Lathe Storage

[SomeGuy]

Yes but then one day I'll pull that stuff out to do something, then open at top drawer and have it all fall over. Thinking ahead of the day I'll do something stupid. Very likely.

Anything that'll keep it from getting tippy is going to intrude in your foot space though, unless you want to just bolt it to the floor.

Some boxes have interlocks so you can only open one drawer at a time...though I usually defeat those as they're annoying and finicky at times.

 

[Doggggboy]

What about a hook in the wall behind with a short chain or cable attached to the back of the tool box near the top?
Doesn't have to hold the entire weight of the toolbox, just keep it from passing the center of gravity.
I have the same arrangement on the pallet racking in my shop.
If you leave the casters on you may have to block them from sliding back toward the wall.

 

[jcdammeyer]

What about a hook in the wall behind with a short chain or cable attached to the back of the tool box near the top?
Doesn't have to hold the entire weight of the toolbox, just keep it from passing the center of gravity.
I have the same arrangement on the pallet racking in my shop.
If you leave the casters on you may have to block them from sliding back toward the wall.

That's why I mentioned the IKEA retaining strap they sell with their tall Billy cabinets. So during an earthquake a tall narrow bookshelf or CD shelf doesn't fall over. I'll definitely put something like that on for safety.

I was going to cut the pads but then other things got in the way today. Falling down a new rabbit hole as a friend sent me a video of his latest project. And he also sent me the complete STEP files and PDF drawings.
Curliss Steam Engine Replica
Spent much of the day sitting in the coolest part of the house just looking at the drawings and figuring out how I'd build it. Before he sent the step files I'd modeled a bunch from the PDF drawings into Alibre as 3D parametric. So that I can run CNC to drill all the holes etc... What a deep rabbit hole this is...

 

[jcdammeyer]

That's why I mentioned the IKEA retaining strap they sell with their tall Billy cabinets. So during an earthquake a tall narrow bookshelf or CD shelf doesn't fall over. I'll definitely put something like that on for safety.

As usual, by the fourth one I have the process of lining up the holes etc. down pat. Except I'm done.

This would work except that the floor is not level and I still want that little bit of extra tip over protection. The 3/4" ply wood is just barely above the metal ribs.

Next I'll run two 1x4's front to back extending out just enough so the adjustable feet can sit a bit proud and also be easy to get at to level it. My garage floor is not level. At all. Not even close. Sometimes I think it even moves. It's not really a garage but a covered in carport.

 

[jcdammeyer]

So I picked up a piece of OAK today. I figured it would be that little bit tougher given the weight that will be in the cabinet.
The cost of 3/8-16 T-Nuts at Lowes was $2.69 each. Yikes. So I left thinking perhaps I'd weld nuts onto washers. But then I thought, once in place 3/4" worth of thread should be more than enough. I can always coat the threads with epoxy and chase the threads with the tap again if they aren't very good.
So first trial was with some 3/4" plywood and tapped. The foot threaded in fine.

Next some MDF. The one on the right is hand tapped and the 5/16" machinist drill bit did a clean job of making the hole for tapping.

The one on the left was drilled with a 1/4" shank 5/16" drill bit that is at least 40 years old from my first drill set bought at Sears in Edmonton. It's a bit bent so it wobbles and since I ran the power cycle for drilling a number of times at different speeds the hole is a tad oversize.

But the power tapping, once I figured out how to do it again went well after I realized that for whatever reason, the G84 would not work while the G33.1 does. That's what you get for not doing this for more than half a year.

Now all of this research to figure out how to power tap, dig out another collet holder, figure out how to set tool lengths etc. into the tool table with the new spiral tap (was still in plastic wrapping) took about 3 hours. Could have hand tapped the two pieces, four holes, in 15 minutes.

But I needed the practice at the CNC side of things. I'll grab a 5/16" collet and use the machinist drill bit for the actual holes. Line the wood up even with the end of the vise and then each hole will be drilled and tapped at the exact same spot at each end. That will probably take me another 3 hours.

 

[jcdammeyer]

Threw together a quick video drilling and tapping one hole in a piece of Oak.
https://youtu.be/l_GkLj942jw

 

[Dusty]

Threw together a quick video drilling and tapping one hole in a piece of Oak.
https://youtu.be/l_GkLj942jw

@jcdammeyer nice video, one thing upsets me though for safety reasons please remove your wedding ring wife will understand.

