[slingToad]

Thanks for the quick feedback. I did call the Jet distributor. They said the shippers are sometimes harsh. I bet most of the "gunk" is just surface protection, but it does look like the machine has been beat a little during shipment. That’s all probably OK, but on closer examination, I noticed that the hand wheel has a nasty scar. It looks like it was scrapped on the pavement. Can't risk a future bearing problem from that. I plan to send it back to Amazon. I may pick one up from a Woodcraft store. See and touch it first. None of the local box stores sell the lathes around here.

For now, back to the shop smith...and the boat.

Thanks again.