Advice Requested

[Blister]

Hi

I am looking for some advice please

I have just purchased a Poolewood euro 2000 lathe , the one with the cast iron bed , tailstock and toolrest , The later ones are box section steel

My request is this , Do I build a wooden bench to mount it on ?

or do I buy a steel one from Poolewood ?

Its quite a heave piece of kit at around 400 lbs

The workshop / shed where its going is on a concrete base then the shed sits on beams , the shed has a ply floor ,

Do I make a wooden bench , say 4 x 4 legs something nice and beefy

stand this on some 1" ply on top of the original ply floor ?

I would like to have storage below with doors to keep out all the turnings

Or do I cut out a section of the shed floor and stand the lathe on the concrete floor ? does anyone know any makers of steel beefy benches 70"
long with doors that will take this weight ??

Now Im confused

 

[RogerS]

Blister

I hummed and hahed about this after buying Trevtheturner's Hegner...pretty heavy but possibly not as heavy as yours. Trev had his build on two pillars made from concrete blocks and had a storage cupboard in the middle. I thought about adopting something similar but wanted to keep flexibility of movement for the future.

Rowley has quite a lot to say in his book and has fairly detailed plans for a bench. In the end I went down that route. Pretty solid, hasn't collapsed yet and the lathe doesn't seem to want to shake it to bits. I can thoroughly recommend his book particularly if you're starting out turning.

Roger

 

[Blister]

Blister

I hummed and hahed about this after buying Trevtheturner's Hegner...pretty heavy but possibly not as heavy as yours. Trev had his build on two pillars made from concrete blocks and had a storage cupboard in the middle. I thought about adopting something similar but wanted to keep flexibility of movement for the future.

Rowley has quite a lot to say in his book and has fairly detailed plans for a bench. In the end I went down that route. Pretty solid, hasn't collapsed yet and the lathe doesn't seem to want to shake it to bits. I can thoroughly recommend his book particularly if you're starting out turning.

Roger

What Rowley book is that ??

 

[Shultzy]

My lathe, although not as heavy as yours, is mounted on four 4x4 frames. Two verticals at 16"ctrs and two horizontals, top one hangs 4" over front of front vertical, bottom one is 3" off floor. For this weight I would suggest no more than 2' centres. Hope this makes sense.

I think the secret is to make sure the legs are bolted to the floor (I used angle iron) and bolted to the wall of the workshop. Make sure you allow the lathe head to swivel 90 degs and overhang the bench for large bowls.

 

[RogerS]

What Rowley book is that ??

This one. Excellent