Reversing Lathe Rotation

[Frank Hasty]

I've been turning about three years using a 50's vintage Craftsman lathe with a couple of 3 step sheaves for speed variation. My motor is single phase, 1/2hp capacitor start. When I got to trying to hollow a bowl through a relatively small opening in the top I thought "It sure would be easier to do this with the rotation reversed." So a year or so ago I looked on line and bought a reversing switch for about $25.
I love it.
Wiring the beast would be a snap for an electrician but it took me several hours to figure out how to do it. Two wires inside the motor junction box control direction of rotation and as I recall these are numbered 5 and 8. To change rotation you switch these two wires and that is what the switch does. On my lathe I stop the motor, flip the reversing switch and restart.
Some people said reverse rotation is dangerous but I can't see how it could be any more dangerous than normal turning. I have had no problems and it certainly makes hollowing a lot easier.
Before you try this get some help from an electrician to make sure you don't start tripping breakers or electrocute yourself. Make sure everything is "right" with a 1.5V battery and a multimeter before you put 120V power on it, and don't attempt it with a three phase motor.

Somewhere here on "the Creek" is an article about reversing rotation of a variable speed motor on a Grizzly lathe. I saw it once and plan to add a reversing switch to a new Grizzly lathe that I just bought. It looked like a much simpler modification than the one required for a 1ph. A/C motor.

Hope I can find that article again as I don't know my way around the creek very well.

[Roger Chandler]

Frank........you mentioned you just bought a new Grizzly lathe. Look under the community tab at the top of your smc page and click that on.......then groups, then Grizzly Green Monster Group. There is a support community for Grizzly lathe owners, so join and look at the info on the threads..........you might find some useful info.

What model lathe did you get by the way?

[Faust M. Ruggiero]

Frank,
Please remember that spinning in reverse while applying resistance to your workpiece will cause a chuck or anything threaded to your spindle to loosen. If you are using a chuck or faceplate be sure to tighten the lock screws. I would bet your lathe is near a wall and you have no room to stand on the back side to work "across" the lathe with the machine spinning forward. Have you considered moving it so you have access from both sides?
faust

[Steve Schlumpf]

Frank - I started turning on that very same lathe... and also wired in a switch so that I could reverse the rotation. The only thing I used reverse for was for sanding... it does make a huge difference!

I agree with Faust - be sure to secure the chuck, faceplate or whatever you are using to hold your work - BEFORE - using the reverse function. It only has to come unscrewed once to get your attention!! DAMHIKT!!

[Jim Laumann]

Frank

Great post - been thinking of something like this myself for sanding.... Will have my local electrician over later this summer for some work - he just got a little more added to the list.

Jim

[James Combs]

Frank, not sure this is the one you were thinking about but it is a tutorial on adding a reversing switch to a Griz G0658 (http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?158250-Add-Reversing-Switch-To-Your-Grizzly-G0658-Midi-Lathe)

[robert raess]

J.Paul Fennel hollows in reverse, and has made special tools[some out of allen wrenches] with the cutting edge on the right side.

[Frank Hasty]

Thanks Steve I will take his good advice!

[Frank Hasty]

I bought the G0658 and like it very much.

[Frank Hasty]

Thanks James, that sounds like the piece but I don't have access to that page for some reason.

[Wally Dickerman]

A long time ago I had an old Delta lathe. Pulley speed change. The motor was on a hinge set up to keep belt tension. When I wanted the lathe to spin in reverse I twisted a figure 8 in the belt and the lathe ran backward. Simple.....