Lathe Bolt-down in New Shop?

[Bob Hovde]

I am planning a new 10'x10' add-on at the back of my garage (It's all the room there is. There's an 80' pecan tree in the way.) to house my new PM 3520 (and Jet 18" BS). I have seen several articles on lathe stability that recommend extra weight, concrete piers, etc., to provide a solid base. Has anyone installed bolts in the concrete to tie down their lathe legs? If so, do you think it was worth the extra effort? Thanks for any input. I'm digging the area out now, and want to know if I really need to decide exactly where the lathe will live - forever! :confused:

Bob

[Dale Thompson]

Bob,
I've had my PM 3520 for about five years. It is not bolted down and has not moved or caused vibration problems during that time. I've turned some 20"x3" Oak slabs for ships wheel clocks on it with no problem. My ONLY complaint with the 3520 is that the "adjustable" legs are a bit flimsy for the weight of the lathe. Make sure that they are in good shape and that the "adjustable" legs are all in firm contact with the floor. The added weight thing is usually intended for lighter weight lathes. The 3520 is NOT one of them. If you intend to turn 48" bowls off the end of the tailstock, you may wish to do some fastening. However, I would suggest that bolting the legs to the floor is NOT a solution to vibration. You should use some form of "vibration damper" installed between the legs and the floor to get the result that you need. A simple floor bolting will not help much if you are turning that big of a project. You will simply shake the dust from all of your overhead pipes and still get the same miserable "chatter" as before. :eek:

My suggestion would be to install the lathe as is, see what kind of turning you are likely to do and then decide on the location and "fastening" subject.

Good Luck. You've got a GREAT lathe! :)

Dale T.

[Tom Hintz]

A friend of mine had a little problem with bolts in the stand loosening (slowly) after bolting his lathe to the floor. He solved this by replacing the plain nuts and lock washers with aircraft insert nuts and now after a year or so, he has had no further loosening problem.

[Richard Allen]

Hi Bob

Congradulations on the shop addition. This sounds like a gloat more than a question about mounting a lathe.

That lathe should handle whatever you want to put on it. Adjust the legs so the presure on each of the legs is balanced with the other legs. If there is still a problem then add weight to the lathe. You want maximum pounds per square inch so the smaller the contact surfaces the more stable the lathe will be. You can bolt the lathe to the floor latter if you need even more stablity.

Thanks

[Ray Thompson]

My opinion is that its better to let the whole machine vibrate than bolt down part of it and let the rest vibrate. I think to many stresses are introduced that the machine wouldn't like.
First you can get some anti-vibration pads for each foot that will help steady the machine. Then if it still wants to "walK" you can mount some angle iron at each corner with Tapcon's to keep the machine in one place.
You can also get some machine mounts with swivels and anti-vibration pads from McMaster-Carr, MSC, etc. that do the same thing.

Ray

[Dan Dubeau]

If you do plan on bolting your lathe to the floor, drill a hole through a hockey puck and bolt the lathe to the floor through that. It works great to eliminate alot of vibration if not all.

Leave it up to a Canadian to come up with a way to work hockey into woodworking. LOL

[Bob Hovde]

Thanks for the hints. I hadn't considered induced stress from tying the legs to the floor. I guess I'll start by just adding weight - otherwise the shelf I plan to put between the legs will just collect junk - er...future projects. The hockey pucks, however, seem like they might be better than the screw-on feet for vibration dampening. All I have to do is get the floor level to start with.

Bob

[Chris Padilla]

They sell hockey pucks in Alabama?? :confused: :D

[Bob Powers]

My lathe is on wheels so I can push it out of the way when I am not using it. I installed cleats under the end of my 350 pound assembly table and matching cleats on the lathe stand and clamp them together when in use.

[Bob Hovde]

Chris,

Believe it or not, Huntsville is the hot-bed of hockey in the South. The University of Alabama, Huntsville, has even won Div II (?) NCAA championships (usually against some place in MN!). We also have a minor league team. Obviously, we only get to play indoors, except when the Tennessee River freezes over.

Bob