In 2015 I bought a Nova Galaxi 1644 lathe as a Beta tester. I did not like 3 things about it (1) the quill operated backwards. They sent out new quills to all buyers of that lathe. (2) The indexing sucked- you had to use a flashlight to see inside the 1/2" diameter window to see what notch you were in. I fixed that my self with a new 72 hole EXTERIOR index wheel that I built off the detents on the wheel inside the cover. and (3) I did not like the touch switches especially in that the off and on switches were in 2 different locations. I asked the guys in Florida if I they could tell me the wires to hook up a SPDT momentary contact switch for off and on and they said it could not be done. In 2021 The touch switches failed to work and Teknatool sent me a whole new switch box with all the electronics in it. This year the on switch took 3 hits to work . I took the old switch box and pulled out the touch switches and tried to make a wiring diagram to put in mechanical switches but I did not know if I had the right wires to the right switches. I called my Teknatool rep in Florida to verify the wiring and he said they were bankrupt and gave me the address of Teknatool in New Zealand. I sent a letter and my diagram to New Zealand. The engineer gave me a list of what prong in the switch box went to what switch. I bought mechanical momentary contact switches and a SPDT toggle for Off and ON. I made a box for the switches and wired them according to the list from the engineer. I mounted the revised switch box on the lathe and it works perfect- ONE SWITCH FOR OFF AND ON !! Some photos of the progress below: Here is the 72 hole index wheel with a spring loaded plunger to lock in a location: Here is the way I have been using the second switch box with tape to keep the dust out of the touch switches and also a shot of the new vinyl touch switch panel they sent me: Here is the box I made to house the new switches: Here is the inside of the switch box showing the prongs and how I wired it:
Here is the revised switch box mounted on the lathe and running: Now I can't wait for a lathe project to enjoy the new arrangement!!!!!!!!!..............Cheers, Jim
Cheers, Jim ........................ Variety is the spice of life...............Learn something new every day
Great job on that indexer JJ. I use my laser to cut indexing holes, but haven't come up with a satisfactory method for attaching to my DVR... hate the thought of drilling into it.
If your first cut is too short... Take the second cut from the longer end... LBD
A great post on Craftisian about this wood lathe. The Nova lathe is only available from one supplier here in the Netherlands. But I always thought and still think it's a beautiful lathe. On one hand, I like the technology, but what if I need new parts? When choosing my machines, I often check whether the parts used are remanufactured. That's why I chose the Laguna Revo. This lathe also has shortcomings, and it's also difficult to obtain here. In short, the future will show whether I made the right choice.
Thank you all for the nice comments. Hi Bruce, I have run a lot of lathes and every other one had the on and off in one switch and now I have it on this one.
Hi Dutchy. I had a buddy on Lumberjocks from Croatia who had a lathe from Australia and the pulley cracked on the Reeves drive and he could not get parts sent there. He sent me a photo of the pulley and the size shown with his caliper. It was very close to the one I had on the lathe from Harbor Freight. I ordered the part and sent it to him and it fit perfect. The lathes were probably made in the same factory in China and had different names on them. My Nova came from Peoples Republic Of China!!
Cheers, Jim ........................ Variety is the spice of life...............Learn something new every day
Hi Dutchy. I had a buddy on Lumberjocks from Croatia who had a lathe from Australia and the pulley cracked on the Reeves drive and he could not get parts sent there. He sent me a photo of the pulley and the size shown with his caliper. It was very close to the one I had on the lathe from Harbor Freight. I ordered the part and sent it to him and it fit perfect. The lathes were probably made in the same factory in China and had different names on them. My Nova came from Peoples Republic Of China!!
If my machine breaks down, I know where to find you😉 . In the past, Gr8hunter has sometimes sent me parts from Toys & Joys. Wooden wheels and axle pegs are very hard to come by there.
