Ok - what do you mean when you say a deep head stock and is it good or bad.
And that link you posted show 7k, which is more that the Griz?
I'm way out of my pay grade here and have never chambered a barrel so please take this as just an enthusiastic guy a bit ahead of where you are in the process, expounding. As always I welcome correction if I say something wrong here; just trying to learn from the masters, not pretend to be one.
The chambering method popularized by Gritters uses a cathead or spider (4-screw chuck) on the outboard end of the spindle to adjust the axial position of the barrel relative to the axis of rotation of the spindle, to put the throat of the new chamber AND a point a few inches further down the bore into perfect (sic) concentricity with the spindle.
That may or may not mean that the muzzle is actually centered in the spindle. It's different than working between centers in that way.
If the headstock is too "deep" to allow this, IE the barrel muzzle is buried inside the headstock somewhere, then you've got a problem. For instance with a 24" barrel, I'm needing to literally reach about 8" into a 2" pipe (the spindle) to reach that muzzle! And, then I need to be able to very precisely adjust the position of that muzzle and then, lock everything in place. That's what my tool does.
The Grizzly lathe you are looking at specifically has a short headstock and even comes with that outboard spider installed by the factory. I needed a bigger lathe for non-gunsmithing work, and big iron has other advantages, so I've been working to find ways to use my machine through the headstock.
As to price, I paid $4200 for my Webb.... not $7900. One reason I was so hot to snag it.
But, it had the downside you hear about with buying used "American Iron", meaning it had a past life as a machine someone bought to do production on (most likely). My Webb is definitely a used machine. It appears to have been spared actual abuse and to have been well-lubricated when it was in hard use; the ways are in great shape and everything is tight and smooth.
I think a great case for buying new Chinese can be made. I was vaguely planning on buying the big Griz gunsmithing lathe, the G0509 16x40. Then you've got a NEW machine to start with (duh).... No worries about past use and abuse. However, it's my opinion that something like my lathe, or several other USA or Euro machines, are fundamentally FAR superior designs
and executions than modern Chinese stuff. My lathe just exudes quality manufacturing by people who really, really cared and were trying really hard. For that matter so does my 10x54 Taiwanese mill! To this point- the Grizzly mill I had for a while, exuded none of that for what it's worth. The fit and finish were pretty sloppy and in general it seemed thrown together.
With all that said, the type of work you are talking about doing, hobbyist gunsmithing, is easy duty for a lathe. Plus, most of it is working from a fixed position on the ways, and you don't need to turn long shafts to high precision, nor hog metal in direct competition with the shop across the street.... I would just reiterate what I said earlier, which is to check spindle runout very soon after purchase, and be prepared to send it back if it exceeds .000X". I don't know what an allowable "X" should be. I only say this because of what a guy I know fairly well related to me recently about the very lathe you are buying. But yours might be fine!
All the best, and I hope I haven't tromped on your thread.
