swingaway for PM 3520Btailstock

[Max Taylor]

I am searching for a plan-sketch- photo of a tailstock swingaway for my PM3520b powermatic. Are there any out there? Preshate it, thanky, Max

 

[john lucas]

I believe we put a photo and description in the tips pages of American Woodturner last year sometime. I would have to look to tell you which issue.

 

[john-p]

Swingaway for PM 3520b Tailstock

You can see 2 pictures of a shop-built "swingaway" for a Powermatic 3520b at the pictures section of the Powermatic Lathe Owners forum. Here's the link: http://groups.msn.com/PowermaticLatheOwners/earls.msnw

 

[Max Taylor]

swingaway for tailstock

Thanks, John, but I want to swing the tailstock out of the way, as to the right. I want to stand at the end of the lathe to hollow out my bowls.I dont like leaning over to do that, or stand back too far. Thanks anyway, will keep looking. Max

 

[KEW]

I've seen the same receptor for the tailstock, but on one side of a shop utility cart. Roll the cart up to lathe bed, slide tailstock onto cart bed, and roll cart with tailstock out of the way.
A block and tackle off of the rafters might also work.

Cheers,
Kurt

 

[Ed_McDonnell]

The 3520 tailstock isn't THAT heavy. If you find the tailstock too heavy to remove and carry around, how do you get wood worthy of a 20" swing lathe mounted for turning?

Ed

 

[Jerry Hall]

See Pm 3520 Tips under "Tailstock" for links to several discussions and ideas:
http://www.aawforum.org/vbforum/showthread.php?t=1839

 

[Max Taylor]

swingaway tailstock

This is to Ed Mc Donnel--When you arrive at the ripe old age of 81 you need all the help you can get. My thought was and still is--as I turn the outside of a bowl, swing the tailstock away and finish the turning, whether it is roughing out or finish turning. If you are turning several bowls, you can see how troublesome removing the tailstock would be. By moving to the end of the lathe, you avoid leaning over so much. something else when you are as far down the river as I am. Heck, Oneway is now making a lathe for people that cant stand very long or stand at all. You will understand these problems as time goes by. Just ribbing you a little. okay? Max

 

[john lucas]

I have the powermatic and I'm in really really good shape for 58. Heck I'm in pretty good shape for a 25 year old. However the tailstock is heavy enough if you pick it up the wrong way or have to remove it and install it a bunch of times it can get really burdensome. I'm looking at making some sort of removeable system. I like the small table idea and have been knocking that around for awhile. The biggest problem with that is the table will be top heavy unless you really weight it down.
I rigged up a system for a female friend of mine who complained about the weight. I put a barn door sliding rail on the ceiling and we hooked up a rope block and tackle. She just hooks it up to the block and tackle which is attached to the rail, then slides it out of the way. You might not need the block and tackle, it was cheap and made an easy way to adjust the height to exactly what you need.
I've looked at being able to rotate and then swing the tool rest but that get prettty complicated.

 

[Ed_McDonnell]

Max - I was serious in my question about the wood. Most of the pieces of wood I mount on my 3520 weigh a lot more than the tailstock. Sometimes orders of magnitude more. Today I can move the tailstock easily, but I can foresee a day in the not too distant future where that will no longer be the case. It's always been my assumption that someday (sooner than I'd like) I will have to work with smaller pieces of wood and focus on smaller turnings. I further assumed that I would be downsizing to a smaller lathe at that point. Smaller pieces of equipment and wood to be moved by muscles no longer at their peak.

Maybe I need to rethink that. Hope I'm still able to turn when (if) I hit 80.

Ed

 

[KEW]

I further assumed that I would be downsizing to a smaller lathe at that point.
Ed

If you've gat a 3520, why would you want to get rid of it just because you are not turning heavy pieces?
Regardless of the size work you do, it is a solid reliable lathe with well thought out features. The only reason I can think to downsize the lathe is to avoid lifting that tailstock (which seems to be the biggest detractor from the PM 3520 design)!

When I read your original post, my first thought was "Why would I want to lift that tailstock after I just busted my gut getting the 90 pound blank on the lathe". Sometimes it is the lighter weight after you strained yourself that will cause back problems.

For many the tailstock weight is prohibitive, for the rest of us it is still a nuisance.

 

[Bill Grumbine]

All I can contribute is that I can lift most tailstocks with one hand and no trouble at all, but like Kurt has written, why would if want to if I don't have to! Even with lifting them easily, it is not hard to do it wrong, and that means several days of gratuitous pain for being dumb.

