Lathe Stand Advice Needed

[projectnut]

Personally, I'd use a bit heavier plate on the ends and raise them up enough to accommodate a chip pan. I made one for my 10 x 56 Seneca Falls machine over 20 years ago and it's still holding up fine. In my case I bolted the sections together rather than weld them because I wasn't sure where the final shop location would be. I wanted something I could disassemble and move myself should I want to relocate the shop.

Here are a couple pictures of the lathe on its stand. Note the end caps where the machine legs are mounted are 3/4" thick.

 

[OTmachine]

Hum. I don't have any I beam sections, but I can get some C channel sections. Those can be welded into the stand for top plate support.

BTW, these are the best part of the stand! Found them on eBay for dirt cheap. I chuckle every time I see them.

View attachment 455836

I would think that if you got some 2 inch C channel. Make some end plates for the C channel with mounting holes drilled in them so that the C channel could be bolted to the tapped upper tubes flush with the underside of the top plates. Could elongate or oversize the mounting holes for adjustments. Would stiffen it up quite a bit.
And yes, I would shorten up the tailstock end, cover the hole with a cap, and add a chip pan and a provision for a back splash.

 

[Nesse1]

I'm a bit confused by the design. Why have one middle leg inside the long top tube, and not both?

Going from 1/4 to 3/8" flat plate isn't going to add much rigidity, and adding a strip over the middle leg won't do much either. Until you get up to something like 3/4" thick plate it bends, flexes and vibrates pretty easily.

Cross bracing under the flat plate will make a much bigger difference. Even 1" square tube spanning the long top tubes would make a world of difference. The challenge is getting them in place perfectly flush with the top of the long top tubes so the top plate is evenly supported and not pulled out of position when welded. Along those lines you would have to limit how much you weld the top plate to anything...1/4" will warp very, very easily so you'll be limited to big tack welds.

The lower-front crossbar is pushed back for body clearance (just in case), thus so is the middle leg. I debated long and hard in my mind about pushing the crossbar back, and when my machinist/welder friend mentioned it, that sealed the design/deal.

I'll pickup the C channels today and plan on attaching them across the frame, and to the bottom of the plates.

The lathes chip tray will sit on top of the stand, sandwiched between the lathe and stand. That's how the stand was originally designed.

 

[Harry Knutz]

The factory stands for a Grizzly 12x36 have some 1/2 inch plates welded to the top of the stand, They are just strips. Maybe you can see them in this pic.

 

[G-ManBart]

The lower-front crossbar is pushed back for body clearance (just in case), thus so is the middle leg. I debated long and hard in my mind about pushing the crossbar back, and when my machinist/welder friend mentioned it, that sealed the design/deal.

I'll pickup the C channels today and plan on attaching them across the frame, and to the bottom of the plates.

The lathes chip tray will sit on top of the stand, sandwiched between the lathe and stand. That's how the stand was originally designed.

Gotcha...I know how long decisions like that can take! A while back I got a great deal on a 36" x 36" x 1" table from a factory that was closing and I love it as a small work table, but when I want to use it for small welding projects the bottom cross brace is in the way. I've been thinking about how to alter it and I've probably spent a year undecided...lol. Part of the problem is the frame is 1/2" thick 4x4" angle iron, so it'll take some effort to trim back.

C channel across the frame will be a massive increase in rigidity. Pretty much anything...square, c-channel, or even round tubing would stiffen the frame so much it won't wiggle a bit. Heck, even angle iron would work in a pinch (but not look as nice)...mount it with the V pointed down and there would be plenty of surface contact with the top plate.

 

[Nesse1]

Added the top plates, with C channels under the mounting bolt locations. Also, added a cross brace on the bottom, to box in the head stock support area.

The overall stand width matches the width of the base of the chip tray, and is 4.5" wider than the original stand. Unfortunately, the mounting holes for the lathe are offset towards the back by 2", so the stand won't be sitting perfectly in the center of the stand, front to back. Hope that won't be a problem. The stand is much stronger than the original sheet metal stand, so I'm thinking it won't. I suppose I could weld up the existing holes, and drill some new ones more towards the front of the stand. The chip tray will then overhang in the front, but that in itself won't be a big problem. Suggestions?

 

[Nesse1]

Oh, and I SUCK as a welder! LOL! Today, I'm going to clean up the welds and repair the most egregiously bad ones. I'm reasonably confident in the strength, mind you, but some of the welds are UGLY!

 

[Harry Knutz]

Oh, and I SUCK as a welder! LOL! Today, I'm going to clean up the welds and repair the most egregiously bad ones. I'm reasonably confident in the strength, mind you, but some of the welds are UGLY!

Looks good Buddy!

 

[Dabbler]

some of the welds are UGLY!

that's what angle grinders are for! Your stand looks great as is. You can modify it later if you find a shortcoming.

I have a 750 lb 12X37 lathe on a stand I made, from 3/8 X 2" angle, and it only has 4 legs; it handles the lathe just fine....

 

[Nesse1]

Anyone have thoughts on the offset business? I'm thinking with the pushed back center leg, that should help with this situation.