# Mounting And Leveling My New G0602



## don45 (May 11, 2015)

My new lathe arrived in perfect condition and the wonderful UPS Freight man backed his truck up my steep, narrow curvy drive and unloaded it directly into my garage.  Excellent job Grizzly and UPS.
Now I'm working on designing and building a wooden bench which will be basically like the one built by COONCATBOB on practicalmachinist.  The legs will have heavy-duty levelers and the top will be one or two sheets on 3/4 plywood supported by a couple of extra 2x4's down the center with room to access lathe mounting bolts in between.  
My question is how to mount the lathe to the plywood top?  Originally I planned on adding 1/4 inch metal pads 5 x 12  or so.  If I use these should they go under or on top of chip tray?  The lathe foot is fairly large already and I don't like the effect of either if the above options.  Your thoughts and experiences?

Photo of CoonCatBob's bench
[GALLERY=][/GALLERY]


----------



## RJSakowski (May 11, 2015)

don45 said:


> My new lathe arrived in perfect condition and the wonderful UPS Freight man backed his truck up my steep, narrow curvy drive and unloaded it directly into my garage.  Excellent job Grizzly and UPS.
> Now I'm working on designing and building a wooden bench which will be basically like the one built by COONCATBOB on practicalmachinist.  The legs will have heavy-duty levelers and the top will be one or two sheets on 3/4 plywood supported by a couple of extra 2x4's down the center with room to access lathe mounting bolts in between.
> My question is how to mount the lathe to the plywood top?  Originally I planned on adding 1/4 inch metal pads 5 x 12  or so.  If I use these should they go under or on top of chip tray?  The lathe foot is fairly large already and I don't like the effect of either if the above options.  Your thoughts and experiences?
> 
> ...


Don, I have a G0602 as well and have also mounted its smaller brother, the G4000.  My mount was on metal in both cases to eliminate the possibility of warping of wood twisting the bed.  However most people use a laminated wood surface with no apparent ill effects.  If it were me, I would glue the two 3/4" plywood pieces together to make a 1-1/2 thick laminate.
As to mounting your plates above or below the chip pan, if you mount above, you  have to clean around them when cleaning the pan.  If you mount below, you should consider recessing them into the plywood so they are flush with the plywood surface.  The chip pan is rather thin and would be flexing during use if there is an air gap underneath.  I also caulked around the edge of the chip pan to prevent chips from working their way underneath, although mine is mounted on 25 x 48" top to give me an 8" workspace at the front of the lathe. If your design puts the edge of the chip pan at the edge of the bench, that wouldn't be a problem.
Consider making large washers to distribute the compression load underneath and prevent the mount from loosening over time.  Some 2" square washers made from the same material as your pads would work nicely.

Bob


----------



## ch2co (May 11, 2015)

Don 
I mounted my 0602 on top of a sheet of 3/4" plywood covered with a sheet of galvanized steel. This sits on top of a set of 2x8's which in turn are bolted
to the top of a pair of old surplus steel laboratory cabinets with drawers and heavy duty levelers.  I thru-bolted the lathe through its plan and through 
all the layers of the top with a 3 x 3 x 1/4" steel plates.  I know that some worry about mounting on a wood top like this, unsure that it might warp, but
living in a dry environment pretty well eliminates this problem for me, now Wisconsin might be another story.  I also trimmed the top with a stainless 
steel angle around the outside edge which I did mainly because I happen to have a lot of it lying around.  The lathe is as solid as a rock.  I really 
recommend thru-bolting it to the top with a large washer or plate on the bottom side.

Chuck the Grumpy Old Guy


----------



## markknx (May 11, 2015)

Don,
Just a thought, why add shims under the lathe at all run your framing wood so it is under the mounting bolts. The chip pan will keep the lathe from sinking into the wood. sheet metal on top as mentioned above would help to but it also goes a long way in keeping the oil from soaking the wood.

Do Not torque the lathe mount bolts down hard this may twist the bed, just snug enough to keep them in and the lathe on the stand.

If you are looking for some ideas check this groups photos https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/10x22grizzlyandthelike/info. lots of good ideas. good group for this lathe. By the way did I mention I have G0602. good little lathe.
Check all your Oil ports to be sure they are clean so have come with the oil ports for the spindle bearing pretty plugged up.
Mark


----------



## RJSakowski (May 11, 2015)

markknx said:


> Do Not torque the lathe mount bolts down hard this may twist the bed, just snug enough to keep them in and the lathe on the stand.
> Mark


+1  If you are going to mount on wood, allowing the lathe to float makes sense.

