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 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
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".
Last edited by glenn bradley; 07-24-2021 at 10:42 AM.
"A hen is only an egg's way of making another egg".
– Samuel Butler
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.
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…
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The most expensive tool is the one you buy "cheaply" and often...
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.
Bumbling forward into the unknown.
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.
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.