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lathe location

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greg millert

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I am just getting into turning after having been a furniture builder for 30 years. I've been saving a place in my shop for a lathe and am finally going to move into turning. I intend to put the lathe bed parallel to one of the walls and smack up against the wall. My questions: Is there any reason to move the lathe away from the wall? Is there any reason to have the lathe at an angle to the wall?

As I look at photos in magazines I've noticed that some lathes are flat against the wall and others are set in the middle of the shop.

Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks.

Greg Millert
 
greg millert said:
I am just getting into turning after having been a furniture builder for 30 years. I've been saving a place in my shop for a lathe and am finally going to move into turning. I intend to put the lathe bed parallel to one of the walls and smack up against the wall. My questions: Is there any reason to move the lathe away from the wall? Is there any reason to have the lathe at an angle to the wall?

As I look at photos in magazines I've noticed that some lathes are flat against the wall and others are set in the middle of the shop.

Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks.

Greg Millert
Click to expand...

Greg.....

Parallel to the wall is ok if that's what your space dictates, but if you don't give yourself enough room to clean up, you won't like the arrangement. I suggest you give yourself enough room to comfortably walk around behind the lathe.......and use a broom and dustpan.

I once had my lathe in the center of the shop......and, to tell you the truth, for clean-up purposes, I liked that most of all. Now it's parallel to the wall, because of space considerations.

otis of cologne
 
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I think there are two schools of thought at work here. A lathe generally see's two types of use in the shop. Occasional use for table legs etc. send the lathe to the wall, not as easy to light, a bit awkward to clean up, but being occasional use it works.

Dedicated turners, I think, have the lathe('s) in the middle. It's so you can work the piece from more angles, so your not looking at a wall, soaking it with wet wood, and can light the piece best.
 
Actually, there is another consideration here. Up against the wall leaves more of a chance that should something ever fly off the lathe, it won't bounce off the wall and come back and hit you. DAMHIKT. Mine is in the middle of the floor - for more than the above reason. It is much easier to clean up around it.
 
are wheels the answer

So all of this good advice raises a question--would placing the lathe on a wheeled platform be the answer? The lathe weighs in at over 400 lbs. Would I sacrifice stability? I am 6'3" tall so having the lathe elevated would probably actually help my posture at the lathe.

Greg
 
That would depend on what you are turning. Like others posted, i have my lathe in the middle. Very easy to clean around and you can view pieces from different angles. I totally agree.
On wheels, again would depend on what you are turning. My PM3520 weighs in at over 750#, and I occasionally walk it with an off balanced piece. I wouldn't recommend you put it on the wheeled platform. I wouldn't recommend bolting it to the floor either. It needs to be able to flex if you know what I mean.
 
Mine's against the wall. Space considerations and necessities of use give the center of the shop to my tablesaw. The wall provides me a convenient place to hang the tools and necessities of turning, a stop for the shavings so that I don't have to pick them up off the floor, a place to hang my task lights and storage underneath.

Mind you the lathe sits on a full top so that trash can't get behind it, I have splatterboards of cardboard I can place to protect the wall and my other tools when spinning wet wood, and I have no problem directing two clip floods anywhere I want to illuminate a slashing edge. I also have never felt the need to walk to the other side of a piece rather than turning it on the lathe. If I want a 90 degree view I use the camera or take the chuck off and set the whole thing on a table.

Wheels are not a great idea in any case. The lathe is a frighteningly top-heavy tool, and a bit of irregularity in the floor or an unswept splinter can cause some anxious compensation to get things back upright. If you must move it, call on your friends Jack and Dolly to help you with the work. Casters also keep you from bolting to the floor for stability or even shimming, since the clearances they require to swivel will help the whole thing walk away from your best stabilization efforts. Lathes do not need to flex. You want rigidity.

Building your own stand allows you to set the lathe at whatever height you feel is comfortable. I keep mine at the elbow because I cut sideways, not upward on faceplate work, and over the top and down on spindles. I'll probably never bother, but if I did ever rebuild old handsome is as does here, I'd drop the front of the cabinet back a bit to make my shavings collection bag more efficient. http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d160/GoodOnesGone/Forged-Peel-Long-View.jpg
 
Depending on cleanup facilities, within sweeping distance to the outside door is convenient.

I also vote against wheels or bolting to the floor. Ballast of any type, in closed containers on a lower shelf, can provide a lot of stability and damping. Put the grinder and/or accessory cabinet(s) on wheels. Preserve the option of relocating the lathe, as you discover flaws in the original location(s).

Joe
 
I have the Jet 1642 which weighs 400 lbs plus more with the ballast. For increased height and because the shop floor sometimes has water on it, the feet sit in four treated wood blocks. The headstock end is near the wall and the tailstock end is angled away enough to give me room to turn bowls/hollow forms at the tailstock end (tailstock removed). Lathe tools are racked on the wall within easy reach. A lamp clamped to the wall behind the lathe gives me back lighting on the work piece. A broom can easily reach between lathe and wall for clean up.