I hope I am still turning when I am 81 - assuming I make it that far! Congratulations Dustpan, on having the strength and the energy to do this stuff!

Bill

 

[john lucas]

I was lifting a heavy log onto the lathe one day and it occured to me that I have freinds in their 70's turning big stuff so I posted question asking how they handle that size wood, I resisted the urge to say "at our age". Anyway they almost always used some sort of hoisting/lifting device. I guess sooner or later I will succumb to the same thing. You can only be Macho for so long and then your body tells you it's time to rethink this attitude.
This summer I decided I would try to ride my bicycle every day the tour de france guys rode. Not as far mind you but 20 out of 23 days. I lasted 9 before I started having knee pain and some neck pains. Apparently my body just won't let me do it more than every other day, and certainly not 120 miles in a little over 4 hours like they do.

 

[George Guadiane]

If you've gat a 3520, why would you want to get rid of it just because you are not turning heavy pieces?
Regardless of the size work you do, it is a solid reliable lathe with well thought out features. The only reason I can think to downsize the lathe is to avoid lifting that tailstock (which seems to be the biggest detractor from the PM 3520 design)!

When I read your original post, my first thought was "Why would I want to lift that tailstock after I just busted my gut getting the 90 pound blank on the lathe". Sometimes it is the lighter weight after you strained yourself that will cause back problems.

For many the tailstock weight is prohibitive, for the rest of us it is still a nuisance.

I think the idea of the original post was to get the tailstock "out of the way," for turning off the end of the lathe. In my mind, the idea of the swing away device is that it: 1) gets the tailstock out of the way so that the turner can hollow any kind of vessel more easily from the end of the lathe which will make the process more comfortable (and probably safer) 2) to save wear and tear on the tailstock AND the turner. 3) to keep the tailstock handy for when it is needed again.
One of the other manufacturers has this setup, looks REALLY cool, and like it would have a lot of benefits. Just because you CAN lift a cow doesn't mean you want to, or that you should.
In looking at the options, either the swing away or the cart look better than the swing down designs as they give closest access to the work and won't get clogged up with shavings as easily.

 

[Vernon Oberle]

Sometimes you just want to get it out of the line of fire so you don't bust your elbow on it or poke a hole in it for forgetting to take out the live center. I have the oneway tailswinger on my 2436 and use it all the time. I still have to take the tail stock off if I use my captured hollowing system, but with arthritis in my lower back I much prefer not to lift it any more than is necessary.

If I want to turn big honking pieces I call my friends to help me mount it.

Verm

 

[Charlie M]

My dad had arthritis, but even in his early 90's, he was still spending most every day out in his shop doing stuff with his machine tools. He spent a lot of his time figuring out in advance how to lift a heavy object or move one of his lathes or mills without help or hurting himself.

Regarding the wood lathe tailstock: I have a Jet 1642 and I'm frequently taking the tailstock off and putting it back on during a turning session. As yet, there is no problem with this, but should I not want to do that anymore, I think I will build a small cart with a matching track that I can just slide the tailstock onto.

Charlie M

 

[robert davis]

This is to Ed Mc Donnel--When you arrive at the ripe old age of 81 you need all the help you can get. My thought was and still is--as I turn the outside of a bowl, swing the tailstock away and finish the turning, whether it is roughing out or finish turning. If you are turning several bowls, you can see how troublesome removing the tailstock would be. By moving to the end of the lathe, you avoid leaning over so much. something else when you are as far down the river as I am. Heck, Oneway is now making a lathe for people that cant stand very long or stand at all. You will understand these problems as time goes by. Just ribbing you a little. okay? Max

ed, being the 81 plus1 i fullt understand. everything is heavy.. almost

 

[Sky]

I remember seeing an article where someone built a rolling tool caddie with wooden "ways" to slide the Pm3520 tailstock onto for easy removel then rolling it away. Put it to the end of lathe bed and slide it back on. Their turning tools were handle up. One of those " I got to make me one of them" things. I just turned 50 (20 with 30 years experience).

 

[Jerry Hall]

My "temporary" solution: A 5 wheeled high adjustable artists chair

Got a hand me down from my wife. Raises up very close to the bed height, is cushioned, tailstock leans against the backrest . It is all stable and rolls easily out of the way. This is just temporary (for the last 3 years,) until I can do a fancy solution that works better. It has the "advantage" of keeping me from sitting down on the job while hollowing. But this solution still requires some lifting. When I can't pass that test I will make up a tilt away. Or maybe a rafter rope with a 30# spring and a hook to lighten the load.