need to make a stand...

[Mark Pruitt]

...for the new Rikon. It's clear that this little fella is going to wear me out if I use it with it sitting on my "workbench." The tool rest height is about 6" above what I've been accustomed to with my floor model. After a weekend of turning, my sholder muscles/triceps were unusually sore. I would have thought that having the thing sit a little higher would have caused less stress, not more. Guess I was wrong!

Anyway, I'd like not to reinvent the wheel if someone has something I could copy or at least get guidance from. Based on where I'm seeing the greatest accumulation of shavings, I'm thinking that I should mount the Rikon on a grid, and beneath it have four pieces of ply descending to allow the shavings to be evacuated by dust collection at a focal point in the center. (There was a much easier way to say that, but I'm not firing on all cylinders--typical Monday.) Those ply pieces should obviously be coated with a smooth finish to ease the flow of shavings. The grid should be covered with something like chicken wire to prevent accidental dropping of small workpieces or accessories (which would be trapped anyway by a cyclone separator and would not enter the DC fins).

It would make sense as well to have the stand mounted on locking casters and I might as well throw in some storage space. Maybe pegboard on the sides--dunno about that, I can envision bumping into the pegs and....let's not go there.

Any other ideas?

[Rusty Smith]

Mark, check out the thread by Nancy Laird. Neat idea. I don't know if she or Dave sell the plans. I'm sure you could modify it to whatever height you would need.

[Andy Hoyt]

Mark - I suggest that the notion of building a stand with built-in chip collection is ill advised. Too many clogging and capture issues. This is one of those DAMHIKT things. Remember too, chips don't just fall down. They also fall up, fall over, fall across, and fall yonder.

My suggestion would be to design something that simply lets the chips fall where they may, and then just sweep them up and shovel into a garbage can. An open area beneath the lathe clear down to the floor is a good idea though.

But rigging a dust collection set up for sanding is a whole nuther thing - as your recent padauk experience clearly shows.

[Bruce Shiverdecker]

Morning Mark.

In my thread, when I first go my Rikon, I showed my Lathe table. It has worked very well, for me. You mentioned putting casters on your table. If you mount them in a way that while you are turning, then can be lowered into position, IMHO (for what it's worth), would be safer than those that lock.

Bruce

PS: I'll look back and the thread title. The thread is "saying goodby to one friend and hello to another"

[Bernie Weishapl]

Mark I believe Bob Noles made one for his PSI lathe. That thing was stout. You might do a search and find something.

[Nancy Laird]

...for the new Rikon.

Anyway, I'd like not to reinvent the wheel if someone has something I could copy or at least get guidance from. Based on where I'm seeing the greatest accumulation of shavings, I'm thinking that I should mount the Rikon on a grid, and beneath it have four pieces of ply descending to allow the shavings to be evacuated by dust collection at a focal point in the center.
It would make sense as well to have the stand mounted on locking casters and I might as well throw in some storage space. Maybe pegboard on the sides--dunno about that, I can envision bumping into the pegs and....let's not go there.

Any other ideas?

Mark, here's the link to the pics of my lathe stand that I posted on Saturday. Your are more than welcome to copy and/or improve on this design if you desire. We had ordered the lift from Rockler (the link to that page is later in the thread) several years ago, and it was the most-expensive part of the whole project. We designed and built the stand for the specific use of the lathe AND being able to slide it under the workbench. It has casters on the back and the front legs sit on the floor--it doesn't move in use and it's easy to lift up on the front just enough so it will roll into its "cubbyhole" under the bench.

I'm 5'7" and the height is just perfect for me--hubby at 6'2" says it's a trifle low for him, but he can live with it (he doesn't turn on it much anyway). I'll have to measure to let you know just how high the stand is and how high the tool rest sits on my lathe---which I will do tonight and post for you.

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=44995

Nancy

[Bob Noles]

Mark,

Here are links to the threads that have pictures of the one I built and then modifired a little. Hope you can get a few ideas from it to use. Let me know if you have any questions, I'll be glad to help.

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=28217

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=33636

[Mark Pruitt]

Mark,

Here are links to the threads that have pictures of the one I built and then modifired a little. Hope you can get a few ideas from it to use. Let me know if you have any questions, I'll be glad to help.

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=28217

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=33636

I'm 5'7" and the height is just perfect for me--hubby at 6'2" says it's a trifle low for him, but he can live with it (he doesn't turn on it much anyway). I'll have to measure to let you know just how high the stand is and how high the tool rest sits on my lathe---which I will do tonight and post for you.

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=44995

Nancy

Bob & Nancy,
I found your benches/stands while "surfing" the Creek last night. Both are extremely well executed. I am really impressed.

Your point, Nancy, about you and your hubby being of different heights, is well taken. My situation is similar, I'm 5-10 and Susan is 5-3; same height difference as the two of you. If I can ever get Susie to put down her books/pen/paper and pick up the gouge I gave her almost two months ago (!), the height of the machine might be an issue. I'll probably just make it a compromise height though.

What I can't get away from, Andy's warnings notwithstanding, is the idea of dust/chip collection beneath the lathe. I've not owned or used a mini before; I'm now seeing a huge mass of shavings that build up around the base, and it just seems that it would be so much easier on me if they could simply fall into a chamber and be swept away through a DC duct. (More importantly, it would greatly reduce the risk of the motor's ventilation being compromised.)

But maybe that really is a bad idea. I need to think more on it.

...and thanks for sharing those awesome stands.

[Andy Hoyt]

Mark - Go rough a big wet bowl. When you're done stand way back and look at all the places the shavings have flown to. Grab a broom and sweep them into a DC system and you'll spend forever de-clogging the ducts. The next time you do this, you'll remember that so you'll push the stuff into the floor sweep really really slowly. In either case you'll eventually have to empty the DC barrel into a big trash bag for subsequent removal from the shop.

That was my experience.

So now I just sweep up the stuff and shovel staright into that trash bag. The time and energy saved is huge.

And it's called a DUST collector for a reason. For a WET SHAVINGS collector you'll need to step up to huge ducts and a massive motor. My grain shovel cost $9 at the local Aubochon's Hardware store.

[Nancy Laird]

Mark,

I measured my lathe stand. The top of the table is about 31" from the floor and the tool rest is 43" from the floor. At 5'7", that is just the right height for me. The stand was built to slide under the workbench, so that limited the height but, as it turned out, it was perfect.

Nancy

[Corey Hallagan]

Mark I posted a photo of my turning cabinet that I built for my mini in this thread. 2 drawers for turning supplies and room for turning stock on the bottom.
http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=45218

corey

[Mark Pruitt]

Mark I posted a photo of my turning cabinet that I built for my mini in this thread. 2 drawers for turning supplies and room for turning stock on the bottom.
http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=45218

corey

Corey,
your stand looks the most like what I need to build. Straight-forward but very efficient. I'm thinking about making one with the drawers at the bottom but same basic design. Thanks for the pic.

Mark - Go rough a big wet bowl. When you're done stand way back and look at all the places the shavings have flown to. Grab a broom and sweep them into a DC system and you'll spend forever de-clogging the ducts.

Andy,
Yeah, I get it. I do need to think about the big wet shavings. I'm going to try something else--don't know what yet. Maybe a chamber like I was discussing earlier, but w/o a DC duct. Maybe a bin that can be pulled and emptied. I know it won't by any means capture everything, but it will get what is most important, i.e. the stuff that accumulates around the base.