lathe stand legs

[Ben Darrah]

I am currently building a stand for my Nova 1624. I have a 1/4" thick steel table top and I am replacing the wooden legs and substructure. I am considering building hollow legs out of 3/4" plywood then filling them with sand. I am also building a shelf across the bottom like a hollow core door and filling that with sand. Besides the extra weight, does anyone see a benefit to the sand such as vibration dampening? I also plan on anchoring it to the cinder block wall and concrete floor in my shop. Any thoughts?

Thanks
Ben

[David Reed]

No science or experience here but I would consider either building the entire base like a box or cabinet for racking strength. Or perhaps one large rectangle (hollow) leg each end and cross braced. Just trying to analyze vibration in my feeble mind suggests to me that although filling with sand may dampen high frequency vibrations, it seems unlikely to impact the kind of motion set up with a wildly spinning out of balance workpiece. Of course that's not to say the mass would not have a great impact in keeping the machine in one place. Personally, I just spin pieces below that major vibration threshold to help spare the bearings in my Jet 16-42.

[joe marra]

http://vintagemachinery.org/classifieds/detail.aspx?id=729 Don't know where you live, but maybe this could work.

[Jamie Donaldson]

Instead of using sand, consider washed river gravel, generally available at any landscaping supplier. I don't want sand anywhere near my machines, because it will always find a way to leak out and create a potential damage situation to bearings and electronics. The gravel is also easier to handle should you need to move machines around the shop, and absorbs vibration just as well as sand.

[Reed Gray]

As some one who did a fair amount of flat work, I would be very cautious of table legs for a lathe. What would work for a table, would not be suitable for a lathe, as in, "my tables are very sturdy, but I wouldn't dance on them". A solid cabinet would be more torque and bounce resistant, and easier to bolt to a cinder block wall. A sturdy cabinet, firmly braced would not need extra weight.

robo hippy

[Kyle Iwamoto]

In my OPINION, the weak point, in your design will be the lathe. I think you will have a base that is too solid, and any of the vibration and out of balance forces will have to be dealt with by the lathe itself. I personally do like David, and turn just below the point where my lathe starts to shake. It is not bolted down for that reason. It may take 10 minutes longer to rough a blank, but better than trashing your spindle or live center bearings....

[John McCaskill]

I like a cabinet with drawers to store stuff, myself. I put 400# of sand in the bottom of mine. Here is what I built. The top is an old solid core door, the legs are doubled 2X4's, the cross braces are 2X4's, the whole thing is sheathed in 3/4" plywood. The cabinet case fits into the frame, and the drawers are built into the cabinet case. Since the picture was taken, I have added a bed extension and outboard tool rest. They all fit nicely. In-process construction pictures are in my album under my profile.

[Brian Kent]

Here's what I built. This gives space to place a foot under the lathe when called for. I added many holes along the left and back for tools and fittings. These legs hold 100# of river rock each - inside the bags. I measured the bags then sized the legs accordingly. The big shop vac also rolls underneath. Total weight with lathe is about 325 lbs. Good for the size I turn on a Delta Midi.

[Ben Darrah]

Thanks for all the advice. My original plans were similar to Brian's with an added shelf and crossbracing. I think now I will incorporate them into a complete cabinet.

Thanks
Ben

[Roy Turbett]

Ernie Conover's lathe book describes how to build a plywood box stand that is filled with sand.