Input Needed on Leveling 16" Jointer on Garage Floor

[Mark e Kessler]

I’ve been tempted by Airloc leveling pads. They’re a cast iron block with a screw driven wedge padded top and bottom with a vibration damping material.

They have stuff rated up to 25000 lbs, so they seem like a pretty serious setup.

I have seen that style go up to 100k + rating, definitely easier to adjust for a precision machine, the stud style can be a hassle depending on the location and if you need to readjust often - i have seen stud style go up to 40k rating…

[Myk Rian]

All of this is a lot of words that in the end, boil down to Jim's shims.

Shim the floor.

Yeah, that.

[David Zaret]

Yeah, that.

i guess i have to rethink all of my equipment. my jointer is significantly larger than 16", and it's sitting on rubber pads on the floor. i didn't even "level" my CNC.... just made sure the legs are on the ground (via shims). anything more feels like overkill... or i'm uninformed. both are possible.

[Phil Gaudio]

After a ~7 month wait I finally got my 16" Grizzly G9953ZX jointer which is staged in my garage workshop. The garage floor, like most, is sloped toward garage door openings. I want to ensure the unit is; 1) level, and 2) not going to conform to any out of flat / twist condition the concrete floor may have as I know cast iron will conform to what it is sitting on. I am looking at using machine leveling mounts. Has anyone used machine level mounts on a large jointer or other similar large heavy piece and have suggestions on how they did setup? Once this is done I will then do final setup to ensure coplanar and squareness of the table/fence. Unit weight is ~1,650 lbs. Any suggestion or input would be appreciated. Yes, I maybe be a bit OCD but trying to do the right thing as well.

I have the very same situation with a sloping floor and a 16" jointer/planer. I did not level it: does not matter if its level. I used a single shim to ensure all four points of contact were making contact. Its been fine for a couple of years now.

27K0745-polypropylene-shims-pkg-of-40-f-11.jpg

[glenn bradley]

In California there is good reason for securing machines with grout and such. Earthquakes
I talked to Oshpd deputy inspector for hospital work. We discussed the seismic over engineering that goes in hospitals. He personally inspected a basement in older building downtown Los Angeles. This basement had a very large sheer left behind from the past. He said after the Northridge earthquake there wasn’t a wall in that basement that wasn’t touched by that shear.
I keep putting off the tethering my bandsaw. I’m sure it will fall over in big enough earthquake

When I don't want to tether I use ballast. My drill press is bolted to a wooden base full of dry concrete mix:
1 DP BASE MT.jpg2 DP Base Filling.jpg3 DP Metal Base.jpg4 DP Post.jpg
The mobile base is due for an upgrade. I have never liked that base but, move the DP so seldom, it keeps getting to live for another day.

As to leveling, this is a personal choice. A few of my machine surfaces are also reference surfaces so those are true to mother earth. Others are just stable and "About right".

[Bill Dufour]

My vertical air compressor would rock a bit when ever it turned on or off. I coulds ee it move from across the room. So I stopped by the side of the road and picked up some big rig recap treads, AKA: alligators. Slipped one under each foot and no more visible rocking. I tried to get pieces of equal thickness with no steel belts. I gave up trying to cut them and just used the entire pieces with extra sticking out the back side.
Bill D

I still need to chain it to the wall in case of quakes. I could strap it like a waterheater but I feel slack chain will not transmit vibration and mak it louder like strapping might.

[Mark e Kessler]

When I don't want to tether I use ballast. My drill press is bolted to a wooden base full of dry concrete mix:
1 DP BASE MT.jpg2 DP Base Filling.jpg3 DP Metal Base.jpg4 DP Post.jpg
The mobile base is due for an upgrade. I have never liked that base but, move the DP so seldom, it keeps getting to live for another day.

As to leveling, this is a personal choice. A few of my machine surfaces are also reference surfaces so those are true to mother earth. Others are just stable and "About right".

That’s a great idea Glenn! I have a dp with a bigger base now but I wish I had thought of this in the past. Like you the only machines I bothered to level as close as I could was the slider mainly so the slide stays put wherever it is, i also only used levelers on it because it is easier to dial it in and mostly because I occasionally have to move it out of the way and with the levelers it’s easy to put it back exactly where it was without fiddling with the shims, the jointer 1800# i just use a wedge to get rid of the wobble, it’s definitely not level with earth…

[Jim Becker]

i guess i have to rethink all of my equipment. my jointer is significantly larger than 16", and it's sitting on rubber pads on the floor. i didn't even "level" my CNC.... just made sure the legs are on the ground (via shims). anything more feels like overkill... or i'm uninformed. both are possible.

I don't level my J/P either, but I do choose an orientation that's either uphill/downhill or across the slope; never on an angle. CNC is level as is my workbench as much as practical. Everything else I try to keep in similar planes as with the J/P.

[Brian Holcombe]

Leveling is helpful, it helps to make sure that an area of the machine is not left unsupported. For things with tables it helps allow one to setup the tables with a machinist level rather than needing a long straight edge.

[Bill Dufour]

When I don't want to tether I use ballast. My drill press is bolted to a wooden base full of dry concrete mix:
1 DP BASE MT.jpg2 DP Base Filling.jpg3 DP Metal Base.jpg4 DP Post.jpg
The mobile base is due for an upgrade. I have never liked that base but, move the DP so seldom, it keeps getting to live for another day.

As to leveling, this is a personal choice. A few of my machine surfaces are also reference surfaces so those are true to mother earth. Others are just stable and "About right".

I prefer gravel or aggregate over concrete. Less problems if it leaks. MY DP base ballast is old motors and nuts/bolts/nails. No chance of wayward dust getting into sliding surfaces and causing problems. Saw dust is bad enough without grit added.
My brother's garage door counterweight was old hunks of iron. He would take pieces as needed and throw in replacement weight in either iron or rocks.
The Big Ben, in London, clock has coins on top of the pendulum to adjust the weight for summer and winter. A few pennies makes a difference on a pendulum weighing tons. They always run pendulum clocks a little slow because it is hard to set time backwards.

Bill D.

[Joe Calhoon]

I level most of my machines with just a carpenter level. I use Formica sample chips. Some machines are on wheels and I don’t worry about them. My 2 heavy machines are a Kundig WBS and Martin T90. The Kundig has built in leveling feet and they said it should be adjusted level. The Martin came with large hard rubber pads. They said to set it on the pads and not worry about level.