a 5/8" diameter rest post. I was hoping to have one shipped to me for free because of the difference in their description of stated diameter, but I needed to get to work right away so I picked one up at Rockler the next day and off to work I went.
Today, a couple of the small rivets that mount the name plate came loose and almost fell out, tapped back in for now, might need some CA glue if they loosen again.
On Turncrafter Commander 12 in. Variable Speed Midi Lathe
David J.
Verified Buyer
4.0 star rating
02/02/22
Good lathe for pens, bowls and plated, VS is a great upgrade.
Review by David J. on 2 Feb 2022 review stating Good lathe for pens, bowls and plated, VS is a great upgrade.
So far, very happy with this lathe. My older 8" mini lathe died after about 10 years. I was looking to upgrade, tired of manually changing belt locations for different speeds. This lathe had mostly what I was looking for, variable speed and larger diameter capacity. I've enjoyed making all kinds of pens and many other projects from Penn State, the last several years have been turning all different kinds of bowls (segmented and economy) and plates of varying sizes.
The lathe came well packaged and in good condition. It did take a couple of weeks to receive order. (I ordered a week or so after New Year's Day and PS was still catching up on big holiday sales according to rep I spoke with, she told me my order would be shipping the following week, it did.
Assembly was pretty straightforward (this wasn't my first lathe assembly). Took some time to get head and tail stock lined up decently, head stock needed a few taps to get lined up, very close now. I mounted the tool caddy behind the headstock, would have been in the way for me if I had mounted near tailstock side. I remove the tailstock quite a bit making bowls and plates for more room to work.
Both the banjo and tailstock slide almost effortlessly, huge improvement over my last lathe. Both tighten down nicely and stay in place as they should.
The variable speed is my favorite feature. When starting larger projects I can run around 350-400rpm until I get them trued up, then just dial up a higher rpm and keep making saw dust.
The lamp for me just gets in the way, maybe if it had a longer neck, I could use it. Probably just going to remove it down the road. I use several flexible LED lamps with magnetic base to put the light right where I need it.
I choose this lathe because of the features listed in the PS description section. I already had a chuck that works with this lathe and quite a few upgraded tool rests for making bowls.
This was my one issue with the lathe, it states that the diameter for the tool rest post is 5/8" which is what all my other tools rest post diameter are. The 2 shipped tool rests and banjo are all 1" diameter. I called and got transferred to a tech that wasn't there but did leave my name and number and described the issue, but no call back. PS does sell a tool rest insert to accommodate a 5/8" diameter rest post. I was hoping to have one shipped to me for free because of the difference in their description of stated diameter, but I needed to get to work right away so I picked one up at Rockler the next day and off to work I went.
Today, a couple of the small rivets that mount the name plate came loose and almost fell out, tapped back in for now, might need some CA glue if they loosen again.
The lathe came well packaged and in good condition. It did take a couple of weeks to receive order. (I ordered a week or so after New Year's Day and PS was still catching up on big holiday sales according to rep I spoke with, she told me my order would be shipping the following week, it did.
Assembly was pretty straightforward (this wasn't my first lathe assembly). Took some time to get head and tail stock lined up decently, head stock needed a few taps to get lined up, very close now. I mounted the tool caddy behind the headstock, would have been in the way for me if I had mounted near tailstock side. I remove the tailstock quite a bit making bowls and plates for more room to work.
Both the banjo and tailstock slide almost effortlessly, huge improvement over my last lathe. Both tighten down nicely and stay in place as they should.
The variable speed is my favorite feature. When starting larger projects I can run around 350-400rpm until I get them trued up, then just dial up a higher rpm and keep making saw dust.
The lamp for me just gets in the way, maybe if it had a longer neck, I could use it. Probably just going to remove it down the road. I use several flexible LED lamps with magnetic base to put the light right where I need it.
I choose this lathe because of the features listed in the PS description section. I already had a chuck that works with this lathe and quite a few upgraded tool rests for making bowls.
This was my one issue with the lathe, it states that the diameter for the tool rest post is 5/8" which is what all my other tools rest post diameter are. The 2 shipped tool rests and banjo are all 1" diameter. I called and got transferred to a tech that wasn't there but did leave my name and number and described the issue, but no call back. PS does sell a tool rest insert to accommodate a 5/8" diameter rest post. I was hoping to have one shipped to me for free because of the difference in their description of stated diameter, but I needed to get to work right away so I picked one up at Rockler the next day and off to work I went.
