A few weeks ago I received a new Tormach Duality mini lathe. After spending several hours cleaning the shipping goop off, I finally plugged it in & slowly turned up the RPMs. To my dismay, the lathe had serious vibrations - at all RPMs, but worse at some than others. I called Tormach customer service & after spending an hour or so checking out what I could over the phone, they decided to send me a new replacement. They also said that they would check the new lathe out before sending it. (Don't they do that for every lathe?)

Two weeks later, the new lathe arrived. I moved it to my shelf & this time immediately plugged it in & slowly turned up the revs..... While this new lathe is definitely better that the original (it doesn't vibrate at all rpms), it does vibrate - at approximately 1100 RPMs & again at near max speed (2600 RPMs). Even then the vibration is not as extreme as the original, but I am surprised to feel any vibration at all. I removed the chuck & experienced the same thing.

I called Tormach support once again, and they told me that the vibration is normal for this lathe. When I pointed out that I currently owned 2 (woodworking) lathes & had owned numerous others, which had never shown this kind of vibration, the tech said "well, that lathe is not really very accurate", and that what I was experiencing was indeed normal.

So - Is it normal for the Duality lathe to vibrate - with no load or chuck? Am I just expecting too much? I know the lathe is made in China - likely the same factory that makes the Grizzly, Harbor Freight etc lathes, so it certainly won't perform as well as say Tormach's new CNC lathe - but I do expect to use the lathe to fabricate parts (wood & aluminum) to within .002" tolerance. That's why I bought it.

Also - it it possible that the lathe just needs some tuning & adjustment? If so I'm game to try - anybody have any ideas?

Gerry Kmack
Cave Creek Woodworks
Pagosa Springs, CO