 

[Dabbler]

Thinking ahead of the day I'll do something stupid. Very likely.

me too.

 

[jcdammeyer]

Well crap. So close and yet so far.
Not the end of the world as the second photo shows. I have tons of room on the padded adjusting feet. More than enough to raise the entire lathe by 0.5" for example.

But I no longer have access to a precision level. OTOH, if I turn each foot the exact same number of turns it should be close enough...

Addendum:
Turns out the feet only have about a 5/8" adjustment range and because of the existing floor two are already near their max. Solution is going to be 4 pads made of out metal, about 3/4" thick either between the actual foot and the adjustment weight bearing washer or just a 3/4" pad under the rubber adjustable feet.

Really don't want to spend money at Metal Supermarket for this. Time to break out the foundry and make 4 pads.

 

[Susquatch]

Well crap. So close and yet so far.
Not the end of the world as the second photo shows. I have tons of room on the padded adjusting feet. More than enough to raise the entire lathe by 0.5" for example.

But I no longer have access to a precision level. OTOH, if I turn each foot the exact same number of turns it should be close enough...

Why don't you have access to a level anymore?

If you borrowed one to get things setup, I'd wait for a deal and buy one. Floors move. I find I have to adjust as the seasons pass. Nice to have a level handy.

Anyway, I think you are right, turning each screw the exact same amount should get you close. I'd suggest being careful though. It would be easy to get out of whack. A few degrees one way or the other could be a problem. Eg - a 20 tpi thread is 50 thou per revolution.

 

[jcdammeyer]

Why don't you have access to a level anymore?

If you borrowed one to get things setup, I'd wait for a deal and buy one. Floors move. I find I have to adjust as the seasons pass. Nice to have a level handy.

The lender is no longer available to lend his. I have found someone else. But first the pads. And now I've screwed up existing level after running into this issue.
I could just put it on the left over pieces of oak but I think I'd rather raise it on metal spacers.
Gives me time to contemplate where to mount the power cabinet.

 

[jcdammeyer]

Here's a photo of the foot. The large washer up against the cast iron leg is 60mm in diameter. This foot is already pretty well at full extension. The gap between it and the bases section gets smaller as the screw is turned.

This piece is just under 100mm long and 78mm in diameter so I can slice it into 4 pieces and make some disks about 16 to 20mm or so thick. Not even sure if it's worth turning down the diameter.

 

[combustable herbage]

I saw these on sale once at princess auto so I bought a set they are for an rv I had some thoughts they might be ok for a lathe or a mill but I never used them.

https://www.princessauto.com/en/4-pc-rv-jack-anti-vibration-pads/product/PA0008920845

 

[Susquatch]

This piece is just under 100mm long and 78mm in diameter so I can slice it into 4 pieces and make some disks about 16 to 20mm or so thick. Not even sure if it's worth turning down the diameter.

Man, you got yourself into quite the game of dominos....... But it is what it is.

If I were you, I'd be getting new taller feet for the lathe.

Either that or shave the boards for your tool cabinet down a bit.

But if you are gunna make foot extensions from that bar, I would NOT turn down the diameter. Instead, I would put a small recess in them - say 75 thou - to take the original foot. The last thing you want is your lathe moving around on those skates. Although you prolly don't want to, I'd also consider bolting them to the floor with concrete screws before setting your lathe on them. Basically, recess them for the lathe feet and then drill and recess again for the concrete screws.

 

[Dabbler]

This piece is just under 100mm long and 78mm in diameter so I can slice it into 4 pieces and make some disks about 16 to 20mm or so thick. Not even sure if it's worth turning down the diameter.

Here's a tip that's a little more work, but very well worth it... Mill out the bottom of the foot to make 3 equally spaced pads. They only need be .100 high or so. This will give much more stability, and inhibits the foot from 'walking under vibration:

 

[Susquatch]

Here's a tip that's a little more work, but very well worth it... Mill out the bottom of the foot to make 3 equally spaced pads. They only need be .100 high or so. This will give much more stability, and inhibits the foot from 'walking under vibration:

I LOVE THIS.

