Getting a small lathe to Brazil

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Scotty

Scotty

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Joined
Aug 27, 2007
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328
Location
Blacksburg, VA, USA.
I have been asked to check on buying a small lathe to take to Brazil. It will be used in Sao Sabastion, a small town in the Amazon. Probably will be used to make ornaments and small bowls, and possibly a few pens. I use a Rikon and love it, but wonder about the hassles of taking one there. There is a possibility of buying something in Manous rather than taking one from here. Any ideas? Don't want to start a debate on best small lathes either, but would like thoughts on brands, weights, etc. Too many details and possibilities for me to work out by myself. Thanks for your ideas.
 
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You may want to check with some of the companies like grizzly and see who will ship it directly to Brazil. The wieght of a lathe is more than the limit for an international flight. There has to be someone in Brazil that sells tools and could get one a lot cheaper than going from here. I have 2 Rikons and they are very forgiving to shock and being moved.
 
For small lathes, it's hard to beat the Carbatec. I've used ones that my friends owned--- very quiet and fantastic for small turnings. They're variable speed and have enough power for what you mention as long as you aren't trying to swing a 6" thick bowl blank.

BTW I don't recall what swing they have over the bed, but double check it to make sure it is big enough for the bowls you want to turn.

I am friends with the founder of a small, very well run orphanage in Mexico and I've been working on taking them some turning items, for making bowls out of mesquite. They have several very talented teenagers that will make outstanding woodturners. The biggest hurdle I have to jump is getting the money for $1,000 worth of equipment, but then again I haven't asked the church yet either. Our church is great, so I don't think it will be all that difficult.

Getting stuff into Mexico is quite easy legally. I think Brazil is going to be a touch trickier, though I can't say for sure.

Let us know how it turns out.
 
If it is possible, take the tail stock off and the motor also. Wrap them in bubble wrap and put them inside a suitcase stuffed with a pillow. Put the main part of the lathe in its own well protected plastic trunk like tool box purchased from HD or Lowes. This way, you may pay for an extra piece of luggage but the weight should come in under the 50 pound limit - unless you are going business/first class in which you may get 70 pounds, depending on the airline.

We have church volunteers come to Japan (and other parts of SE Asia) often and bring things like this. Get to the airlines counter plenty early so that the luggage has time to be hand inspected as it goes through the inspection process. It helps to have a note or detailed label on the machine as to what it is and its purpose.
 
redfishsc said:
For small lathes, it's hard to beat the Carbatec. I've used ones that my friends owned--- very quiet and fantastic for small turnings. They're variable speed and have enough power for what you mention as long as you aren't trying to swing a 6" thick bowl blank......
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Being in an out-of-the-way place, would seem to dictate the selection of a sturdy and uncompllicated machine. I think the choice of a non-VS model would avoid any problems with the more complicated VS mechanism. If you decide to use a mini lathe of some sort, you should be sure to purchase some spare belts as it is very likely that finding replacements for the flat belts locally will probably be impossible.

It would also probably be prudent to purchase a set of spare headstock bearings to go along with the lathe. They are not very expensive and would likely be difficult to find locally.

I guess you have already checked and determined that there is a source for 120 volt 60 cycle electricity.
 
Scotty,

I have a three shop machines on there way from England via air. The cost is high but very fast, the machines are shipping into JFK airport and I have to pick them up there. If you want to PM me I will be glad to answer any questions.
 
Just contact Customs at the local airport and ask them.

As for the lathes be sure to determine the electrical requirements well in advance of purchase. I am sure the Brazilian consulate will be able to confirm this. They may be able to help you with the details of importing as well. Ask politely and tell them it is going to a charitable organization and that may open other doors for you.
 
Japan is a split 50 cycle (Tokyo and north) / 60 cycle (Nagoya/Osaka and west) country. On my US machines, the 50 versus 60 cycles didn't make a difference on my wood working tools purchased in the US and brought over. If you have a timer that is geared to the "cycles," that will sure make a difference.

I purchased the PSI VS motor and controller back in March and brought it back to Japan with me. I added it onto my Rikon lathe in April and it is working fine at 100V 60 cycle. I don't know how it would work on the 50 cycle of Tokyo though.

In Japan, we are on a 100/200 volt and when I brought my USA microwave 23 years ago, it did not work well on 100 volts versus the US 115/120. I still have it and with a large step up transformer, it works well.

I have found that 120V machines work fairly well overall on 100V. But 100V machines and electronics don't do as well on 115/120 voltages.
 
Thanks everyone for your help. I do know that they have 120V power, not sure about 50 vs 60 cycle. I will check on that. I would much prefer to try to buy one in Manous when we get there. We will be heavy on luggage anyway, we are taking a lot of vitamins and medical supplies also. Thanks again for your help.
 
Scotty, Romi industries is a Brazilian company that produces quite a bit of machine tools, I've worked with, and on their equipment, they may make wood working machinery as well, this would eliminate things like import and transport expense. Their machinery isn't too bad,
 
Fred_erick said:
Just contact Customs at the local airport and ask them.

As for the lathes be sure to determine the electrical requirements well in advance of purchase. I am sure the Brazilian consulate will be able to confirm this. They may be able to help you with the details of importing as well. Ask politely and tell them it is going to a charitable organization and that may open other doors for you.
Click to expand...

Don't count on it.. Brazilian customs is very tough to deal with.

At my last job, we had a wrong piece put into a box and shipped to Sao Paulo... we discovered the error, called the customer in Brazil, who called customs in Sao Paulo..but the piece had already been entered into the Brazilian customs system and cleared... most countries have a method to reverse entries and allow correction of materials, etc... Brazil customs would NOT allow us to re-export the wrong material... we wound up buying the piece we sent to Brazil by mistake, plus had to pay for the shipment of the correct piece, including the customs duties, which Brazil collected twice.

At another company, we had a shipment of a $6000 paper cutting machine that was shipped into Brazil.. also Sao Paulo, and the machine was "lost" in the warehouse and was never recovered... probably delivered out the back door without benefit of payment to the shipper. The crate for this machine was 6' x 4' x 6' tall.
 
I actually have a friend who has built several treadle lathes and we have been talking about that. That Sherline lathe looks neat, will keep that in mind for myself. We are having someone look for a lathe in Manaus now. I feel certain that one can be found there that would work for us. Thanks for all your help. Will take pics and post when I get back.
 
Just an update on an older topic. We did end up taking a Penn State lathe in with us, no problems getting it through the airport and customs. I worked with four teenage boys for a week, teaching them to turn and scroll. They were excited about turning. Their friends couldn't believe that they made their pens. Will now have to send pen kits every couple of months to keep them supplied.
 

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