Vicmarc 300 build project

[Michael Schneider]

I took the plunge and ordered a bare VL300 lathe from woodworkers emporium. I also ordered the 19 1/2 inch bed extension. I am a hobby turner that enjoys building/modifying my machines. Building the machine is as much of a hobby for me as turning.

The crate arrived today, it was very well packaged, and R&L Carriers moved to across the country and dropped it at my door.

I have a acTech VFD and a baldor motor.

I was looking at the base design.

I was thinking of building the base straight down the front and and angle in back.


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This is similar to my oneway 1018 base shape.

I was looking a building 3 torsion boxes
Top
Bottom
Back

I was planning on 2x12's for the ends.

Any suggestions to improve this or to take another approach?

I am ok swapping out the base down this road if this design does not work our, just looking at a good starting point.

Thanks
Michael

[Jason Edwards]

If you have a heavy piece and it's way out of balance, you'll run the risk of tipping the lathe over frontwards if you accidentally turn up the RPM too much. Hard to do on a little lathe like the 1018, could happen on a 24" VL300. I'd recommend coming out more in the front.

[Geoff Whaling]

If you have a heavy piece and it's way out of balance, you'll run the risk of tipping the lathe over frontwards if you accidentally turn up the RPM too much. Hard to do on a little lathe like the 1018, could happen on a 24" VL300. I'd recommend coming out more in the front.

The VL300 will temp you to take on larger projects, so I agree with Jason's comments. The current VL300 short bed design uses a stand similar in design to your proposal, however there is a slight splay on the front face of the stand. I turn on a Woodfast M908 that has a sheet steel cabinet with vertical sides and a foot print not much wider than the lathes casting foot print with hold down cleats projecting from that. I have extended those cleats with a full width length of 50 x 6 mm flat to widen the foot print.

I have seen a lathe topple over in use (not me) - the only thing you can do is take big steps to get out of the way. The incident I saw was at a participation style turning event with lathes set up on lawn. An over ambitious turner and a not so ideal setup created an interesting situation. I also have concerns about many of the small portable designs for stands used at those sorts of events as it doesn't take much to create a scenario where a number of factors combine to create a hazard.

Vicmarc recommends "It is not always necessary to anchor down the lathe, as the weight of the lathe will be sufficient to hold it down in most applications. Anti-vibration pads under each leg are recommended to minimise vibration and floor damage. For your personal safety, it is recommended to anchor down your lathe."

[Michael Schneider]

Thanks guys, I will add a splay. Question. If I splay the front (headstock end), do I need to add as much splay on the tailstock end? I want to be safe, but it would be nice to lean on the lathe by the tailstock.


Thanks
Michael.

[Michael Schneider]

Woodworkers Emporium did a great job of packing up the lathe.

I removed all the cardboard and bubble wrap that filled the crate.

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[Bob Bergstrom]

I would follow the looks of how the Robust lathes are set up. The adjustable spladed legs make it very stable.