Today, a couple of the small rivets that mount the name plate came loose and almost fell out, tapped back in for now, might need some CA glue if they loosen again.
On Turncrafter Commander 12 in. Variable Speed Midi Lathe
David J.
Verified Buyer
4.0 star rating
02/02/22
Good lathe for pens, bowls and plated, VS is a great upgrade.
Review by David J. on 2 Feb 2022 review stating Good lathe for pens, bowls and plated, VS is a great upgrade.
So far, very happy with this lathe. My older 8" mini lathe died after about 10 years. I was looking to upgrade, tired of manually changing belt locations for different speeds. This lathe had mostly what I was looking for, variable speed and larger diameter capacity. I've enjoyed making all kinds of pens and many other projects from Penn State, the last several years have been turning all different kinds of bowls (segmented and economy) and plates of varying sizes.
The lathe came well packaged and in good condition. It did take a couple of weeks to receive order. (I ordered a week or so after New Year's Day and PS was still catching up on big holiday sales according to rep I spoke with, she told me my order would be shipping the following week, it did.
Assembly was pretty straightforward (this wasn't my first lathe assembly). Took some time to get head and tail stock lined up decently, head stock needed a few taps to get lined up, very close now. I mounted the tool caddy behind the headstock, would have been in the way for me if I had mounted near tailstock side. I remove the tailstock quite a bit making bowls and plates for more room to work.
Both the banjo and tailstock slide almost effortlessly, huge improvement over my last lathe. Both tighten down nicely and stay in place as they should.
The variable speed is my favorite feature. When starting larger projects I can run around 350-400rpm until I get them trued up, then just dial up a higher rpm and keep making saw dust.
The lamp for me just gets in the way, maybe if it had a longer neck, I could use it. Probably just going to remove it down the road. I use several flexible LED lamps with magnetic base to put the light right where I need it.
I choose this lathe because of the features listed in the PS description section. I already had a chuck that works with this lathe and quite a few upgraded tool rests for making bowls.
This was my one issue with the lathe, it states that the diameter for the tool rest post is 5/8" which is what all my other tools rest post diameter are. The 2 shipped tool rests and banjo are all 1" diameter. I called and got transferred to a tech that wasn't there but did leave my name and number and described the issue, but no call back. PS does sell a tool rest insert to accommodate a 5/8" diameter rest post. I was hoping to have one shipped to me for free because of the difference in their description of stated diameter, but I needed to get to work right away so I picked one up at Rockler the next day and off to work I went.
Today, a couple of the small rivets that mount the name plate came loose and almost fell out, tapped back in for now, might need some CA glue if they loosen again.
The lathe came well packaged and in good condition. It did take a couple of weeks to receive order. (I ordered a week or so after New Year's Day and PS was still catching up on big holiday sales according to rep I spoke with, she told me my order would be shipping the following week, it did.
Assembly was pretty straightforward (this wasn't my first lathe assembly). Took some time to get head and tail stock lined up decently, head stock needed a few taps to get lined up, very close now. I mounted the tool caddy behind the headstock, would have been in the way for me if I had mounted near tailstock side. I remove the tailstock quite a bit making bowls and plates for more room to work.
Both the banjo and tailstock slide almost effortlessly, huge improvement over my last lathe. Both tighten down nicely and stay in place as they should.
The variable speed is my favorite feature. When starting larger projects I can run around 350-400rpm until I get them trued up, then just dial up a higher rpm and keep making saw dust.
The lamp for me just gets in the way, maybe if it had a longer neck, I could use it. Probably just going to remove it down the road. I use several flexible LED lamps with magnetic base to put the light right where I need it.
I choose this lathe because of the features listed in the PS description section. I already had a chuck that works with this lathe and quite a few upgraded tool rests for making bowls.
This was my one issue with the lathe, it states that the diameter for the tool rest post is 5/8" which is what all my other tools rest post diameter are. The 2 shipped tool rests and banjo are all 1" diameter. I called and got transferred to a tech that wasn't there but did leave my name and number and described the issue, but no call back. PS does sell a tool rest insert to accommodate a 5/8" diameter rest post. I was hoping to have one shipped to me for free because of the difference in their description of stated diameter, but I needed to get to work right away so I picked one up at Rockler the next day and off to work I went.
