# New PM1127 Lathe Setup



## robotwizard (Oct 17, 2017)

Took delivery of my new PM1127 lathe a few weeks ago. Aside from a broken crate, some minor damage to the machine, and some missing pieces lost in transit due to the open crate, it looks like a pretty decent piece of machinery.  I was able to hammer out the smashed up rear splashpan. A little brazing where the sheet metal had cracked and smoothed it out with some body filler and it looks pretty decent. Entire piece still needs topcoat.  Does anyone know of a good paint color match for the PM white? 
I didn't buy the stand for it --I think they were out of stock anyway. Still waiting for Matt to send replacements for the rest of the missing and broken pieces, so won't  be making any chips yet without a key for three jaw chuck etc. , so focusing on design and fab of a new stand. 
I'm considering a design used for lathes on ships called a "spanning beam" or "torsion beam". The lathe will be bolted to a piece of 8" x 1/4" thick wall square tubing. Debating on whether or not to fill the tube with epoxy granite to add dampening to the stand. The tailstock end of the stand will be allowed to "float" on a single balljoint with a foot that contacts the floor. The old sheldon lathes used this method too. These methods are known to work well in situations where materials or structures are less stable and could cause the bed to be twisted and not level.  I like the idea that others on this forum have done putting a toolbox under the stand. I should be able to fit a Harbor Frieght top chest underneath and still have room for a small coolant tank.
Many have improved the rigidity of the toolpost mount and compound on small chineese made lathes by adding steel plates, etc. The PM1127 appears to be more rigid than others I've seen, the crosslide looks wider and more metal. Has anyone done any  upgrades to increase rigidity in this area? Is it worthwhile? Are there any other popular upgrades to this machine? I was cosidering adding an adjustable clamping handle in place of the carriage lock bolt, but it looks like the handle would interfere with the cross slide gib adjustment bolts.


----------



## davidpbest (Oct 18, 2017)

I used a spanning beam on the stand I built for my PM1340 and it worked out great.   For the beam, I used 10x3 ships channel rather than a box beam, simplifying the lathe-to-beam mounting, and the rigidity has been fine.   I also put the chip pan under the beam and made it removable.  Details here on the stand (https://www.flickr.com/photos/davidpbest/albums/72157672474119185) and here on the lathe upgrades (https://www.flickr.com/photos/davidpbest/albums/72157683014913836).   Good luck with your new lathe.


----------



## robotwizard (Oct 20, 2017)

Thanks for sharing pics of your project David. I enjoyed looking at them.Very nice work. Looks  like the lathe just barely fit through the cellar door opening. My situation is similar with the machines just squeezing through, but at least you had gravity in your favor LOL...hope you never have to  move it out of there. 
As far as the torsion beam, the tubing has the best torsional properties. I had a piece of 8" I-beam I was planning to use, but when I learned this I was lucky enough to have a friend that needed the I-beam for a log splitter and had a piece of 8" tubing to trade. The channel is great for resisting vertical deflection and spanning if it is placed on edge. Both square and round tubing best for torsional resistance.  Both the channel and I-beam do offer some torsional resistance tho so the effort does help. 
Attaching to the tubing isn't really a big deal, I will just drill through both sides, tack some small tubing on the inside where bolts pass through, and use long bolts that pass through bed mounts and both sides of tubing. I guess I could weld nuts on the inside of the top of the tube as an alternative. 
Still trying to find a good color match for the PM white... you would think it would be easy but there are a lot of different whites LOL.


----------



## BogusSVO (Oct 20, 2017)

Look at  Ford Wimbledon White,  to me it looks to be about that same cream color.


----------



## gman10259 (Dec 22, 2017)

Do have any pics of your PM 1127? I picked up this Weiss WBL290F this month. Been told it looks like the PM 1127. The Weiss model spec sheet states 1500 watt BLDC Motor for this lathe. I believe the PM 1127 come with a VFD and 1hp AC Motor?


----------



## MSD0 (Dec 23, 2017)

My PM1127 also suffered some damage during shipping. Not sure if they dropped it or hit every speed bump at full speed, but the pallet was practically destroyed and the bottom of the crate had separated. Once you get it set up, plan on spending some time getting everything cleaned up. You’ll likely find a few things that need a little work. I ended up replacing a lot of the screws and other hardware as they are really soft and strip easily.


----------



## robotwizard (Jun 4, 2018)

This is what I came up with for stand. Seems very stable, even without levelers out and sitting on casters. The tailstock end has one leveler in the middle to compliment the ship beam design. I put a bag of sand inside the tube to help dampen oscillations. I designed it for a harbor freight 44" tool chest to fit underneath on the right hand side with the lid removed. Since then harbor freight has changed the dimensions of these tool chests and now call them "series 2 ". The series 2's are about 3 1/2" deeper than the original boxes. Fortunately the stand will have just enough room to accommadate the newer model.  Planning to add a rubber sheet that will attach to the rear splash pan, go under the bed, and hang over the front of the square beam and direct swarf into a  chip/coolant return tray that will set  inside the area between the square beam and the front horizontal tubing. The system is only uploading one picture, so I'll try to post the rest of them in another post...


----------



## robotwizard (Jun 4, 2018)

Pictures...


----------



## robotwizard (Jun 4, 2018)

more pictures...


----------



## robotwizard (Jun 4, 2018)

...


----------



## robotwizard (Jun 4, 2018)

...


----------



## robotwizard (Jun 4, 2018)




----------



## robotwizard (Jun 4, 2018)

...


----------



## robotwizard (Jun 4, 2018)

...


----------



## MSD0 (Jun 4, 2018)

Wow, your not messing around with that stand!


----------

