Advice For New Basement Shop Lathe

[Eddyde]

I realize it might not necessarily be applicable to your situation, but here's a link to my journey:

Lathe Delivery, Backhoe Required

Hi All, Back in mid March, I found the lathe I'd been looking for on eBay, a 13" Clausing Colchester. The lathe looked pretty good in the pictures and the description sounded accurate from what could see. The price was around the usual for that machine. I took a chance and put in a lowball...

www.hobby-machinist.com

 

[jwmay]

I lowered a 900 pound lathe down concrete steps on a skid. It worked fine, and I don’t recommend it. I’d also be loathe to disassemble a machine to get it down there. But it is fairly common among this crowd. I’ve also brought a smaller lathe down in pieces.
Either way, if you’re comfortable with the size of the 1228, then I don't see any reason to buy a bigger machine. If you do that, then you also don’t need to mess with disassembly.
The only thing I’d say is NOT to run the machine without oil in the gearbox. But also don’t send it down the steps with oil in the headstock gearbox. I did that backwards…it’s messy.

 

[Huub Buis]

Yes, the bed is so heavy that all parts need to be taken off.
Repositioning the head stock isn't a problem. It "can't be adjusted at all" , or, on some larger lathes, the head stock angle is adjustable.
This is how I measure the head stock alignment

 

[projectnut]

How far do you break down a lathe in the 13x40 range? Say it’s 1200-1500lbs

I completely disassembled the lathe and took the pieces down the basement stairs on a refrigerator dolly. The bare machine weighs a little over 1,600 lbs. The major parts to be removed from the base were the headstock, carriage, and the tailstock. Then the chip pan was unbolted so both the end cabinets could be moved separately.

I moved everything but the motor/drive cabinet down the stairs myself. I didn't have anything big enough to handle the 800 lb. motor and drive cabinet, so I looked into renting a stair climber dolly. Nothing was available that could lift that weight and it would have cost over $1,700.00 to purchase one. That's when I contacted the movers.

It cost $600.00 to have them move the cabinet down the stairs and position it near the final destination. They were very professional. They laid plywood across the entire path so as not to damage anything. One person was operating the dolly, and 3 others were assisting from above and below. It took about 45 minutes from the time they arrived to the time they left.

Here are some pictures of a few of the machines in the shop.

 

[Jud96]

I completely disassembled the lathe and took the pieces down the basement stairs on a refrigerator dolly. The bare machine weighs a little over 1,600 lbs. The major parts to be removed from the base were the headstock, carriage, and the tailstock. Then the chip pan was unbolted so both the end cabinets could be moved separately.

I moved everything but the motor/drive cabinet down the stairs myself. I didn't have anything big enough to handle the 800 lb. motor and drive cabinet, so I looked into renting a stair climber dolly. Nothing was available that could lift that weight and it would have cost over $1,700.00 to purchase one. That's when I contacted the movers.

It cost $600.00 to have them move the cabinet down the stairs and position it near the final destination. They were very professional. They laid plywood across the entire path so as not to damage anything. One person was operating the dolly, and 3 others were assisting from above and below. It took about 45 minutes from the time they arrived to the time they left.

Here are some pictures of a few of the machines in the shop.

That's awesome! How much trouble is it getting the headstock back in alignment and setup correctly?

 

[projectnut]

There was no trouble getting everything realigned. The headstock was pinned with taper pins. I just aligned everything, reinserted the pins, and tightened down the bolts. The headstock bolts to the ways, so there's little chance it can be off center. After the assembly was complete, I used a test bar to be sure the headstock and tailstock were properly aligned.

 

[Jud96]

Awesome! This makes me feel better about buying a larger 12x36 or 13x40 machine

 

[Smithdoor]

I am retiring my old lathe do to overwhelming mechanical issues I don't have time for. I want to run the machine, not work on it. Having said that, what NEW lathe would you all recommend for a basement shop? Weight is unfortunately a concern, but I don't have a garage/pole barn/shop to put a lathe in so my basement has to do for now. I'll be using the lathe for barrel work and tinkering around at home with. I have been looking at the Precision Matthews 1228VF-LB and it fits my size and budget. I really like the PM-1236T, but it's both a stretch on my budget and the weight concerns me getting it down my basement steps. I have also looked at some of Grizzly's offerings. Most of my experience has been with higher end lathes from Clausing, American, and Monarch. My only experience with an import is from an older JET. Any input is appreciated, thanks!

Just remember it is to put heavy machinery in basement but now you to move out.
I have seen a lot ads saying free but you move in basement.

I would keep under 250 pounds.
House Moving companies have limit to 500 to 750 pounds but with extra cost. You over that limit you could have trouble.

My wife want to switch a my lathe to under 150 pounds. So sold my old lathe and purchased a mini lathe it does everything I need.
Two guys and move lathe up down as need.

Dave

 

[Ischgl99]

If you got it in there, you can get it out. Search on Dabbler's posts about getting bigger lathes than we're talking about out of a basement.

Something to keep in mind if your spouse complains about getting equipment in or out of the basement, some day your furnace needs to get replaced and it's coming in and out the same way.

 

[Jud96]

After much consideration and research, I've decided to fix my current lathe and save up for a couple years and get something nice. I am accustomed to nice manual lathes, I don't want to jump into something that feels cheap or that I'm not happy with and regret. I think I'll eventually get a Harrison M300/Clausing 2500 or something else nice like a Sharp 1340 and maybe have a little shop to put it in.