# Laguna Platinum Series 18/47 Lathe



## Ottis

Congrats on the new lathe, I have been kicking around the idea of upgrading my old Rockwell lathe. It's old, but it has been a good one (HEAVY), but it does not have all the fine adjustments that newer ones have. Not to mention every time I need to change speed, I have to take off the covers and change the belt position.

Have you had much time to use it yet ? I would be very interested in what you think after you have turned a few pieces.


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## trifern

Thanks for the review.


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## TimScoville

Trifern,

Thanks. I have been admiring your work. Saw your review on the Grizzly, whic I was also looking at. They are just up the road from me in Bellingham and theJet I could have gotten refurbed for at least $200 off list from the Jet/powermatic dealeer down in Auburn. But opted for the Laguna. So far, so good. Haven't had much time to use it though. It should be something I can grow into, or so I hope.

Don,

Thanks. Will post some stuff after my latest remodel at home. Hoping to do some natural edge bowls, small boxes with threads, and some segmented bowls. Later, some hollow forms like Trifern does.

Best to to you both,

Tim


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## a1Jim

Glad you got a new lathe but I have had much more positive results from grizzly including far superior customer service than my expensive laguna band saw.


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## Karson

Congratulations on the new Lathe.


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## TimScoville

I like Grizzly, especially being so close to me. Even so, I would've preferred the Jet but mostly for look and feel. I have a bunch of reburbed Jet tools that I have been very satisfied with. I've gotten tremendous service there too. I love my Grizzly 14" bandsaw w/riser block, probably my most used shop power tool.

I've recently read some reviews of the Laguna over at SawmillCreek.org and most were not very kind. Thankfully, that has not been my experience thus far.


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## MosesLakeDennis

Might anyone have an opinion on the Laguna 18/47 wood lathe? Or on Laguna regarding costomer satisfaction record. Thinking of buying one and gathering data. Dennis


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## Ottis

*Dennis*,
I can not say a thing about Laguna as I do not own any of their tools and have had no dealings with them. But here lately there have been a few reviews and topics covering their customer service…and none have been very flattering.

I would do some research here and at other sites to confirm this for yourself.


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## Sawmillnc

Pass..Customer service= horrible


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## Paperep

I purchased a Laguna 18/47 a couple of months ago. I came across an ad of theirs on craigslist where they were selling some floor models for $1495. The showroom is close to my home so I went for a look. The representative told me they were also running a special for the month on the lathe for $1550 for a brand new one in the crate. I took him up on this offer.

The lathe was easy to set up. I have been turning on it for a few months now and am pretty satisfied. It is nice and heavy. It holds heavier logs with relative ease. I had a minor issue with the faceplate not being true. I took it back and they happily gave me a new one. The unit does just what it is supposed to and the price is right. The units are made in China.

The only issue I have is that the micro speed adjustment is touchy. The knob has very little tension so it is difficult to turn it slightly. If you have a heavier piece it is a little difficult to dial the speed just right on the first try. It seems like they could make that knob function a little better.


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## pcswoodchick

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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## TimScoville

An update. This lathe hasn't been running for years after probably a total less than ten hours of run time. I never got it looked at since there was always something(s) hotter to deal with and I had another, smaller lathe to help me through. Phone calls to Laguna attempting to troubleshoot was unsatisfactory. It made the move with me from WA to AZ but still not working. A local tool service declined to take this on due to Laguna's reputation for horrible service and replacement parts. He shared a couple of examples. Not sure where to go from here but space in my garage/shop is valuable here and keeping a large, non-working tool around to collect dust isn't going to cut it for long. Laguna has discontinued this years ago so I'll have to research my options further. Any constructive comments are welcome.


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