If I did not have the rest of the shop filled with other items, I probably would have the lathe further away from the wall with the tools on a roll-around rack.

Charlie M
 
Lathe

I see nothing wrong with mounting it on wheels. I am 6'3" too and needed to get the lathe up higher so I built a wheeled platform for the lathe. Also this helps where I have the lathe normally sitting I need to move it to cut larger stock on the table saw. I know the lathe is top heavy but as you see I spread the wheel base out wider than the feet of the lathe. To me it is still solid but can be moved by one person if the need arises.
http://www.scrollsaws.com/WoodLathe/new_1642_lathe.htm
 
I would say put it in the middle if you can. When I make hollow forms, I walk around and work from the back side. Right now it is somewhat against the wall, but it is out a few feet, just enough so I can walk around and work on the other side. It makes clean up easier too.
Wyatt
 
I keep my lathe away from the wall. It's easier to clean up without having chips and shavings all over the shop. I also use a hollowing rig so I need quite a bit of space to the right of the lathe.

I may be getting a new lathe that will have a sliding headstock or equivalent so I'll need space on that end too. The majority of time in the shop is on the lathe so I build the shop around that.

I'm on my 4th or 5th re-org of the shop. I hope someday I'll get it right. Moving all that stuff around gets to be a big pain.

Burt
 
My lathe is about 30" from wall. On the wall, behind me when I'm working, are the lathe tools and accessories on a 6' wide peg board. This provides access to tools, visability to see visitors enter, a long range for flying vessels, and an easy cleanup situation.

Howard Lang
 
Location, location, location

My lathe is against the wall for convenience and I think cleanup is easier that way. Shavings generally fall under the lathe and against the wall (open studs) and I sweep them up under it till they pile up, making it easy to scoop them out into a large trash bag. If I find myself leaning over the lathe much for hollowing, I stop and remember my headstock rotates, just 10-20 degrees makes everything much easier. It's also up on 3" sled feet for the sake of my back. Tools are racked on the wall, with a few nails to hold faceplates, calipers and all. A gooseneck light attached to the wall points wherever I need the light. Good luck in your choice, you can always change!
 
Lots of good advice, and each of them has merit. I think you need to see what works for you, and don't get fixed in concrete with one layout...expect it to change with time.

My location sort of evolved. When I started sliding the headstock of my 3520b down to the tailstock end, and turning off the end of my lathe, I had to swing the tailstock end out from the wall about 3 feet. That gave me good access to the entire end of the lathe for bowl work. I also needed the headstock to be at least a couple feet from the end wall, so I could insert the knockout bar.

I also have an old Craftsman lathe, that is mounted on a bench, parallel to the wall. I use that primarily for spindles, buffing, and for flattening of segmented disks. So there is no real need to swing it out away from the wall.

Cleaning up is a nuisance, no matter how the lathe is situated, so I wouldn't orient yours based on that alone. The real test is how you use your lathe, and what is comfortable for you.
 
Mine is parallel to the wall but far enough away so my hollowing rig has plenty of room, I can get to the back side if I need to turn from there and when I turn on the outboard end I have room away from the wall.
 
I have removeable rollers I built for my lathe but I'm going to look real hard at the new rollers that Pat Johnson of Birmingham makes. They have a lever that cranks the wheels up when you need to roll it.
I made the wheels for mine for 2 reasons. The biggest was because I was moving and needed a way to move the lathe. I have the Powermatic 3520 with 350lbs of rock on it so it weighs almost a 1000 lbs. My wheels are a pain to install and remove because I have to jack up each end seperately with a hydraulic jack.
The other reason is that I like having it away from the wall for easy clean up and I work from 3 sides of the lathe depending on what I'm turning. I also still do some flat work and the only way I can assemble cabinets and such is to move the lathe over to the wall. There just isn't enough room in my shop.
I had a problem with wheels on the lathe because I'm 5'6" and the lathe is almost too tall sitting on the floor. Pat's wheels only raises the lathe about 3/8" when it's in the non-wheel mode so I think that will work.
 
Someone here a while back gave me a different idea for mobility, and one which has worked exceptionally well for me. Instead of casters, I bought a 1000# hydraulic table at harbor freight. When I want to re-position my Powermatic, I just slide the table under the center of the bed, move the headstock a little to center the weight, and step on the foot pedal.

Seems to be the best of both worlds -- stability for turning and mobility when needed. And for about the price of a good set of casters. I am presently experimenting with a new setup which is not completely to my liking (for me it's more of a question where to put auxiliary tables, grinder, etc than the lathe -- I like it best toward the middle of the room), so later today I'll move it and reorganize my turning area.


Dave
 
thanks to all

This has been a very helpful discussion for me. I have read all of the comments and have reworked my shop so that I now have the room to put the lathe either perpendicular to the wall or at an angle to the wall. Now, if the lathe ever arrives, I'll be in business! Thanks to all who posted.

Greg Millert
 
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