Has any of the 0602 owners leveled the lathe bed with a machinist's level?  Comments on the process?  How about those mounted on a wood bench?  Any drift over time?


----------



## wrmiller (May 11, 2015)

Your lathe is 100 lbs heavier (at least) than my SB 8k but it is mounted on top of a tool box lower that has 3/4" plywood between the tool box and the lathe. To 'spread the load' so to speak, I put a couple of pieces of aluminum that I milled flat between the lathe and the plywood. I put the mounting bolts through everything, but didn't tighten them at all. They are there just to keep the lathe from moving sideways. Accuracy has not been a problem with the lathe set up like this in over a year.


----------



## markknx (May 11, 2015)

My g0602 is on a steel stand with a plywood top. The top is anchored with carriage bolts in like 10 spots. The lathe is just snugged down. I Leveled it and the first time I rechecked it About a month it needed some slight tweaking. I checked it like three times after that And it had not moved. I should check it again as it has been like a year since the last check. A all wood stand may move more from humidity though.
Hope this helps
Mark


----------



## markknx (May 11, 2015)

I should have added it has Been set up since May 2012.
Mark


----------



## don45 (May 12, 2015)

Thanks for all the tips and advice.   I think per Bob's suggestion I'm going to laminate two sheets of 3/4 plywood and recess steel plates into top.  I'm thinking 3/16 x 5 x 12?? I'm in Massachusetts, and in my garage I'll have lots of humidity swing.  Per your suggestions and other I've read it seems best to just snug the tail bolt.  With the rather massive casting and the large one-hole mount point I can't see it twisting.  I have a machinist level and parallels so I can get a good leveling to start and watch it from there.

Any other start-up suggestions?  Unlike the warnings, the lathe shipped with oil, but it is only just above 1/2 on the sight glass, not the 2/3 stated as proper level.  Is this oil ok, and is 1/2 ok to run break-in?

Thanks again for all of your responses.
Don


----------



## markknx (May 12, 2015)

I think 1/2 will do for break in. I'm sure you know to clean, clean, clean, as I said above make sure the two ball oilers on the top of the headstock are letting oil get to the spindle bearings. Go over all the ways readjusting the gibs. You sound like you know a bit about lathes and you have done your homework about this machine. Check the Yahoo link above looking for set up or new g0602 posts and you will find all the things you should need to know.  Some grat info, and mods for this lathe there.
Mark


----------



## brav65 (May 12, 2015)

Hey Don,  I typically glue and screw the sheets together.  It takes a lot of glue to get good coverage.  You want to spread the glue evenly on both pieces then slide them around to make sure you get good adhesion.  I would also seal all six sides of the wood with paint or poly.  I just did a top last week for a CNC router I am building and painted it with Rustoleum Hammered paint.  It came out great and looks like it is a thick metal plate.  I also band the panel with some hard wood as plywood tends to chip on the edges.  I have all of my smaller bench top tools mounted on tops like this.  Baltic Birch plywood is the best choice as it has no voids, but it is much more expensive.  I typically just use standard birch/oak or MDF for my tops.


----------



## tomh (May 12, 2015)

Don
When you oil the headstock do so with the lathe running, the spinning bearings will suck the oil down into the bearings filling up the resivoreis and will run out the front and the rear  of the spindle when full. This is normal as these have the open bearings like the old lathes such as the atlas /craftsman and others .

NOTE  Also when it flowes out it may be dark in colorat first  because of the factory  grease, that is in the bearings will desolve and run out with the oil.
Tomh


----------



## don45 (May 13, 2015)

Lots of good tips.  I in no rush as I'm in the middle of hardwood floors.  I'll read yahoo and other sources too.
Thanks,
Don


----------



## randyc (May 13, 2015)

It surprises me that no-one ever mentions using an aquarium stand for a small bench-mounted lathe.  These stands are relatively inexpensive, designed for _very_ heavy loads and available in many different sizes and shapes.

I have two lathes and the smallest one, an Emco weighing about 400 pounds I think, is bench-mounted.  It has been parked on a (free) 75 gallon aquarium stand for about 35 years.

Under the steel top, I welded some 1 inch steel straps on edge and positioned diagonally (mainly because I had the material and had no other use for it).  I added two layers of particle board, glued together, to the top of the stand.

The headstock is firmly bolted down to the stand but the tailstock mounting bolts are simply snugged so that the lathe doesn't move if the top contracts/expands with humidity/temperature.  And since I live in earthquake country, the stand is snugly attached to several wall studs


----------

