Lathe on casters

[Ted Evans]

Hello Everyone,

Like a few others, I suffer from a lack of room for my tools. All of my flat working tools are on casters so they can be moved when needed. I know it is not ideal for the wood lathe, a Jet 1642EVS, but is there any reason why it should not be done under any circumstances? Has any others tried this and if so, would you care to share your experiences, suggestions and/or comments?


Bear

[Alan Tolchinsky]

I saw that lathe at Woodcraft and it was on wheels. The one thing I noticed is that it raised the lathe up too high for me. But with a good set of locking wheels, I don't see any other problems than the height issue.

[Michael Mills]

This is what I use for my table saw. You may need to use a small jack to lift one end of the lathe at a time. To lower, I just lift up one end and the casters drop down, then do the same at the other end. To set back on the casters, lift it again, pull the cord to retract the casters under it and wheel it away. When in use it would be sitting firmly on the floor, when not in use it could be left on the casters.
Mike

[Radek Kowalski]

I use casters on my Jet 1442 and I see no problems with it. I do not move it often but I do like having the lathe raised up higher because I am 6' 6". I bought the casters from woodcraft and they work great.

[Scott Conners]

I've read on here of many lathes on casters or some type of mobile base, it can definitely be done. One of the poular options seems to be the type of casters that can be raised or lowered with a ratchet or wrench, so the lathe sits on solid feet when in use, but is easily moved. I think they are made by "great lakes" but I'm not certain.

A search on here could be very informative too, I remember seeing some really neat solutions, including some where the casters are raised and lowered by means of an impact wrench on a bolt head on the top of the mobile base, making it reallly quick and easy to do.

[Dick Strauss]

I like the idea of casters on the lathe!

The headstock/tailstock might go out of alignment if your floor isn't real even though.

[Brian Brown]

None of us would ever suffer from a lack of space. :D The only problems I can see, aside from the height issue, is the vibration and leveling. Even double locking casters will be a vibration issue. I think it would be best to use the type described in several posts above that move out from under the lathe when it has been moved to working position. The leveling problem might be solved, by putting the lathe in a good working position, leveling it carefully, then marking the foot positions on the floor. Now each time you use the lathe, make sure you put it in exactly the same position, and with luck, the lathe will always be level. It would be a good idea to check it periodically. Good luck, and let us know how it works, so those of us who are space challenged will know.

[Alan Tolchinsky]

This is what I use for my table saw. You may need to use a small jack to lift one end of the lathe at a time. To lower, I just lift up one end and the casters drop down, then do the same at the other end. To set back on the casters, lift it again, pull the cord to retract the casters under it and wheel it away. When in use it would be sitting firmly on the floor, when not in use it could be left on the casters.
Mike

Sounds like a neat idea in theory but the Jet 1642 is really heavy. Do you think the average person could lift one end especially the head stock end. I see my physical therapist in this picture. ;):D

[Ted Evans]

Many thanks to all for your input and suggestions, I tried to check each one out and make a decision. My first try is going to be with the locking casters, for two reasons, it seems to be the less expensive and also the quickest for me. Most of my turnings at this point are small, mostly pens and small bowls, up to about 8", so believe the stability problem may be manageable.

The lathe height may or may not present an issue. At present, it feels a little low for me however, 4" casters may be a little too much. If that proves to be the case, I will build a scab wooden floor around the lathe. It will not hurt my feelings to get my feet on a wooden floor rather than concrete.

Again, thanks to everyone for your comments.

Bear

[Michael Mills]

If I am able to go to my local woodturners club meeting tonight I will try to get a picture of the setup they use. I do not know the lathe model number but it is a fairly large powermatic and one person can move it alone. Well, maybe not Barney Fife, but most everyone with some "turning muscle". There is nothing to jack up or adjust and the lathe itself does not stay on wheels or casters.
And… yes Alan, thanks for bringing that up. :) I meant to underline (or make bold) the words "…use a small jack to lift…" in my original post.
Mike

[Gary Herrmann]

I've got my PM3520b on Great Lakes self leveling casters. An engine hoist will get this done no problem.

[alex carey]

I used to turn on a delta X5 16" lathe and it had wheels that were off the ground until you stepped on a pedal which lowered the wheels and raised the lathe. It was super easy to use.

http://www.cpowoodworking.com/accessories/jointer_accessories/50-333.html?ref=become50-333

[curtis rosche]

you can buy the Oneway lathes with wheels on them. they drop out of place when the machine is in use so you have a steady lathe.

