looking at a midi lathe

I have a WL18 with between centres of 900 mm lathe but am considering getting a midi lathe. I generally turn pens, small spindle work, the odd bowl/platter. My current lathe takes up a lot of space and I don't really have the need for a lathe that big except for one-off turnings. I'm strongly considering getting a midi lathe with variable speed. I would need to be able to extend the bed every now and would need a swing of at least 12 inches so I can turn plates of 12 inches or less. My budget is around the $1000 mark and I think the contenders are the Jet 1220/1221, Teknatool Nova Comet II Midi Lathe and Gary Pye's midi lathe. I think the Jet is probably leading as it has a reverse and has a speed setting which goes from 200 to over 4000 rpm which would pretty much see me out for what I need to do. Are there any others I should look at and would I be disappointed with the Jet?