Lathe platform

[KaneH]

As some of you may have seen I’ve recently acquired a large Drummond lathe which will be housed in a single garage at my house. As space is limited I would like to be able to make mobile should I ever need to shift it on my own.

So, question is has anyone built a set of permanent machine skates/wheeled platform that there equipment sits on? If so pictures would be appreciated.

Cheers

Kane

 

[eLuSiVeMiTe]

As some of you may have seen I’ve recently acquired a large Drummond lathe which will be housed in a single garage at my house. As space is limited I would like to be able to make mobile should I ever need to shift it on my own.

So, question is has anyone built a set of permanent machine skates/wheeled platform that there equipment sits on? If so pictures would be appreciated.

Cheers

Kane

I'm tempted to make stands suitable to slide a pallet truck under. Either that or wheels with machine feet that can be would down to keep it stable.

 

[KaneH]

That was my thought as well with the machine feet. Build a frame out of angle, infill the void with 2-3 layers of 18mm ply/osb and fit some castors to it. Threaded rod connecting nuts welded to the angle at 4-6 locations and some machine feet so that you could lift and level off of the wheels when in use and drop it whenever it needed moving.

 

[Pete.]

Couple of thoughts:

1. Pedestal and leg style lathes like this need to be set up (aka levelling) to work properly. If it's not fixed and levelled it'll almost certainly have some twist in the bed.
2. You said in the other thread that the motor is remote-mounted (common for this age machine). How will this work if the machine is mobile?

 

[KaneH]

With the above I should be able to accurately level the base using the machine feet. Probably more so than just being placed directly onto the concrete slab of the garage I would think. Do you think that mounting it onto a similar frame as described above will be robust enough to prevent any flex?

The motor will be bolted to the floor so it won’t be able to move as I don’t intend on being able to use the lathe in various positions. The main reason for me wanting it to be movable is so it’s not in the way when the plumber is out servicing the boiler. Only happens once a year I know but having to try and shift the lathe unassisted if it was placed directly onto the ground could be a pain

 

[eLuSiVeMiTe]

With the above I should be able to accurately level the base using the machine feet. Probably more so than just being placed directly onto the concrete slab of the garage I would think. Do you think that mounting it onto a similar frame as described above will be robust enough to prevent any flex?

The motor will be bolted to the floor so it won’t be able to move as I don’t intend on being able to use the lathe in various positions. The main reason for me wanting it to be movable is so it’s not in the way when the plumber is out servicing the boiler. Only happens once a year I know but having to try and shift the lathe unassisted if it was placed directly onto the ground could be a pain

Maybe Make a frame for lifting with machine feet fitted and level the frame. Shim and secure the lathe feet to this level.. Mount your motor to the frame too to make moving it an easy task in the future.?

 

[Pete.]

With the above I should be able to accurately level the base using the machine feet. Probably more so than just being placed directly onto the concrete slab of the garage I would think. Do you think that mounting it onto a similar frame as described above will be robust enough to prevent any flex?

Nope, the frame will flex with the contour of the floor no matter how robust you make it. You can fit levelling jacks to the frame to lift it off the wheels.

The lathe will still work on wheels it just won't do fine work, might be prone to chatter, WILL suffer accelerated wear and will probably turn tapered parts.

 

[KaneH]

Sorry Pete I mustn’t have been clear. I intend on levelling the frame as required when using the machine feet so the wheels won’t be in contact with the floor. When I want to move it I’ll wind up the feet so the wheels are taking the weight then drag it out.

Mount your motor to the frame too to make moving it an easy task in the future.?

The motor assembly weighs a fair chunk on its own so I think it will be best leaving it separate. Took three of us to lift it off the back of he trailer! Would have been ideal if I could have as then it’s a single item to worry about when moving

 

[Barlidge]

Just a random though, would it be possible to make a working platform that could wheel in over the lathe to allow access to the boiler?

 

[desmo11225]

Hi KaneH
Ours is a woodworking workshop , we have now mounted all our machines onto heavy duty mobile bases, so band saws can be moved to saw long sections , planers, thicknessers, and other heavy machines can be moved to suit any type of work .
There are plenty of bases on the internet , look for sales, bargains , they are not cheap but allow you to lift, move to where you want and lower your lathe down to level it .
Have a look round it may work out just as cheap as making them . Good luck desmo11225

 

[500e]

Friend has a big wood band saw over 7Ft high solid cast frame, we made 2 small steel wheels on an axle that fitted on the rear giving about 1/2inch clearance, at the front we made a frame with a hole, the front wheels are on a dolly with a pivot pin to go in the hole.
Locate the pivot in the hole pull down on the handle the dolly \wheels (works like a cam) lifting front then as long as you hold handle down the machine is mobile, works well & simple
Regarding doing it with a lathe it only requires a small out of level to throw the accuracy

 

[eLuSiVeMiTe]

Friend has a big wood band saw over 7Ft high solid cast frame, we made 2 small steel wheels on an axle that fitted on the rear giving about 1/2inch clearance, at the front we made a frame with a hole, the front wheels are on a dolly with a spike to go in the hole.
Locate the spike\ pivot in the hole pull down on the handle the dolly \wheels (works like a cam) lifting front then as long as you hold handle down the machine is mobile, works well & simple
Regarding doing it with a lathe it only requires a small out of level to throw the accuracy

That's what I'm planning for the bandsaw I picked up today purely so I can pull it out from the bench to access motor and change blade. Seen it done before and works well.

 

[frank horton]

all my machines are on frames with adjustable feet for leveling......all, including my Full size Bridgeport are moved on a pallet truck.......
even the benches can be moved this way.....
the smaller machines are on 16mm threaded legs but the big stuff get 20 or 24mm studding for legs depending what off-cuts are around....
all the legs have an extra nut just to lock things up....

 

[KaneH]

What steel have you made your frames out of Frank? Angle, box, other? Sounds like it’s going to be the best solution for me although I’ll need to incorporate a set of wheels as I’ve no access to a pallet truck, nor the space to store one if I wanted.

 

[MattF]

Regarding doing it with a lathe it only requires a small out of level to throw the accuracy

Pedant mode. It's not the levelness itself which matters, but making sure there's no bed twist.

 

[500e]

Meant out of level overall not sloping