Today, a couple of the small rivets that mount the name plate came loose and almost fell out, tapped back in for now, might need some CA glue if they loosen again.
On Turncrafter Commander 12 in. Variable Speed Midi Lathe
David J.
Verified Buyer
4.0 star rating
02/02/22
Good lathe for pens, bowls and plated, VS is a great upgrade.
Review by David J. on 2 Feb 2022 review stating Good lathe for pens, bowls and plated, VS is a great upgrade.
So far, very happy with this lathe. My older 8" mini lathe died after about 10 years. I was looking to upgrade, tired of manually changing belt locations for different speeds. This lathe had mostly what I was looking for, variable speed and larger diameter capacity. I've enjoyed making all kinds of pens and many other projects from Penn State, the last several years have been turning all different kinds of bowls (segmented and economy) and plates of varying sizes.
The lathe came well packaged and in good condition. It did take a couple of weeks to receive order. (I ordered a week or so after New Year's Day and PS was still catching up on big holiday sales according to rep I spoke with, she told me my order would be shipping the following week, it did.
Assembly was pretty straightforward (this wasn't my first lathe assembly). Took some time to get head and tail stock lined up decently, head stock needed a few taps to get lined up, very close now. I mounted the tool caddy behind the headstock, would have been in the way for me if I had mounted near tailstock side. I remove the tailstock quite a bit making bowls and plates for more room to work.
Both the banjo and tailstock slide almost effortlessly, huge improvement over my last lathe. Both tighten down nicely and stay in place as they should.
The variable speed is my favorite feature. When starting larger projects I can run around 350-400rpm until I get them trued up, then just dial up a higher rpm and keep making saw dust.
The lamp for me just gets in the way, maybe if it had a longer neck, I could use it. Probably just going to remove it down the road. I use several flexible LED lamps with magnetic base to put the light right where I need it.
I choose this lathe because of the features listed in the PS description section. I already had a chuck that works with this lathe and quite a few upgraded tool rests for making bowls.
This was my one issue with the lathe, it states that the diameter for the tool rest post is 5/8" which is what all my other tools rest post diameter are. The 2 shipped tool rests and banjo are all 1" diameter. I called and got transferred to a tech that wasn't there but did leave my name and number and described the issue, but no call back. PS does sell a tool rest insert to accommodate a 5/8" diameter rest post. I was hoping to have one shipped to me for free because of the difference in their description of stated diameter, but I needed to get to work right away so I picked one up at Rockler the next day and off to work I went.
Today, a couple of the small rivets that mount the name plate came loose and almost fell out, tapped back in for now, might need some CA glue if they loosen again.
The lathe came well packaged and in good condition. It did take a couple of weeks to receive order. (I ordered a week or so after New Year's Day and PS was still catching up on big holiday sales according to rep I spoke with, she told me my order would be shipping the following week, it did.
Assembly was pretty straightforward (this wasn't my first lathe assembly). Took some time to get head and tail stock lined up decently, head stock needed a few taps to get lined up, very close now. I mounted the tool caddy behind the headstock, would have been in the way for me if I had mounted near tailstock side. I remove the tailstock quite a bit making bowls and plates for more room to work.
Both the banjo and tailstock slide almost effortlessly, huge improvement over my last lathe. Both tighten down nicely and stay in place as they should.
The variable speed is my favorite feature. When starting larger projects I can run around 350-400rpm until I get them trued up, then just dial up a higher rpm and keep making saw dust.
The lamp for me just gets in the way, maybe if it had a longer neck, I could use it. Probably just going to remove it down the road. I use several flexible LED lamps with magnetic base to put the light right where I need it.
I choose this lathe because of the features listed in the PS description section. I already had a chuck that works with this lathe and quite a few upgraded tool rests for making bowls.
This was my one issue with the lathe, it states that the diameter for the tool rest post is 5/8" which is what all my other tools rest post diameter are. The 2 shipped tool rests and banjo are all 1" diameter. I called and got transferred to a tech that wasn't there but did leave my name and number and described the issue, but no call back. PS does sell a tool rest insert to accommodate a 5/8" diameter rest post. I was hoping to have one shipped to me for free because of the difference in their description of stated diameter, but I needed to get to work right away so I picked one up at Rockler the next day and off to work I went.
