# Should I put leveling feet on my lathe?



## Pcmaker (Feb 19, 2019)

My PM1127 lathe just came in this afternoon. The table top isn't flat, so the lathe wobbles when I push it. I was going to bolt it to the table top, but now I"m thinking of adding leveling feet on all the holes on the feet, in between the lathe and the pan. Would this be a good idea? Seems like it's a lot easier fix than bolting to the table, and shimming to level.

There's 6 holes on the feet of the lathe.


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## BROCKWOOD (Feb 19, 2019)

Levelling feet can make life easier. I'd want to secure it to the table as well for stability.


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## darkzero (Feb 19, 2019)

If the lathe is not very secure I personally would bolt it down. But it depends, does your bed have any twist in it? I used to have an 8x14 lathe & it was small enough where the bed didn't really twist much on fairly flat table top.

I would check your bed for twist & shim if needed along with bolting it down. With just leveling feet it still might not be secure enough but only way to know is to try.


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## Pcmaker (Feb 19, 2019)

I don't think the bed is twisted, it's brand new. I do know the table is not flat because the 4x4 top holding the plywood is warped. I don't want to just bolt it down to the table and have the bed twist to match the table.


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## darkzero (Feb 19, 2019)

It doesn't matter if the lathe is new or not, it can have bed twist just by the weight of the lathe sitting on an uneven surface. You need a machinists level to check. You can also check bed twist by seeing if the lathe cuts a taper. There are plenty of videos on YT showing how to check for bed twist.


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## darkzero (Feb 19, 2019)

The reason I think bolting & shimming is the better solution is cause putting mounting feet on the lathe's mounting points will be a very narrow foot print. It'll probably make the lathe more unstable. Lathe's aren't normally leveled from those mounting points with just leveling feet.


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## Tozguy (Feb 19, 2019)

Pcmaker said:


> I don't think the bed is twisted, it's brand new. I do know the table is not flat because the 4x4 top holding the plywood is warped. I don't want to just bolt it down to the table and have the bed twist to match the table.



Agree, no reason to think that the lathe is twisted. I would consider bolting only the headstock end to the table and leave the tailstock to float on the table. Put levelling feet on the table legs if necessary.


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## bill70j (Feb 19, 2019)

Pcmaker said:


> the 4x4 top holding the plywood is warped. I don't want to just bolt it down to the table and have the bed twist to match the table.


If your 4X4 top is stable, you might consider using winding sticks to plane it flat.   Then reattach the plywood top, shim the bed level and thru-bolt it securely to the top.  

The only issue I see is that with a soft plywood surface, your leveling effort will be complicated because the lathe feet will sink into the wood as you tighten the securing bolts.


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## BROCKWOOD (Feb 19, 2019)

You could make really big fender washers to go under the feet. I really believe you will want to anchor to the table - if not now, eventually. See, my table top lathe, to this newbie at 600 lbs wasn't going anywhere, so I set it on a piece of 5/8 steel plate I had that covered the footprint beautifully, leveled the table & let the chips fly. Not sturdy enough. Now it has 5/8" bolts going through the steel plate & steel table into 2" square tube running front to back. Now my chips are much closer to Abom etc...


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## ttabbal (Feb 19, 2019)

Mine is anchored with the levelers I made and it's super solid. With a wood bench like ours, they can drift a little over time. Being able to adjust them helps to keep the lathe from getting twisted from that. I've read a few people say that they adjust their lathes on metal benches too, though I don't know how common that is. 

The leveling feet I made are super simple and there are photos in my wood bench thread I've linked to you before. The only slightly more difficult to find parts were the fine thread adjustment bolts and nuts. The big box stores around here don't stock fine thread. I just got them from the local Fastenall branch. Loads of online sources are also available. A decent tap is highly recommended. Tapping steel with a HF tap is not something I ever want to do again.


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## Pcmaker (Feb 19, 2019)

The entire thing is rocking back and forth, even after shimming. I'm gonna have to make a whole new table.


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## Tozguy (Feb 19, 2019)

That lathe is many times more stable than that table is. It is built that way. There is no way that wood table is ever going to provide a positive impact on the stability of the lathe. Before fixing something that ain't broken run the lathe and do this test.  


darkzero said:


> You can also check bed twist by seeing if the lathe cuts a taper.



If you bolt the lathe solid to the table at both ends you are exposing the lathe to needless stress from the table over time.


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## Tozguy (Feb 19, 2019)

Pcmaker said:


> The entire thing is rocking back and forth, even after shimming. I'm gonna have to make a whole new table.


What is causing it to rock back and forth?...is it from the lathe running or just from a push and pull by hand?


