Lathe Stand Question

[torchmd]

I have a lathe stand that came with my PM1130, which is the two columns that go on each side of the lathe under the headstock, and tell end. There is about Le of sheets of steel between the two that are petty flimsy… I have looked at other stands, and they all (most?) seem to come this way, two columns, with a sheet metal piece in the middle. Why do they not have a section in the middle for drawers, or a cabinet, or such? Is there a reason? I have seen people Put their lathe on a tool box, but not one this big. I have been considering building a set of drawers to go between the two cabinets. Curious on everyone’s thoughts.

M.

 

[RJSakowski]

I seem to recall an previous thread where that was done. Adding a back will greatly enhance stability. Addition structure for mounting drawers wil help as well.

I made my own welded stands out structural metal that I have lying around. My lathe stand is made from 3" and 4" channel with the lathe mounted on a piece of 7" channel. A sheet metal skin covers the top. I have tie bars underneath to connect the two ends which have sheet of 3/4" plywood on top for a shelf. I later added a three point suspension to eliminate any twisting from uneven feet. I kept the two outer feet on the tailstock end which are adjusted to lightly touch to avoid any rocking of the stand if I were to change the center of gravity to outside the footprint of the three feet.

On the Level: Further Adventures with the G0602

When I built the stand for my G0602 lathe, I made leveling adjusters for the four legs. They were simple in design; a 1/2-13 bolt and jam nut threaded into a plate at the bottom of each leg. However, in trying to precision level the lathe, I ran into some issues. When adjusting the height...

www.hobby-machinist.com

 

[OTmachine]

My son made a nice rolling rack for his chucks and face plate that lives in that space. Only thing lacking is a tool post mount Skyhook.

 

[StevSmar]

Why do they not have a section in the middle for drawers, or a cabinet, or such? Is there a reason?

So you can “twist” the stand and adjust the lathe bed. If you put a cabinet there make sure the stand can still “twist”

 

[Nesse1]

I think the main reason there isn't more structure, a toolbox or such, between the end pieces is because of cost. The sheet metal creates a more finished appearance, compared to nothing between, and they hold the end pieces in approximately the correct position, which makes it easier to get the lathe positioned on the stand the first time. A nice storage cabinet setup would be far more useful, but obviously, more expensive.

 

[B2]

@Nesse1

between the end pieces is because of cost. The sheet metal creates a more finished appearance, compared to nothing between, and they hold the end pieces in approximately the correct position, which makes it easier to get the lathe positioned on the stand the first time.

I agree, it is all for appearance. I put casters on my PM1440GT before wheeling it into the shop room as there was very limited room to maneuver around a hall way and the door. I then put angle iron braces along the length, at the casters mounts, to hold them fixed relative to each other. I was concerned that rolling it might cause the stand to twist at the mount to the lathe. (However, this fear seems to have been unfounded.) I built all of the parts for the caster system at home and installed them at PM before taking delivery. So I measured everything first at PM. During installation I found that the two stands were not aligned (square), but were slightly twisted relative to each other. So the two long braces did not fit as well as I had hoped. After I pretty much had drilled my final holes and bolted it all together Matt (PM) came by. He mentioned that there was enough play in the lathe to stand bolt holes that I could have just loosened the lathe bolts to the two stands and rotated them a bit. Anyway, it all worked out. For placing the lathe or to work on in in the future I could/can roll it about. Once it was in its final position, I use the adjustable feet to lift it off the casters and leveled it up.

I too had thought about removing the decorative sheet metal and putting a tool cart under there. However, on the PM1440GT there is a safety foot brake lever that runs the length of the lathe that is in the way so I live with the dead space. https://www.precisionmatthews.com/shop/pm-1440gt/ I seldom use it as my VFD conversion has the electronic brake which is pretty fast. So it could be removed. But then it is a safety thing! That foot brake cuts the power, turns on the electronic brake, and applies the mechanical brake all at the same time. The spindle stops almost instantaneously. It is impressive. Also, the debris pan under the lathe is deep and takes up quite a bit of the vertical space. It is also used to feed the cutting oil back to the pump, which is inside the tailstock stand.

By the way, those stands are made from thick sheet metal that has been roll/folded at the vertical corners into a square column and then welded. Likewise, the thicker metal at the top and bottom are welded in place. So while they are strong and pretty nice, they are not perfectly square.

Dave L.