This is a telling observation. If I read it with a blunt attitude, it suggests you think it's not the small size, it's the low quality.
Well, exactly. If Schaublin made a similar lathe it would cost $5-10k, I suppose. Even the much, much smaller Proxxon 250 is $2350.
For those that can't afford more quality, it becomes a test of will and patience to satisfy their needs.
And it's a nasty surprise for those who expect a tool - like the cordless drill or chop saw - to 'work right out of the box'. If a person doesn't enjoy 'fettle and fix up' projects, the 7x isn't for them. On the 7x forums people joke all the time that the majority of projects they make are parts and mods for their 7x lathes!
If I accept the view you seem to be expressing, then I would prolly revise my recommendations to
@Chris Cramer and tell him to go as slow as he can and go with a shallower depth of cut (say 10 thou) and a finer feed rate of say 5 thou per rev) and then adjust faster or slower based on how it cuts.
The tool I ground for him should work at those speeds N feeds. But if I had it to do over, I might have ground a smaller tip radius onto it to go with the lower feeds and I'd have left it full height.
Yes, those recommendations make sense. The stock .004"/rev feed on Chris' lathe is in the range you suggest.
An alternative would be sharp (not 'for steel') carbide tooling which can handle higher speed. but it's likely that the HSS tool you sent to
@Chris Cramer is better quality, so it should stand up to a bit of abuse.
I don't have the stock 250W motor on my 7x any more. If I did (or if I still had my 7x14 Vevor, identical to Chris') and if I had a piece of 1" SS, I would do the experiments myself and report back here.
But I don't have larger SS bar, and I now have a better (800W brushless) motor on my 7x lathe.
My lathe also has quie a few 'mods' to improve rigidity.