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## WarrenP (Feb 19, 2019)

If the table rocks back and forth cant you just shim the legs? Unless your saying the table itself flexes when you push on it, if so then I would rebuild it or put braces to make the table more rigid.


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## tjb (Feb 19, 2019)

Pcmaker said:


> The entire thing is rocking back and forth, even after shimming. I'm gonna have to make a whole new table.


Judging from the first picture on this thread, it looks like your lathe is sitting on the bench you were building and getting info for in a thread you started in October 2018.  I remember from that post myself and others making the suggestion that you put diagonal reinforcements on the legs to prevent potential wobbling or instability.  If you didn't do that the 'rocking' you're experience may be for that reason.  I recollect your stand was very well built, but I don't recall seeing any later pictures with diagonal reinforcement.  If you haven't already done so, you may wish to add diagonals to the back and both sides before scrapping the bench.  That may solve your problem without a lot of extra cost, time and frustration.  There was a lot of good commentary in your earlier thread.  You might want to re-visit it before starting over.  You built a nice looking bench.

Regards,
Terry


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## Mitch Alsup (Feb 19, 2019)

Pcmaker said:


> The entire thing is rocking back and forth, even after shimming. I'm gonna have to make a whole new table.



You can shimm up the existing table, then bolt the lath to the table with thee shims still in place.


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## whitmore (Feb 19, 2019)

Pcmaker said:


> The entire thing is rocking back and forth, even after shimming. I'm gonna have to make a whole new table.


That seems like a good idea.   The flat surface isn't important for the lathe, but rigidity of its support is.  The
legs or framework that bears the weight ideally goes straight down from the lathe hardpoints to a concrete floor.
Crossbracing of the left and right legs/pillars completes the structure, and it might look a lot like a pair of pillars
with a connecting panel when complete (that's the classic lathe stand).   

The basic principle, is that wood doesn't stretch, nor crush along the grain, but DOES twist and bend.   So the
support for the lathe should be kept rigid by truss-like members, in compression or tension (no torsion or bending).


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## warrjon (Feb 19, 2019)

This is what I would do.

Get a couple lengths of 19x50mm flat bar. Drill and tap holes where the mounting bolts are on the lathe so you can bolt the lathe to the bar. Fix the bar to the plywood and use jacking bolts at the lathe mounting points to level the lathe. You can see the jacking bolts here, they thread into the feet and the nuts are used to tighten to the lathe.


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## dulltool17 (Feb 19, 2019)

Epoxy bed the table top. Epoxy should be self-leveling.


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## bill70j (Feb 20, 2019)

Pcmaker said:


> The entire thing is rocking back and forth, even after shimming. I'm gonna have to make a whole new table.


That would be a shame. considering the time and effort you put into it.  Short of building a new metal stand, there may an easy, cheap, and workable solution using your existing 4X4 frame.

You might consider replacing your plywood top with either a solid core or hollow core door.  A solid core door made from a manufactured wood product would be heavy, flat, and stable.   A hollow core door made from a honeycomb frame would also work, but would not be as heavy.

You could shim the door to your frame, secure it, then through bolt your bed to the top.  My experience tells me you would also need to place the bed on metal plates prior to bolting it to the top.  Otherwise it will be a pain to level it.  Those bed feet WILL sink into the wood -- ever so slightly -- and will negatively affect your leveling effort.

I assume also that your frame legs are securely attached to the floor.


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## Pcmaker (Feb 21, 2019)

I worked on the table and there's just no salvaging it. I'm going to have to build another one. Not sure if I should go with 1 1/2" or 2" square tubing frame. Also, is MDF better than plywood as a top when it comes to warping with humidity?


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## WarrenP (Feb 21, 2019)

You can always buy a heavy duty tool box to put it on from harbor freight, etc.. might be cheaper than building 2 yourself. A nice sturdy table plus drawers already in it.


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## whitmore (Feb 21, 2019)

Pcmaker said:


> I worked on the table and there's just no salvaging it. I'm going to have to build another one. Not sure if I should go with 1 1/2" or 2" square tubing frame. Also, is MDF better than plywood as a top when it comes to warping with humidity?


MDF, with humidity and stress, curves; sealing/painting on all surfaces helps, but takes a LOT of paint.   Marine plywood or
exterior-glue hardwood plywood is good, but the 'nice wood' face is thin, and will get some knocks from hunks of tooling.
You do NOT want soft wood products between the lathe and its supports.   The tabletop should be considered a utility
shelf, not part of the structure.  

Straight-grain wood, stressed along the grain, is stable enough to connect the
machine to the floor, and can be nailed/glued/bolted effectively  (I'm not much of a welder).    Then
there's truss plates... but Liquid Nails is more useful  for DIY work.


