Looking to buy a mono cutterhead (also, how much should I expect to pay?)

[TipiumGrove]

Hello, I’m searching for a mono cutterhead. Something like a Presto 1-C or 1-D would be lovely. It would be great to find one that won’t need to be immediately rebuilt but I’m not expecting a guarantee from the seller, as I know that all available options are older than my grandmother. For an incredible moment I got really excited reading about the OpCode 1-E Presto clone, but then I kept reading.. It sounds like that would’ve been the ideal option if it was available, a modern equivalent to the Prestos, built by an expert who actually seemed to be trying to keep his prices low, but alas, I think it was too good to be true. I really don’t want to send a ton of cash to some Ebay rando and then just hope for the best, but so far I’ve not found a ton of other options.. Certainly seems to be a seller’s market without much straightforward, readily-available honest information, but I realized a long time ago that this endeavor would require patience. Constant, life-draining, soul-sapping patience, lol. If anyone would like to weigh in and let me know how much I should expect to pay for something reliable with good frequency response, I’d appreciate the guidance. Any guidance whatsoever would be appreciated, for that matter. Thanks for looking!
-Sean

[leemichael]

Why not a stereo head? What’s your lathe and budget?

[TipiumGrove]

I’m not necessarily ruling out a stereo head, I just assumed that with mono heads being close to unobtainable, a stereo head will be that much worse. Also, my lathe is not currently set up with heat and suction, which I’ve heard is necessary for stereo heads. (Maybe not all of them? I’m unsure about that.) My lathe is a Rek-o-Kut Challenger with the M-12 overhead. I have amplifiers that will work for both high-impedance and low-impedance heads. The lathe currently has the stock head on it, which actually does still function. I haven’t set a definite budget yet because I don’t really have any reference point. That is to say, I have no idea what my budget SHOULD be. I’ve found it difficult to find prices for this equipment listed anywhere online, except for EBay, which sucks. Once I’m able to figure out how much I’ll need to spend in order to get my hands on a decent cutterhead, I’ll do whatever I need to do to make it work. For the sake of moving the conversation forward, how much do you think I should plan to spend in order to get my hands on a reliable Presto 1-D or 1-C? I’m not asking for a quote, just a ballpark estimate or even a range of prices would be helpful.

[markrob]

Hi,

Have you tried driving the stock head from a higher powered modern amp? You should be able to push the response a bit with more power. You still have to make sure you keep the average power low to keep from smoking the head, but moving to an high power amp and more drastic high frequency EQ than the stock Challenger amp can do, you can likely squeeze a bit more performance out of the stock head. You might also look at replacing the stock magnets with modern neodymium units. The stock magnets might have lost some field strength and are in need of re-charging and the modern rare earth types have more oomph to start.

Fela Borbone had a great post on doing this type of mod:

https://www.lathetrolls.com/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=5222&p=32159&hilit=Magnets#p32159

Have you look at the JJW Harris Presto clone? I think he has them available or is very close.

https://www.lathetrolls.com/viewtopic.php?f=15&t=9381

And don't forget Mike Dixon at Record Lathe Parts for vetted Presto heads

https://www.recordlatheparts.com/

None of this will be cheap based on the current market.

Mark

[leemichael]

Have a look here, new to the market, loud plug and play stereo heads compatible with Prestos and small lathes.

https://www.instagram.com/p/C5G4WfRsbLh/?igsh=MXg3dWZ1ZDdzaHB6dg==

[sameal]

Have a look here, new to the market, loud plug and play stereo heads compatible with Prestos and small lathes.

https://www.instagram.com/p/C5G4WfRsbLh/?igsh=MXg3dWZ1ZDdzaHB6dg==

Not to go too far off topic, but ive tried to find info on these heads. Is there a webpage?

There's a facebook page where i seen these, but my last post was immediately scrubbed for absolutely no reason and i left the group

OP, what head was supplied with the rek-o?

[leemichael]

Have a look here, new to the market, loud plug and play stereo heads compatible with Prestos and small lathes.

https://www.instagram.com/p/C5G4WfRsbLh/?igsh=MXg3dWZ1ZDdzaHB6dg==

Not to go too far off topic, but ive tried to find info on these heads. Is there a webpage?

There's a facebook page where i seen these, but my last post was immediately scrubbed for absolutely no reason and i left the group

OP, what head was supplied with the rek-o?

What kind of info do you need?
What did you post for it to get deleted?

Message me and I can supply any info that you require

[TipiumGrove]

The Rek-o-Kut came with the lay-down head, so I’m preparing to make a bunch of modifications in order to accommodate an upgraded head. I was already planning to do the dashpot/counterweight mod and a hand crank mod. I know that at one point in time, Jed was selling kits for these mods, and I’ve been trying to figure out whether that’s still the case. In addition to those two mods I’m now also planning to install the cutterhead mount, once I’ve either found one ready-made that I can purchase, or once I’ve managed to design and fabricate one. I’m not certain what all my options are just yet, but the path is becoming a bit clearer. Does it sound like I’m forgetting about anything?

That stereo head looks fantastic, but I couldn’t find any info about where or how I could actually purchase it. Does the company (or whatever) have a normal website, or does anyone here have more contact info for them? And I’m definitely going to check out that Presto clone from JJW Harris, I hadn’t heard about that prior to now. I had been kinda surprised that I hadn’t found a company (or even just an individual) producing clones of Presto mono cutterheads, maybe I just haven’t looked hard enough yet. Thanks for help, everybody!

[jjwharris]

I'm doing some final tests (and changes...jeeze...) to my mono head. Aiming to have it available before mid-year.

https://lathetrolls.com/viewtopic.php?p=63193#p63193

I haven't updated the thread in awhile, but something will be coming soon.

There is a signup list for notifications on my website.

[Alfred]

Hi, I have one if you are interested
https://www.lathetrolls.com/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=10137