# Leveling machines and stand designs



## GA Gyro (Oct 4, 2014)

Being someone that is going to receive new machines in the near future, I have read numerous threads by new owners:
Receive, open, unpack, assemble, clean, first chips... These are good reads, thx to the owners for posting them!
Some folks have been quite creative with height extending, mobility, and load carrying stands below the stand supplied by QMT/PM.  

I thought I would start a thread for folks to ask questions about leveling, stand building, and other issues associated with supporting, assembly, and placement of a new (or new to the current owner) machine tool.  

All ideas and experiences are welcome, references to threads are welcome also.  

Some theory questions about what and why are most welcome... THX in advance to folks who post from their experience and/or expertise.

OK, here is a theory question I have:  Seems to me a frame of square or rectangular tubing below the existing base would be advantageous, especially for those of us who have uneven floors and/or may need to move the machine from time to time.
I read somewhere a 'base frame' can be 'too ridged', in the sense it may be difficult to level the machine properly.  
Would someone mind explaining this in a bit more detail... note I have a couple of secondary questions on this topic... thx.  

GA


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## Cami (Oct 4, 2014)

I had a 12x36 lathe years ago that I installed in a barn with a sloped floor(~3" diff over its length.  It had a large leg and baseplate on each end and what I did was:

1 Set long wedge anchors in the cement floor.

2 Position the machine how I wanted by using washers/nuts above and below the base plates.

3 Pack non-shrinking grout under the base plates.

It was solid but I think one leg is shorter than the other from standing there so many hours...always pondered making a level dais....

I also used a bonding agent and chipped keyways into the floor but wonder if I really needed it. 

How about mounting a lathe vertically to automatically compensate for backlash when running the carriage?


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## JohnsonFabrication (Oct 12, 2014)

When i leveled the bridgeport i used to have, I made good use of 12inch long shim stock, in varying thicknesses. My garage floor slopes quite a bit, especially near the walls, in two directions. Took me all day with the precision level to get it plumb. My new machine has jack screws in the base, and i'll be using them to level it up, the factory ones were too short, so i have to get longer ones, but should be a lot easier. The new PM25MV is also a lot lighter than the bridgeport was, so one heck of a lot easier to maneuver around.


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## Franko (Mar 10, 2015)

I'm expecting delivery of a PM1127 sometime this year (give or take 10 weeks). Because of the nature of my shop and activities, I want all my tools to be movable to make room for the widely varied projects I undertake.

For the last 10 years, my Grizzly G4000 9x19 lathe has lived on a 37" long tool box on wheels with a good solid plywood top liner. I doubt it was ever exactly level, but if it caused any problems, I'm not aware of them.

My plan for a stand for the PM1127 is to use a HF heavy duty 42" box I already have and extend the top to overhang enough to support the lathe with a couple glued layers of 3/4" baltic birch plywood. The box is very rigid and solidly made — rated for 3000 pounds. Longer tool cases are vastly expensive and out of my budget.

It is a bit tall with the 5" casters, so I've designed a trolly base that will replace the casters and lower the rig to about an inch clearance above the floor, lowering the bottom clearance by about 4" which will put the 1.5" thick top about 36" from the floor (it's 39" with the casters). On one end, will be a couple of 3 or 4" steel wheels outboard the end of the case on an axle. Maybe I'll make a leveling  gizmo for the axle. Maybe not. My shop floor is fairly level, but with a 1" in 12' slope.

On the other end will be adjustable leveling feet, also outboard the end of the case. Swiveling casters on this heavy of a rig has never worked that well for me. To move it, I'll make a custom mule with attachment points on the trolly. I'm toying with the idea of making the mule steerable to increase stability when making sharp turns.

My main concern is that the 18" box is not deep enough to make a sufficiently deep foot print for the lathe. If I decide that is so, I can widen the trolly to extend a few inches on the back side of the case. I do not know the footprint of the regular lathe stand. Nicole said she'd send me the dimensions of the base when she has one to measure.

If someone has the stand, I'd love to know the dimensions of the top and bottom footprint of one of the pedestals.

Anyway, that's the plan so far. I have lots of time to think about it. When I get around to drawing it up, I'll post the drawing for review, criticism and suggestions.


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## great white (Mar 10, 2015)

I bought an old medical cart to modify for my Atlas TH42:

















Weighs somewhere around 150-200 lbs. Interior is all square tube skeleton and welded. Tops are 1/8" plate. Caster are medical grade.

Planing to cut the high top down to level with the lower and weld it all up. Weld a beam across the top underside and bolt the lathe down.

Install 4 "feet" on the bottom out of square tube that can be lowered to raise the wheels off the floor and have some sort of leveling (ie: bolts, screw down pegs, etc)  for floor irregularities.

I was just going to build my own stand out of square tube, but at 75 bucks this one was just too tempting to pass up. I'd pay more than 75 bucks for just the casters.

Now granted, im a newb but the whole "leveling" thing seems just a bit wonky to me. Seems to me that a lathe would run sideways just fine as long as the bed is true and supported and the headstock is properly aligned.

Maybe there's more to it than I can see, but it sure seems "trueness" is more important than "level" to me?


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