CQ9325 10x18" (250x450mm) Chinese bench lathe

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CQ9325 10 x 18" (250x450mm) metal lathe Small cheap Asian bench lathe review

Specifications

Maintenance

Modifications

The CQ9325 is a compact 10" Chinese bench lathe which directly competes with the popular 9x20 models on price and features.
After doing my research on new and secondhand metal lathes, and looking at the wide range of Asian bench lathes currently available, I decided to purchased a new CQ9325. I wanted a lathe that was cheap, reasonably compact, could handle small to medium sized jobs, easily machine steel, was quiet, and ready to go. I also wanted one strong enough to easily mill on the lathe. At $1,095 AUS it looked like good value - stand not included. The lathe came with metric/imperial calibration, and the usual accessories. These included a set of change gears for metric/imperial thread cutting, two fixed centres, a travelling steady, a set of external chuck jaws, a basic tool kit, a set of light duty tungsten tipped cutting tools, a certificate of accuracy, and a very basic instruction manual. The lathe is badged as a Paramount BLC - 1016. Quite a few companies in mainland China manufacture this model lathe - these include Haian Machinery Manufacturing Co, and Focus Machine Co Ltd. In some countries it's sold with a power cross slide as the CQ9325A, and a longer bed

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CQ9325 10x18" (250x450mm) Chinese bench lathe

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version (550 mm) of this is also available as the CQ9325B. In the Netherlands the lathe is sold as the HBM450. Current Australian versions use the European style blue and grey paint scheme.

What I liked about this lathe

10 inch swing - just right, and biggest in it's price range. 5 inch wide bed - quite solid, Large carriage for the size of the lathe, Quick change gearbox to vary the feed rate - a must have feature, Roller bearing headstock - long term accuracy, 1.05 inch (26mm) spindle bore - a decent size, Number 3 Morse tailstock - much heavier than the usual No. 2's in this price range, Cam lock tailstock - worth it's weight in gold, Reverse tumbler - very useful feature not available on most small lathes, Imperial leadscrew - allows cutting an extensive range of imperial and metric threads, Leadscrew covers - seriously protect the leadscrew and half nut from wear, Smooth and light controls with very little stiction, Standard "V" type drive belts - strong, quiet, and easily obtainable, Compact dimensions - won't take over the workshop, Price - considering all the features, it's excellent.

Features to consider when buying a lathe

Here's a short video on what to watch out for.

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CQ9325 10x18" (250x450mm) Chinese bench lathe

http://users.picknowl.com.au/~gloaming_agnet/cq9325rev.html Generated by Foxit PDF Creator Foxit Software http://www.foxitsoftware.com For evaluation only.

And here's some other information, including useful links. Given the lack of reliable owner reviews on cheap Asian lathes, and the varied range of comments on the web, I decided to put up a critical assessment of my lathe. I've owned this unit for about 10 years. Distance between centres The literature and product code suggest this is a 10x16" lathe. It's actually slightly larger at 18" (450 mm) between centres. The bed is fairly modest in length compared to the swing, but suits my requirements as most work is done by the headstock. Calibration/scale markings Typical small Asian lathe - not much consistency here, but that seems to be the norm. Leadscrew - imperial Carriage handwheel - metric Cross slide - imperial Top slide - imperial and metric Tailstock - imperial (large numbered graduations) and metric. The Headstock

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CQ9325 10x18" (250x450mm) Chinese bench lathe

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The headstock is compact and neatly laid out, with all drive components safely hidden away. The front panel has a speed and thread pitch table. which covers metric and imperial sizes comprehensively. It appears to be accurate. The lever for the reverse tumbler gears is on the left. This changes the direction of feed by changing the direction of rotation of the leadscrew. Necessary for turning left hand threads, it's also handy for cutting away from the chuck. Absent on most low end oriental lathes, manufacturers are starting to realise the value of this feature and including it in some new models. The lever has positive engagement, but does not include a detent for neutral position. The gear train can be split in the drive enclosure to reduce wear when milling. The Allen headed locking bolt for the gear train adjustment needs a thicker spacer between the arm and the headstock, so that it pulls up squarely. To the right are the on/off/emergency stop buttons and a switch for motor direction. This rather lightweight switch could be better located. It's a bit close when using the standard chuck key. The power switch is a magnetic activator type, and automatically resets to "off" if the power supply is interrupted. A good safety feature.

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11/08/2013 00:44

CQ9325 10x18" (250x450mm) Chinese bench lathe

http://users.picknowl.com.au/~gloaming_agnet/cq9325rev.html Generated by Foxit PDF Creator Foxit Software http://www.foxitsoftware.com For evaluation only.

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