I mentioned it briefly last night at the meeting, but the Rikon that is on sale right now at Woodcraft is one of the best deals going for a new starter lathe in my opinion. I believe they are on sale til the end of the month. They were a steal a couple years ago when they would put them on sale for $200, but all the woodworking tools went up a bunch in 2007. Don't know about the free shipping Anna was talking about for the club lathes we are purchasing, but according to their website, there was only a $12.99 shipping fee. Unfortunately there aren't any Woodcraft stores withing easy driving distance from Chas. You might luck out on a good deal on a used lathe, I got a great deal on mine a couple years ago. I wouldn't count on it. I've been keeping an eye on the used market for a couple months, and haven't really run across much.
Good luck.