Delta 1440 Lathe Review

by Mike Schwing

The Delta 1440 is my first lathe. The only other lathe I have used is a small Jet for a turning class. I have been aggressively and enthusiastically learning to turn since summer of 2003. I am no stranger to fine power tools, and have a lifetime's worth of experience in automotive and boat building/restoration.

The decision to purchase the Delta 1440 was reached via research and availability, and recommendations from my friends at the local Woodcraft. I had my wallet in mind, and knew that this would be a "starter lathe" for me. I did not want to invest large amounts of dollars in a tool before I was certain I would enjoy the hobby. I am aware of the "you get what you pay for" saying and realize this is the case here, compared to high dollar lathes. I was also enticed by the included starter set of turning tools, of which today I only continue to use the parting tool. Someone on WC asked for this review, and I have complied with that request.

The lathe:

I am unimpressed overall by this lathe, both as a tool and as a lathe. I will have a few good things to say about it, but generally, you will find my review to be negative. As a tool, I feel it is poorly designed and built. The A-frame stand is flimsy, very flimsy. Even a slightly thicker grade of steel would have resulted in a remarkable improvement in stability. The stand has no holes in the feet for bolting it to the floor or adding rubber/leveling feet, to me an unbelievable oversight. Leveling the lathe/stand so all 4 feet sit firmly on the ground is accomplished via loosening up every one of the numerous bolt head screws, and shimmying the entire contraption around, then retightening them.

The lathe shaft is secured by one set of bearings, approximately half way between ends of the shaft. I'm no design engineer but this would seem to be a way to put undue stresses on those bearings and wear them out rather quickly. I would like to see another set located some distance away. (yes, I'm getting what I'm paying for here) The outboard end of the headstock has a hand rotation wheel that wobbles excessively. In fact, after trying to align it – it was properly seated yet wobbly, removing it entirely resulted in a smoother lathe operation. About once per month the variable speed mechanism suddenly becomes nearly impossible to operate. Removing the cover and lubricating the parts involved corrects this problem.

The lathe motor itself is secured to the main housing poorly – two small 13mm head bolts are all that secure this heavy motor to the main housing. Tighter, heavier attachments would, in my mind, yield a smoother performing machine. It also, to me, seems a poor balance decision, in a machine where balance is so critical, to hang such a heavy motor directly off of a small headstock such a distance from the axis of spindle rotation.

The tailstock slips. Despite my best attempts at correcting the situation, the only way I have been able to maintain a satisfactory hold down on the tailstock is to let the bed of the lathe rust. Even with this, normal hand pressure on the locking lever will not produce a tailstock that stays put – occasionally a hammer is needed.

The lathe has a mechanically variable speed control, governed by preset stops/detents. The detents are embedded in a nylon cover that restrains a pin on the speed control lever. Several of these nylon detents have become damaged through normal use and are no longer usable – of course in the speed range most often used. I would consider this a very poor choice of material for this part. Yes, warranty coverage will replace this part.

My 1440 has two speeds at which the lathe vibrates, regardless of headstock position or whether anything is mounted. I have replaced belts, tightened/retightened everything yet the problem remains. No, those are not the same unusable speeds as a result of the broken detents.

I would also like the lowest speed setting to be a little bit lower. The top end setting is useful to me for buffing, but I'd be terrified to turn something that fast.

The starter switch is mounted in an incredibly awkward, and slightly dangerous position above the headstock. This requires the operator to reach over the spinning workpiece in order to turn off the lathe, or move around the spinning workpiece, putting the body of the operator in direct line with the spinning object. My starter switch literally blew itself to pieces by simply flipping the switch to the on position. The lathe turned on, the switch self-destructed, and blew apart all over the room. I had to unplug the lathe to stop it. Delta sent me a replacement but by that time I had installed a better switch on my own.

What are the positive points about the 1440 lathe? I like the toolrest that came with the lathe; it is extremely versatile and only deflects if used at the extreme edges. A regular filing of the contact edges keeps the tool moving smoothly along the rest. Occasionally the shear/finishing cut with the Ellsworth grind will cause the tool handle to bump into the release handle, but other than that I like the toolrest. Removal/replacement of the toolrest and tailstock is a snap. I'm a short man (5'5") and I'd like the lathe axis to sit a bit lower, but this is a problem for me with all tools, the lathe is built around a person of more normal height.

For small bowls, up to 10" in diameter and relatively thin (3-4"), I find the lathe to be perfectly acceptable. I am able to turn larger diameter work pieces IF I can true them at the lowest speed before the lathe walks too far away. If the low speed setting were lower I would be able to turn a wider range of wider diameter objects, as once they are trued the lathe spins OK. I am not a spindle turner and have never needed more than 30" of bed to turn a table leg occasionally. The small amount of spindle work I have done makes me think this lathe is perfectly suited to a furniture maker/spindle turner.

Realizing that this is a mid-sized, relatively inexpensive lathe, I keep my grandiose ideas in check when searching for turning lumber, but its mostly impossible to mount an irregular shaped or out of balance blank if it has any heft or size to it. I seem to be gravitating towards turning irregular and odd shaped designs, so this lathe is going to wear out its welcome pretty quickly in my home.

Can many of these problems/defects mentioned above be corrected? Sure they can, and many of them I have worked on myself. I don't consider a good tool one that needs a lot of re-design and repair to do what it was supposed to in the first place. The vibrations – even with nothing mounted, are totally unacceptable, yet I fear even a total headstock replacement would yield identical results.

This was a good introductory lathe for learning. I don't think it is a well built/designed tool. It taught me a lot about what to look for in my second, more permanent lathe. It also allowed me to learn techniques for carefully mounting/balancing/centering objects to a more precise degree than would have been necessary with a larger, more stable lathe. Additionally, it allowed me to discover that I enjoyed turning enough to make it a real hobby, without spending thousands of dollars first, and allowed me to turn at least a few of the large objects I have a desire for. Would I buy it again or recommend it to a friend? No.

Tug Fork Bob adds: I agree with much of what has been said, but I have had a couple of other problems:

1. The live center that came with the lathe has a center with a cup that was not sharp. it has a flat approx. 1/16 wide. Like Mike, this is my first lathe and I didn't know any better until recently so I still have it. In all honesty, It hasn't caused a problem but I mostly just turn bowls.
2. The index pin does not accurately position the spindle rotation--The original index pin ass'y allowed about 1/16" rotational "wiggle on the perimeter of the 8" faceplate. If anyone intends to rig up a router to cut splines on spindles you will have to modify the mechanism. Delta promptly sent out a replacement but it was no better.
3. By far the worst problem has been an irritating low speed rattle. New drive belts, replacement motor drive pulley, and finally an entirely new headstock /motor assembly has not resolved the problem. I found that initially there is little noise, but with use it gets steadily worse.