It addresses the problem I was struggling with - walking. Maybe not perfectly, but certainly better than plain flat bottoms. Screwing them down is better still but most of us (me included) don't want to drill holes in our floors.

Also VERY EASY to machine. Three passes through the foot separated by 120 degrees with the right size end mill will make the required pads perfectly.

I still advocate a 75 thou recess on the other side to retain the old feet.

I'm gunna swipe this idea to make better feet for my mill and lathe too.

 

[jcdammeyer]

Ha ha. And I thought I made things complicated. I know I didn't pay nearly this price back in around 2008 or so. Even the kbctools catalog I have lists it $15 cheaper. But these are what I have.

Royal Machine Mounts – Royal Products

Royal machine mounts simplify installation, reduce noise & isolate vibration of injection molding machines, presses, lathes, mills & grinders.

royalproducts.com

Results Page 1 :: KBC Tools & Machinery

www.kbctools.ca

This shows how the range of upward adjustment is limited. But, put a 20mm thick 60mm diameter metal washer on top of the existing 60mm diameter washer and then set the machine on it and the entire machine is raised by 20mm.

 

[Susquatch]

Ha ha. And I thought I made things complicated. I know I didn't pay nearly this price back in around 2008 or so. Even the kbctools catalog I have lists it $15 cheaper. But these are what I have.

is shows how the range of upward adjustment is limited. But, put a 20mm thick 60mm diameter metal washer on top of the existing 60mm diameter washer and then set the machine on it and the entire machine is raised by 20mm.

Wow. That is the weirdest thing I've ever seen. Here is a screen grab to facilitate discussion.

If I understand what I'm seeing, the jack screws are threaded into the center piston and raise the center piston by pushing against the bottom of the outer cylinder. The piston slides in the cylinder and is probably keyed to stop rotation. It also appears to have a stop snap ring to stop it from coming out completely.

Fair enough. Adding a thick washer (I'll call it a sleeve) will raise the machine by the sleeve thickness.

A few things I don't like though.

1. As the piston nears the top of the cylinder, it probably gets wobbly.

2. The entire weight of the machine is actually resting on the bolts acting like pillars. While the rubber will definitely help, I think it loses its effective range of authority as the piston is extended. This could get shaky causing loss of lathe rigidity.

3. The whole affair is raised with a small square end on the bolt. I'd rather have seem a hex head or something similar.

Anyway, those are just my thoughts. The functionality will be what it is.

Are you gunna make thicker washers? If so, I'd size them so that the piston is near the bottom of its travel when adjusted to the working height.

 

[jcdammeyer]

Fair enough. Adding a thick washer (I'll call it a sleeve) will raise the machine by the sleeve thickness.

A few things I don't like though.

1. As the piston nears the top of the cylinder, it probably gets wobbly.

2. The entire weight of the machine is actually resting on the bolts acting like pillars. While the rubber will definitely help, I think it loses its effective range of authority as the piston is extended. This could get shaky causing loss of lathe rigidity.

3. The whole affair is raised with a small square end on the bolt. I'd rather have seem a hex head or something similar.

Anyway, those are just my thoughts. The functionality will be what it is.

Are you gunna make thicker washers? If so, I'd size them so that the piston is near the bottom of its travel when adjusted to the working height.

Mine has a hex head at the top. Not square. And it's not wobbly at all. And when you look at the other type that just sit on the threaded bolt this one had more support. It's why I went that way... I think...

And here are the spacers. I will probably need to bore them out a bit. These were just drilled with a 1/2" bit and the inside area of the castings was so porous, not to mention soft, that the drill bit really didn't stay on track very well.

They are 3.00" diameter. 15.6mm thick. Why that thickness? More on that in the next posting.

 

[jcdammeyer]

No extra work was required on the spacers. I used the old long handle throw out bearing compression handle from my SAAB repair days. That and a couple of square tubing pieces to lever up each end of the lathe enough to be able to slide the spacers into place, drop the bolts in and screw it down again.

End result is in the photo.

Another example of "If there's a hard way to do it I'll figure it out and do it that way".

Oh and it's impossible to make the cabinet fall over with the top drawer all the way out and nothing in the bottom drawers.

Now if I could only figure out how to easily pull off that stupid label on the bottom drawer.