Lathe position in shop

[Tom Godley]

My new lathe will be arriving soon and I am trying to find a proper place for it. This lathe is floor standing vs my smaller bench mounted one.

I took a class a few months ago and worked on one lathe that was positioned parallel to the wall with the operator working with his back to the wall -- I liked the set up because all the tools could be placed on the wall within easy reach and still be free of most of the shavings. I am thinking that this is better than having it perpendicular to a wall.

Any thoughts?

[Keith Burns]

Tom, I have mine perpendicular to the wall with the headstock close to the wall. All my tools are on that wall within easy reach without having to turn around. I also have my vacuum pump mounted on the wall where the switch and connections are close. The pic shows my set up.

[Jeff Bower]

Tom, I've tried both ways and this pic shows what I've committed to for now anyway...things can always change.

[Claude Arragon]

I tried all possibles ways but the only one I didn't like is having my back to the wall.
True, most of the shavings will fall in front of you and they'll be easy to remove but...
You are not turning all the time and you will have to fetch something elsewhere in your workshop; after a while you are going to be bothered by this round about that represents your lathe

[Jerry Sambrook]

I was cautioned by a couple of people who learned the hard way.
Try placing the lathe at an angle to the wayy, so that if you get a piece to fly off (bowl, large hollw, etc) then it will generally ricochet away from you.
At perpendicular, the chances increase that the piece will ricochet back toward you, depending on how far you are from the wall.

If you have the space, then try to angle it

Jerry

[Frank Drew]

I had mine parallel to a wall, with a couple of feet clearance behind, and near another wall on the left, where I had my grinder and rack of turning tools I wasn't using at the moment. If I'd been able to turn outboard I would have needed a bit more free room to the left of the headstock.

[Scott Hubl]

Tom,
I asked the same question and am still moving mine around.

Were I NEED it to be in my shop really isnt the best place for it as there is a window on the wall with my AC unit so no wall tool storage there.:(

I'm trying to get the Lathe BS an DP within the same area kinda like the kitchen Triangle thing. Along with my Down Draft Table maybe with the BS on one side and the DP on the other so i'll have a nice large work surface and easy access to the DP and BS.

I have a Trent Bosch Carving Stand mounted to the side edge of the DDT.
http://catalog.trentbosch.com/images/trentbosch/cstandwpiece.gif

But it's difficult to figure it all out for easy access and easy workflow.

[Allen Neighbors]

My 1640 is dead center in my shop. I can get around it on all sides. It took center stage, when I sold my table saw. :D

[Tom Godley]

Because it takes up a lot of space and can make a mess I wanted to give this a little thought -- plus it is heavy!


I was thinking that I would put the head nearer one corner of the shop -- that way I could also have the grinder near by.


The head moves along the ways -- so for bowls I think I will be working on the right side of the lathe.

This shop thing can be FRUSTRATING!

[Bruce Pennell]

Tom I have my Delta against the wall, about 2' clearance, and my 3520b across from it. My tools and sharpening system is at one end, at the other end is a 10' door. Open the door, get the leaf blower, and dust and chips fly outside.

[curtis rosche]

i dont think that having a lathe parallel to the wall is safe, because if you are close enough to the wall that all you have to do is turn around to reach a tool, then when something goes wrong and you try to get out quickly, you could either not have enough room, or you could get caught on a tool or tool station. also having the lathe parallel to the wall will make it need paint quicker, anything that flies off wont have very far to go to hit the wall and it will still have force, meaning a scratched wall.

[Brian Weick]

it would have to be up 2' away from the back wall , I really don't have that much room in my shop to take up a footprint of 14' x 6' and I am facing the wall when turning , so I do have open space to get out of the way when a unexpected piece of debris goes flying. I think it amounts to the amount of space you have in your shop and what is going to work out the best all the way around. :rolleyes:
Brian

[Jim Becker]

Tom, my Stubby is parallel to the wall and about two feet off of it. I stand on the room side. This works best for me from a space management perspective, although it has the disadvantage that my back is to the door when turning. (Then again, it's that way when I'm working at my bench, too) I do not have a realistic way to change this without upsetting workflow for my, umm...flat work...which lately dominates my woodworking time.

[Tom Hamilton]

Tom, like you I'm experimenting with the proper placement. Currently I like the tailstock against the wall and the head end at a 45 degree angle or so out from the wall. This way the chips bounce off the wall and don't flood the rest of the shop.

I've built mobile stands for the grinder, positioned just behind me and a small six drawer cabinet, positioned at the head stock end for live centers, sanding gear, calipers and the other stuff.

Since the tailstock end is against the wall I lose the ability to turn from the end unless I swing the tailstock out from the wall. It's always a compromise unless the shop is larger than my 12 X 40.

For me the decision was where do I want the chips to fall. In the sink, on the table saw or bounce off the wall at my feet. Oh, and I didn't want to rearrange the whole shop.

Best regards, Tom, in Houston, actually in Dallas tonight visiting one month old Web Hamilton!

[Tom Godley]

Thanks all for the feedback.


For some this may have been a silly question -- but I have no real experience working on a larger lathe. So I do not know what to expect.

I have noticed the picture of the lathe (big) in Brian's shop -- I wish I had a large window with a view!

And even though I like the idea of and angle like Tom H suggests -- with the tail-stock moved that will not work.


I am anal with all of this ----------- I think :)

[David Eppler]

This could be a really bad practice but my "shop" dictates that EVERYTHING must be on wheels - including the 1642. 4 locking casters have kept it feeling solid and have lifted the center to a point where I no longer bend over slightly while turning. I have yet to try anything exceptionally large or unballanced but can not see how it would be much different from using the nylon feet that came with the lathe.

YMMV

[Jim Becker]

David, there will always be more chance of vibration and movement with casters, especially when you start spinning larger and out of balance materials. Best practice is "feet to the floor", so accordingly, the best mobility solution for a lathe will be something that gets the wheels off the floor when they are not in use. Another issue is that cast iron bends. Leveling is critical to insure that the centers line up. With many floors, that means re-adjusting the lathe base after movement.