bigarm Posted May 17, 2016 Report Share Posted May 17, 2016 I ordered a lathe today and need to decide where to put it, My woodshop is quite narrow so was wondering how close to the wall people put their lathe. Then I will see if I can fit it in there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wtnhighlander Posted May 18, 2016 Report Share Posted May 18, 2016 As close as the radius of the biggest thing you want to turn? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric. Posted May 18, 2016 Report Share Posted May 18, 2016 Unless you plan to turn from the wrong side of the lathe, you can push it all the way against the wall. The legs will prevent it from getting too close. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
..Kev Posted May 18, 2016 Report Share Posted May 18, 2016 Yep, what Eric said! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bombarde16 Posted May 18, 2016 Report Share Posted May 18, 2016 It won't matter much for work between centers. As Eric said, it's not possible to get the lathe closer the the wall than the swing. For hollowing bowls, however, it's sometimes good to work from the wrong side of the lathe. Or at the very least, you'll have your tool handle way out away from you. Bear in mind also the matter of clean up. Lathes generate chips by the bucket. Either have it free standing so you can sweep all the way around it or get it as close as possible to the wall to cut down on the amount of junk that can build up behind it. I seem to recall a video in which Marius Hornberger showed his lathe after a round of roughing bowl blanks. It was close enough to the wall to make it a pain to clean yet far enough to leave a big space for junk to pile up. Lastly, position your lathe close to your grinder. You'll be going back and forth a lot. Best is if you have the grinding station next to the lathe and at a right angle so you can sharpen without even moving your feet. Sent from my QTAIR7 using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gixxerjoe04 Posted May 18, 2016 Report Share Posted May 18, 2016 I'm left handed and have to turn on the opposite side of the lathe occasionally which is a pain in the butt. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gee-dub Posted May 18, 2016 Report Share Posted May 18, 2016 I am not a turner but, fool with dad's now and then when visiting. Take your longest tool, pretend a disk of maximum diameter is in the chuck, place the tip of the tool at this point between chuck and wall. If you can hit the wall, I'd move out a bit. I'm sure the need to pivot the tool away from you, and how much, varies with what you turn. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pkinneb Posted May 18, 2016 Report Share Posted May 18, 2016 My tail stock end is against the wall head stock is about a 1' away from the wall. I read somewhere a long time go that you should not have it flat against the wall in case something fly's off it will keep it from coming directly back at you. Not sure if i believe it or not but ... works in my space none the less Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pwk5017 Posted May 19, 2016 Report Share Posted May 19, 2016 22 hours ago, pkinneb said: My tail stock end is against the wall head stock is about a 1' away from the wall. I read somewhere a long time go that you should not have it flat against the wall in case something fly's off it will keep it from coming directly back at you. Not sure if i believe it or not but ... works in my space none the less Need the wall to be far enough away from the headstock for a knockout bar too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duckkisser Posted June 11, 2016 Report Share Posted June 11, 2016 i have my lathe stand up(cabinet) up against the wall that way the chips dont fall behind the stand which i filled with 3 bags of sand so its too heavy to move around on my own. if they fell behind it i would never clean back there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
croessler Posted June 18, 2016 Report Share Posted June 18, 2016 On 5/18/2016 at 8:13 AM, Gixxerjoe04 said: I'm left handed and have to turn on the opposite side of the lathe occasionally which is a pain in the butt. Hmmm... Guess I don't get it. I'm left handed as well and have never had a reason to turn from the "wrong side" of the lathe. What situation requires that? OP Sorry for the hi-jack.. My lathe is 90 degrees to the wall near the garage door. Mostly because I get more light there and it makes it easy to cleanup around it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gixxerjoe04 Posted June 19, 2016 Report Share Posted June 19, 2016 22 hours ago, croessler said: Hmmm... Guess I don't get it. I'm left handed as well and have never had a reason to turn from the "wrong side" of the lathe. What situation requires that? OP Sorry for the hi-jack.. My lathe is 90 degrees to the wall near the garage door. Mostly because I get more light there and it makes it easy to cleanup around it. I dunno, I just use carbide, the tools are long, doesn't feel comfortable going deep inside a bowl that way and there's just no way to make something deep that way it seems. I learned from YouTube like everything else and just did what was comfortable. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.