Holding 6 Inch Dia Pvc Pipe

[epanzella]

Epanzella - That could work as long as I don't need the steady rest, which is too small on my lathe for the 6.3" OD I'm working with. I found that the 4 jaw distorted the plastic some if it was held tight enough to not slip (although I was gripping internally). Maybe I need 6 screws to avoid that. It looks like our lathes are similar looking from that photo anyway. I have a G0509G. What is yours?

My lathe is a G4003G. My fixture was 18 inches long because I had to machine the ends of the fuel rails on my boat engines. Your's could be shorter. A way to drive the PVC without squashing it is to use a big hose clamp. You can make the clamp as tight as you want then use the hose clamp screw housing as a lug to drive the part.

 

[Reddinr]

Oh, that is a great idea. Hose clamps are cheap and easy. How do you like the G4003G? I almost went with that one. I got caught up in the "bigger is better / only buying it once" trap and ended up with the G509G beast. Don't get me wrong, I like it, but I probably could have gotten the G4003G and would have been just fine.

 

[epanzella]

Oh, that is a great idea. Hose clamps are cheap and easy. How do you like the G4003G? I almost went with that one. I got caught up in the "bigger is better / only buying it once" trap and ended up with the G509G beast. Don't get me wrong, I like it, but I probably could have gotten the G4003G and would have been just fine.

I really like the G4003G. Good finish & accuracy. It met all my criteria. There are times when a spindle bore larger than 1 1/2 inches would be convenient but 90% of the time I'm using 1.5 inch stock or 1.5 inch barrel blanks. I might have been able to get away with a smaller machine but I wanted it to be rigid enough to mill with it. I just don't have the room for a dedicated mill. Enjoy that beast of yours.