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## tjb (Feb 22, 2019)

Pcmaker said:


> I worked on the table and there's just no salvaging it. I'm going to have to build another one. Not sure if I should go with 1 1/2" or 2" square tubing frame. Also, is MDF better than plywood as a top when it comes to warping with humidity?


I'm assuming you mean 1 1/2" or 2" cold rolled square tubing.  I've built several stands and workbenches over the years with square tubing bases.  I've always preferred bulk.  The smallest I've used is 2" and the largest is 3".  Some are stationary; others are on wheels.  I am of the opinion that for a workbench, it's safer to over-build than to under-.  I've never regretted making that decision.  Sometimes you may end up re-purposing the bench and the additional bulk may be more of an asset than you realize.  It's definitely more money, but I'd suggest you consider going metal all the way and put a steel top on it.  For your lathe, you can easily get by with 1/4" sheet metal.  I built one a few years ago that's about 2'x5' with a 2" square tubing base and a 1/4" sheet metal top.  As in your case, I made it for a specific piece of equipment - probably with a footprint and weight similar to your PM1127.  I NEVER had to worry about stability.  Ended up selling the lathe that was on it.  Kept the stand, though, and have re-purposed it twice.

Almost all my stands and benches have 1/2" or 1" tops and range from 3'x5' up to 4'x8'.  Definitely overkill, but I've yet to run into a project or piece of equipment that I can't use them for.  I've found that you can always find another decent piece of equipment if you're patient, but good luck finding a heavy duty stand.  If they're well-built, folks rarely part with them.  Go full metal.  You won't regret it.

Regards,
Terry


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## Pcmaker (Feb 22, 2019)

I still have a piece of 22" x 65" piece of 10 gauge of plate sheet metal. It's more than big enough to cover the new table I'm going to build. The lathe drip pan is only 17" by 46".


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## tjb (Feb 22, 2019)

Pcmaker said:


> I still have a piece of 22" x 65" piece of 10 gauge of plate sheet metal. It's more than big enough to cover the new table I'm going to build. The lathe drip pan is only 17" by 46".


That dog'll hunt.


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## Pcmaker (Feb 23, 2019)

I wish it was 8 feet long so I can replace the entire table. The plate is not long enough to hold both lathe and mill.


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## tjb (Feb 23, 2019)

Pcmaker said:


> I wish it was 8 feet long so I can replace the entire table. The plate is not long enough to hold both lathe and mill.


With the proper bracing and stretchers, you could do the top in two pieces.

Regards,
Terry


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## Pcmaker (Feb 23, 2019)

I'm thinking of cutting the current table to the middle leg so the mill can still use it


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## stupoty (Feb 23, 2019)

Have you thought about some sort of self leveling epoxy?  You could pour some into a wooden dam on the table top to create pads for the lath to sit on.

Stu


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## Tozguy (Feb 23, 2019)

Or cut the legs down on your current table some 3'' and pour a 3'' cement top (like kitchen counter tops), armoured en all.
Bolt the lathe solid to it. That would help control vibration and prevent twist.




__





						Concrete lathe bench top
					

I am just about to make a bench for my second 9A and I want to create a rock solid and flat top.  Also Some substantial weight would not hurt so I have been thinking about a concrete top.  I was thinking about 2-3” of steel reinforced concrete.  I know that I could mold it nearly dead flat so...



					www.practicalmachinist.com


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## tjb (Feb 23, 2019)

Pcmaker said:


> I'm thinking of cutting the current table to the middle leg so the mill can still use it


That could work.  Here's a suggestion.  (Maybe not a good one without physically seeing the table.)  You might want to try that first.  Then, if it fails, you're not yet committed on the new table and re-think it if necessary.

Regards,
Terry


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## Pcmaker (Feb 25, 2019)

I've been turning stainless steel today and in about 4 inches, there's around .0008 taper from end to end. Is this good or bad? The lathe is still on the same table. Both table and lathe are unleveled.


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## WarrenP (Feb 26, 2019)

I guess that would be apprx 2.4 thou over 12 inches... correct?


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## Pcmaker (Feb 26, 2019)

WarrenP said:


> I guess that would be apprx 2.4 thou over 12 inches... correct?



Sounds about right. Haven't checked, though. I only measured for taper once so far.


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## Latinrascalrg1 (Feb 26, 2019)

I was gonna suggest pouring a 2" thick Concrete top.  If you plan ahead you can place some anchors into the wet concrete to make things easier down the road and best of all you can keep the current bench exactly as it sits!


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