Today, a couple of the small rivets that mount the name plate came loose and almost fell out, tapped back in for now, might need some CA glue if they loosen again.
On Turncrafter Commander 12 in. Variable Speed Midi Lathe
Bruce S.
Verified Buyer
5.0 star rating
04/21/21
A Great Buy
Review by Bruce S. on 21 Apr 2021 review stating A Great Buy
Very nice lathe with power to spare and very well built. It could use a better light like led buts that is the only problem I have found and I use it all day 5 days a week.
On Turncrafter Commander 12 in. Variable Speed Midi Lathe
Robert K.
Verified Buyer
5.0 star rating
11/04/20
Love it!
Review by Robert K. on 4 Nov 2020 review stating Love it!
Love this! Delivery was quick and had it up and running in under an hour. I did a lot of comparison shopping before I bought and I am not sorry!
On Turncrafter Commander 12 in. Variable Speed Midi Lathe
Mike
5.0 star rating
03/09/19
Mike
Review by Mike on 9 Mar 2019 review stating Mike
I have been turning on my 12" VS Commander for about two years now. I was very surprised by the amount of torque it had for a smaller lathe. It has exceeded my expectations in every way for a lathe in this price range. I have had small issues with castings, but support at Penn State has always been friendly, and solved the issues immediately. Thanks for a great product, and great service.
On Turncrafter Commander 12 in. Variable Speed Midi Lathe
Jon M.
5.0 star rating
03/07/19
Speed ranges
Review by Jon M. on 7 Mar 2019 review stating Speed ranges
Byron mentioned that the two speed ranges don't exactly match the ranges in the manual (500-1800 and 950-3800but are close enough. BTW, PSI needs to change the specs in the on-line catalog, they show 1950 instead of 950. You can adjust the ranges if you are confident, competent and careful. Make friends with the PSI tech support engineers with an email or phone conversation - easy to do, they are quite friendly and helpful. There is a set of rheostats on the circuit board that control the motor speed. I have set mine to low-range 250-1600rpm and high range to 450-3500rpm with no load. With those settings I can turn bowls up to about 8" at the high range belt setting, and any spindle turnings I can conceive of (I never turn at over about 3200rpm, and seldom at that - the pre-set 3800 is a "boast" and impractical). With these settings I only need to change the belt position for very large or very unbalanced piece. If you are not comfortable with circuit boards don't try this. If you can't convince the PSI tech support guys to send you a diagram and instructions don't try this. If you are not comfortable with running the lathe (no load) with the control box open on the table don't try this. If you can't follow instructions don't try this. I don't want to be responsible for someone screwing up his/her lathe. I send this to again point out one of the reasons I love PSI, they are fully supportive of their products and will help you with them. As in other reviews I've written I'll point out that I do buy some of my tools from specialty vendors - my M42 bowl gouges, my Lacer skews, my Thompson particle steel detail gouges that I always grind to the same shape - but I buy all my M2 tools that I tend to reshape to the job from PSI. There is no sense in buying a Sorby or some other expensive gouge claimed to be a perfect grind when you can buy the same M2 basic tool from PSI and shape it yourself! The TC VS 12" is the best price/performance lathe on the market the price range of under $2,000 in its size - and part of that is the ability to make the adjustments to it to "customize" it. I speak as one who has been using it for ten years (and turning for twenty).
On Turncrafter Commander 12 in. Variable Speed Midi Lathe
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Specifications
| Specification | Description |
|---|---|
| Horsepower: | 1.5HP |
| Brand: | Turncrafter Commander |
| Volts: | 110V |
| Footprint: | 31" x 9 1/2" |
| Pulley Steps: | 2 |
| Speed (RPM): | (Position A: 500-1800 RPM) (Postion B: 1950-3800 RPM) |
| Headstock Thread: | 1" x 8tpi |
| Headstock Taper: | #2MT |
| Tailstock Taper: | #2MT |
| Distance between Centers: | 18" |
| Swing over Bed: | 12 in. |
| Tool Post Diameter: | 5/8" |
| Extension Bed Available: | Y |
| Category: | Mini and Midi Lathes |
