Alternate Tool Rest Design Ideas: Got any?

[Tom Overthere]

I'm considering buying a "well-worn and rusted" Powermatic 45 lathe (to hold me until I can build bigger).

There is no tailstock, and there's no tool rest.

I don't like the way many tool rest banjos are so thick, tending to eat up a lot a lathe's swing. So sinse I have to invent one anyway, I'm trying to come up with an alternative design based on one of these:

a) A tool rest that stands on the floor and can be easily shifted/slid around in relation to the bed, or

b) A loooong tool rest--the length of the bed--that can be moved in toward the bed or away from the bed easily. Imagine bolting this to the side of the bed...maybe...


I searched the forums but found nothing. If anybody has pics or descriptions of "alternative tool rests", please do tell.

Thanks, Tom

[curtis rosche]

when i get home i will post a picture if i have time of mine. the original banjo on my toolrest broke many owners before me. so what was made was a peice of 1/4'' plate steel with a slot milled into it. a bolt goes through the slot and into another peice of plate under the bed. a pipe like peice is welded to the one end of the plate for the toolrest post to go into.

[Ryan Baker]

The banjo shouldn't be much of a restriction to the turning diameter unless you are doing something like tall, full-diameter cylinders or something. And you can buy replacement banjos. But that's not what you asked.

There are floor-stands you can buy off the shelf, for a lot of money (like the Powermatic one) -- or you can build one from heavy pipe. That's probably not too convenient to use though.

I think your "b" idea sounds interesting. Can't say I have ever seen anything like that, but it doesn't sound like it would be too difficult to fabricate something.

Good luck. It would be interesting to see what you end up with.

[Dick Strauss]

Tom,
Look at the Vega banjos...the old ones are two pieces of 3/4" thick x 1" wide steel welded side by side with a gap to accommodate the through bolts (and T-nut in your case). Then the riser portion that holds the tool post is a 2" diameter cylinder with a 1.5" hole for a 1.5" post (9" high for a 24" lathe). To make yours a standard size, I'd take 1.5" stock and drill a 1" hole for the tool post. This design only reduces the swing from 24" to 22" with the banjo directly underneath the piece (3/4" thick stock + 1/4" bolt head = 1" less in radius...but 2" less in diameter).

[Tom Overthere]

Thanks for your replies. I see your points, but am probably not going to be able to make use of them.

This'll be my first lathe, so please allow me a couple of neophyte questions...like THIS ONE:

Q. Is the tool rest always positioned at the centerline of the work piece? In other words, is the top of the tool rest always aligned with the imaginary line that runs from the center of the headstock spindle to the center of the tailstock spindle?

I ask in relation to my "long tool rest" Option B as described above. IF there's never a real need to move the tool rest above or below the workpiece centerline, and if I'll only need to move the tool rest in and out relative to the bed, then Option B might be an elegant (and cheap) solution. It could probably be made from some small-diameter black pipe and a bit o' imagination...

[Ben Brown27]

You will need to change the vertical position of the tool rest so you can change the angle of approach on your tools. Tools vary in thickness, shape and grind, so you'll approach the wood from several different directions.

[Tom Overthere]

Thanks, Ben.
So it sounds like Option B would have to get a lot more sophisticated, to allow for vertical adjustment - at two ends. Uh oh.

I just thought of another potential issue. Imagine turning a conical shape. If the long rest runs parallel to the bed, the tool rest would be quite close the work piece's large-diameter end, and quite far from the work piece's small-diameter end - unless it were made to swivel at both ends...

So both ends would need to move vertically, and horizontally independent of one another. That sounds like ball joints, and now the design's just getting way out of hand! :eek: :D

Sounds like some FLOOR-STANDING design is likely...

[Reed Gray]

The longest tool rest I have seen on a standard lathe is about 16 inches, but most are 6 to 12 inches. There are 24 inch long ones that go onto 2 banjos. I do prefer flat bar stock to rounded bar stock, and the harder the metal is, the better. Mostly it reduces friction on your tools as you move them across the tool rest. As far as height goes, I am always moving mine up and down, seldom in the same spot, but being able to adjust it is a plus. You can aim your tool up or down, but I prefer to raise or lower the tool rest.
robo hippy

[Wally Dickerman]

I can tell you from experience that a floor stand tool rest is a pain in the butt. Always in the way and often difficult to get your tool rest in the correct position

Without a tailstock, why would you want a long toolrest? You won't be able to turn spindles between centers.

Without a tool rest to place in front of a piece how are you going to hollow bowls?

IMO, you are going to have get a banjo, either from PM or another lathe manufacturer to have a useable toolrest.

Wally

[Thomas Bennett]

Tom, that lathe is pretty common. You mght try to find the missing parts on the Old Woodworking Machine forum : (http://www.owwm.org/viewforum.php?f=1
They have a section with machines and parts for sale.

[Paul Atkins]

I have a Powermatic 90 and fortunately it has a banjo with it bit I wish I had another so I could use a longer tool rest. On my old big lathe I use 2 Delta banjos and an extension on the spindle for long and large diameter turnings. An 8" square post will clear the banjo if it is round, but it is almost 12 inches on the diagonal if square. I span the whole turning with the rest till I get it round where I need and then the regular rest will work. In the pictures, the rest is over 4' long that I made from angle iron. The overhang gets a bit much leaving it on, so the smaller rest goes on.

[Tom Overthere]

Tom, that lathe is pretty common. You mght try to find the missing parts on the Old Woodworking Machine forum : (http://www.owwm.org/viewforum.php?f=1
They have a section with machines and parts for sale.
Thanks for the link. Their Buy & Sell section is shut down at present. Will look again later.

[Tom Overthere]

On my old big lathe I use 2 Delta banjos and an extension on the spindle for long and large diameter turnings...In the pictures, the rest is over 4' long that I made from angle iron.
Thanks a lot for the pictures. Very helpful! Your first image is along the lines of what I was hoping to do for a long rest - except I don't got no steenkeen banjos, so was considering bolting something to the side of the bed.

Now I'm not sure whether I'll even buy this thing. Your example indicates that a side-mounted long rest won't do for all operations, and comments here indicate the floor-standing rest is PIA. Over at the owwm.org site I just read about a school auction where a PM 90 in excellent condition with everything, plus a lot of extra tooling went for less than $200. Of course, I was a thousand miles east at the time...