[Matt Ranum]

My old 10ER Shopsmith has foot operated retractable casters. They actually work pretty good and its the early model with a lot of cast iron and pretty stout.

I did a look over at the auction site for some decent pictures so you could see what they were and found one. I don't think we are allowed to post the link but if you look up item # 300358738451 you should see them. I have no connection to them either BTW.

[Ron Lynch]

I picked up a 40 year old Powermatic 45 From Craigslist a few weeks ago. In order to move it to my shop I bought a pair of Harbor Freight furniture dollys. I raised the lathe and positioned the dollys underneath, then lag bolted the machine to the dollys. It was my intention to remove the dollys once I had the lathe where I wanted it, however I thought I'd try my new toy out first. Well, to make a long story longer, the lathe is still on the dollys. No creep or other unwanted movement, even when turning a 12" x 6" unbalanced bowl blank and it makes cleaning up easier, just push the beast out of the way and sweep away. I think I'll leave it mobile.

[Tom Hamilton]

Ted, another way to skin this cat is to use a hydraulic lift table. Harbor Freight has one for $100 or so that will lift and move my PM 3520, 650lbs or so.
ITEM 94822-2VGA


file:///C:/DOCUME%7E1/tjh/LOCALS%7E1/Temp/moz-screenshot-3.pngBest regards,

Tom, in Georgia, happily wheeling his lathe around the shop

[Mike Lipke]

I have a OneWay with Great Lakes Casters. Love them. I can crank the pads down on the casters, but the lathe is very stable with those casters and I don't need to. I used a cheap hydraulic jack to raise the lathe up enough to put on the wheels. No issue. Great to move the lathe a little or a lot. I know....Heresy, but that is my experience.

The Great Lakes casters are much better (for a lathe) than the urethane casters from WoodCraft. The WC casters raise the lathe up about 4" and that makes the lathe unstable. I put the WC casters on my bandsaw, and they are fine there.

[Scott Conners]

Here's the casters I was thinking of: http://www.greatlakescaster.com/great_lakes_caster___swivel_caster_with_stabilizer _leg___175_stabilizing_casters_with_a_220lbs_capac ity_in_motion_and_a_550lbs_capacity_when_the_stabi lizer_leg_in_extended-LV-1710-NYP-S-M12.php

http://www.greatlakescaster.com/lib/GLC/150/LV1710NYPSM16.gif

I think these are cool, but I'd only use them if I didn't have to move it on a daily basis.

[Mike Lipke]

The casters I use are the same as Mr Connors'.

[Alan Trout]

I have the footmasters on my lathe that I got from Great Lakes Caster. Mine are rated at 550LBS. each. I think they may have made a mistake when I got mine because they only charged me $120 for 4 of them. I know these units now are about double that. My lathe weights just north of 800LBS. and they work very well. With really heavy out of balance blanks I get a little oscillation in the stem of the foot but it is barely noticeable. Here are a couple of the threads that pertain to the casters. http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=98168 and http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=99001

Good Luck

Alan

[Josiah Bartlett]

I have a 700 pound bandsaw on conventional casters, but I use jack feet to lift it off the casters when I use it. Rockler 24315's work pretty well and come with a threaded plate that you can either attach to a wood or metal plate. I just made auxiliary legs out of 1" square box tubing and plug welded the Rockler plates in the end. These sit near the casters and I just screw them down with a box end wrench when I want stability. They jack the saw right off the casters.

[Michael Mills]

This only works for lathes with cross braces on the ends between the legs and with an open area (no shelves, sandbags, etc. added) under the lathe. The club I go to use these to move its powermatic but may be applicable to other brands also.

I wasn’t able to get a picture but maybe the attached will do. Basically build two dollies. At one end of each dolly, build up the height (by adding 2X4’s on top of the platform) so that it is one inch taller than the bottom of the cross brace on the legs.

Slide the first one under one end of the lathe. The end at the center of the lathe will be tilted up. Step on that end and slide a 2X4 (upright) between the lathe ways and the dolly. The weight of the lathe will hold it in place. Repeat for the other end.

To remove, just step in the center again to release the pressure and slide the 2X4 out.

Using the dollies as levers, a lot of force is applied to lifting with very little effort. If your lathe meets the configurations, this may be an inexpensive and quick alternative.
Mike

[Mike Cross]

This is my solution to make the lathe movable. I had a couple of old trailer jacks, added a few pieces of metal and some wheels and Whaa-Laa. Just finished them yesterday and haven't had a chance to clean them up and put some paint on them. But they do work and work well. Crank them up, move the lathe, crank them down and remove.