Turncrafter - TCLVSKIT Variable Speed Conversion Kit (Rating: 2)

A few years ago, I got a great deal on a 10in Jet lathe that was on closeout. I wanted variable speed, but the deal was too good to pass up. I also knew this kit from Penn State Industries existed and thought I could do the conversion in the future and still have less invested than buying a new variable speed lathe. During the recent Mallet Swap, I was doing a lot of turning and finally decided to spring for this kit and was looking forward to not switching belts near as much.

Issue #1, the Minor Issue

When the kit arrived, I opened the instructions and started the install when the first issue came up. First step in the instructions is to disassemble the single speed motor from your lathe. OK, that's easy enough. I took off the motor and switches and set them aside. Second step is to align the new mounting plate with the old one and mark the mounting holes. That step includes the following:

"For best results, turn a round spindle to fit snug in the shaft hole in Item A (Part #48) then turn a 5/8" step to match the hole in your Jet or Delta plate."

Umm, you just had me disassemble the lathe, how am I supposed to turn a spindle to help align the plates? OK, I'll kind of accept that I should have read all the instructions before starting, but that is still a pretty blatant flaw in the instructions that should be fixed. This kit has been around for a long time, you'd think they would have corrected that by now. Luckily, I had the tools necessary to properly align the plates and get them drilled accurately.

Issue #2, the Aggravating Issue

The rest of the motor installation went off fine, then it came time to add the switch. Second issue. This kit is advertised as being for "Turncrafter, Jet and Delta lathes" Problem is that the switch isn't designed in a way to make it possible to mount to a Jet lathe. There is absolutely no safe way to do it. After messing around for a while, I finally mounted the switch to the cabinet my lathe sits on. Not a perfect solution, but figured I could deal with it.

Issue #3, the Big Issue

After making sure everything was aligned and ready, I hit the switch and it spun up just fine. Tried the dial and the variable speed was working, so put a small piece of scrap about 1 inch square on the lathe and proceeded to turn it as a test. Everything seemed to be working, so I moved on to a 2-1/2 inch square piece of red oak to make a prototype for the mallet swap. Turned the speed down to do roughing, started a cut with one of my carbide tools and the workpiece stopped! Thinking maybe the spur center had slipped, I checked everything over. No sign of slipping, hmmm. Tried again and the workpiece stopped again. What the . . . . ? The original motor is a 1/2HP, the kit motor is rated at 1/2HP, why the lack of power?

Tried taking lighter cuts and finally, after a few more stoppages, got the blank roughed out. Went ahead and turned a mallet out of the oak and any time I tried taking much of a cut at all, the motor really bogged down. Next thing I tried was to do the head for a two piece mallet out of some apricot from the smoking wood pile. Same issues with bogging down and stopping. Then I tried to drill out the center with a 1-3/8 Forstner bit.

Before the conversion, I had done a two piece mallet with an Osage Orange head and had no issues drilling with the factory motor. Now, trying to do the same operation with the variable speed kit installed was a nightmare. Advancing the bit at all caused the motor to bog down and stop. I did the Osage head in about 15 minutes, while after an hour and half with the variable speed kit in a smaller blank of softer wood, I still wasn't done, so gave up and called it a night. Finished the next day when I had a bit more patience.

The two mallets on the left in this pic show what I was working on. The Osage and walnut one on the left was done with the factory setup and no issues. The smaller one right next to it is the apricot and soft maple that was causing the variable speed setup to bog down so much.



Issue #4, the Safety Issue

At this point, I was ready to chuck it in, but decided to try one more time by turning the handle for the mallet, so switched the belt to the fastest pulley. When I went to lever the motor down to tighten the belt, the new plate and motor are just enough off that I ran out of adjustment room before the belt was properly tightened. There was no way to lock the motor down because the plate went clear off the screw. Tried several things and finally had enough. I took the variable speed kit off, reinstalled the factory motor, contacted Penn State Industries and asked for a return authorization for this waste of money.

Just to prove to myself it was the motor and not another issue, like a dull bit, after switching back to the factory single speed setup I drilled out a chunk of red oak with the same Forstner bit. No issues.

The Conclusion, too many Issues

So ends the review for the kit. If you are replacing a 1/3HP single speed setup and only turn pens, it might be fine. The kit does convert your lathe to variable speed, which is why it gets two stars instead of one. If, however, you ever want to do a bowl, mallet or anything larger, it just doesn't have the power. Add to that the fact that on a Jet lathe anyways, the switch isn't truly compatible and the mounting plate cannot properly tension the belt on every pulley step and there is no way I can recommend this to another woodworker.

Penn State Industries Customer Service, the Final Issue

I wish the story ended with returning the kit and getting a prompt refund. When I contacted Penn State about the return authorization, the customer service rep was more than a bit snippy. OK, maybe they were having a bad day. After shipping the kit back, I wrote a detailed review on the Penn State website and submitted it, giving the kit the same two star rating I did here. Try to find that review on their site. They have never allowed it to post so others can read it.

Finally, after four weeks of no refund, I called customer service to see what was going on and got attitude from the CS rep right from the get go when they answered the phone, before I even had a chance to ask what was going on. I politely asked for the status of my refund and after getting the sale and return info, the CS rep informed me that they had never received any return. I informed her that UPS tracking showed it delivered on June 29. She put me on hold, finally coming back on to ask if she could call back once the warehouse checked on the status. I gave her my cell # and hung up. Never got a call. Finally got the refund today in my PayPal, but no call.

I can possibly handle a poor product, but censoring a review to keep ratings up and a piss poor customer service experience means I will not be shopping with Penn State Industries any more.