An Idea

[mickey cassiba]

As I am an extreme amateur wood turner, I have no idea if this will will work or not.
I have looked at my little lathe pretty carefully and think this might work, but, I wold like a little input. It is a LA200(Delta) and the HS spindle is through bored, I'm wondering if a short draw bar could be mounted through the bore and used to mount a chuck adapter on the outboard end to turn over-sized pieces. I realize that the lathe would have to be secured to a stable surface, and the handwheel would either have to machined flat, or replaced, but other than these two considerations is this a doable thing, or just an idea that won't work?

[Steve Schlumpf]

Mickey......... could it be done? Probably. Would I recommend it? No

First off, you have a small lathe with a motor to match; 1/2 hp. The motor, bearings, mounts, etc were all matched for use on smaller objects over the bed of the lathe - not the hand wheel. On some lathes there is a difference in bearings in the headstock at the spindle side and the hand wheel side.

Your lowest speed is 500 rpm - with is a little on the fast side when starting out-of-round blanks. Your lathe does not have reverse (that I know of) so you would be holding your tools and cutting the wood backwards when compared to normal turning. I would find that confusing.

What were you planning on doing for a tool rest?

If you want to turn larger items - great - but find a lathe designed to handle the additional stresses that will be placed on it. Just my opinion but hopefully something for you to think about.

[mickey cassiba]

Mickey......... could it be done? Probably. Would I recommend it? No

First off, you have a small lathe with a motor to match; 1/2 hp. The motor, bearings, mounts, etc were all matched for use on smaller objects over the bed of the lathe - not the hand wheel. On some lathes there is a difference in bearings in the headstock at the spindle side and the hand wheel side.

Your lowest speed is 500 rpm - with is a little on the fast side when starting out-of-round blanks. Your lathe does not have reverse (that I know of) so you would be holding your tools and cutting the wood backwards when compared to normal turning. I would find that confusing.

What were you planning on doing for a tool rest?

If you want to turn larger items - great - but find a lathe designed to handle the additional stresses that will be placed on it. Just my opinion but hopefully something for you to think about.
Thanks Steve...like I said, just an idea. Thought about a tool rest mounted on the bench, but as you say I'm probably a little underpowered. I'm just fishin' here, trying to explore all of my options.
I hope to buy or build a larger lathe at some point, but it's not in the cards in the near future.
The bearings are the same size at the front and back of the spindle, and I am exploring a larger motor, possibly the VS motor off of the "new Midi".
I built this lathe from recycled parts anyway, it's a LA200 only because I built it from the parts list. Otherwise it's like Johnny Cash's Cadillac, except I paid for all the pieces. And I'm pretty tight with the guys at the local service center.

[Bernie Weishapl]

I agree with Steve. Unpowered and your slow speed is to fast for large item.

[Steve Schlumpf]

Mickey - I understand modifications and most of the time I am all for them. In this case I honestly feel it would become a safety issue real fast. Wanting to turn bigger things is just one of the problems with the Vortex cause you keep looking at bigger and better lathes! Wow... what I could turn on that one! I don't think it ever truly ends!

[Ken Glass]

Mickey,
You have made an exceptional case for the purchase of a bigger and better lathe. We will all pile on for sure and give you a solid case for that purchase. After we have all given you thousands of reasons to upgrade, and you know there are countless reasons, you can take your case to your wife/girlfriend/mother/ or the banker, if necessary, to get what you have undoubtedly have been thinking and wishing about.
Seriously though, your lathe was manufactured to work safely with-in a set of specifications. Going outside that parameter could have dangerous consequences. My suggestion is to find a way to upgrade. You will not be disappointed.

[mickey cassiba]

Guess I'll stick to little stuff until I can get my shop built. While money is a factor, it isn't the primary reason for not upgrading at this time. I currently store my equipment in a 7' square shed and work on my porch. It's the reason that I'm trying to multi-task and maximize each machine. Besides the lathe, I also have a 14" bandsaw, a table saw/router table combination, drill press, and 20" scroll saw. Add to this all of the hand and power tools and accessories. Three quarters of any project is moving things around to bring out the tool needed.
By the way and off topic, can "limb/branch" wood be used for smaller cups and bowls? I've got a live oak that needs some severe trimming/pruning.
I can approximate a round on the band saw to get away from the high starting RPM issue, but have not yet tried.