Bill Houghton, Winter a-cumin' in, Sebastopol, CA
>If you're going to do that, go for it: find the local steel supply or bolt and nut house, and get a 1" bolt with 8tpi. The larger spindle will reduce chatter.

I ran a cute little lathe I bought for $10 for a few years, but the 1/2" spindle drove me crazy - I couldn't get rid of chatter.