Thanks - the vendor has a trolley they made to move it previously but it is a bit ropey. I’m sleeping on the solution, which will likely involve engine crane, some 18mm ply and the 6” posts I just remembered I have.
- Thread starter Beanwood
- Start date
Mark Davison
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- London
I made a wooden cradle out of 4" x 2" with 4x 200 kg 100mm casters. All bolted together with coach bolts. I had the casters outboard (width ways) with the bottom of the lathe at the same height as the top of the castors. I used 1/2" OSB on the lawn, much cheaper than 18mm ply and plenty strong enough. I used ratched straps to drag it up the ramp into my shed. Same ones I used to strap it into the rented tail lift Luton van.Rigged up a gantry from 4"x2" and 6"x2" to unload in my shed with a cheap chain hoist. They are very top heavy. Worst bit was getting it out of the van onto the tail lift. I moved a Harrison mill with the same cradle. When I have to move the lathe again I'd give serious consideration to dismantling it.
Agroshield
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Lathes are heavy at the headstock end and light at the tailstock end. You can exploit this in moving it, and even enhance it with counterweight (drum of water).
Establish the balance point and mark it on the machine to assist you.
For instance, you can slide more than 50% of the lathe's length out of the shed if you go tailstock first, which could allow the engine crane never to enter the shed.
I'd look at taking as much off as I could, you're going to have to strip it anyway so may as well make it easy for yourself.
What's the lathe base like for putting rollers underneath?
I moved my boxford by putting stainless sheet under it and sliding it on that. Admittedly in the garage, but steel on steel is relatively easy.
What's the lathe base like for putting rollers underneath?
I moved my boxford by putting stainless sheet under it and sliding it on that. Admittedly in the garage, but steel on steel is relatively easy.
Unless you have a counterweight engine crane, the front wheels will need to be ahead of the C of G so I doubt you'd have the reach to try pick up a bantam from the tailstock end with a typical engine crane.
Some photos from moving my (long bed) Mk2 which might give you a bit more context:
The unistrut in the van for transit support (and a load of ratchet straps). I got the seller to fork it in tailstock end first so we could get at the heavy end, but it still needed dragging back out of the doors to fully lift. To load with the crane, you'd have to swing it in and lower while pushing it.
The unistrut was swapped for castors once it was down and it rolled about from there
The mk2 bantam has a thread in the bed for lifting (the mk1 doesn't), but the lifting plate between the ways gives you more options for balancing it by shuffling the carriage and tailstock.
