Raising and Leveling My Victor Lathe
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 4 ส.ค. 2014
- This is the last video for the lathe feet series. In this video I move the lathe out further from the wall, raise it up for the new feet I machined, and then pull out the levels to get it leveled nice and flat. A lot of crawling around on the floor and up and down. Not a fun job!
Hope ya'll enjoy!
Adam - บันเทิง
Thanks I am 70 years old and just starting out this really helped thanks again
The Victor looks great man! I am surprised nobody has chastised you for having the grinder so close to all those great machines though! Thanks for taking the time to post all this great material.
It does bother me, but when I was trying to pack them shop with stuff that was the best spot I had at the time. Much to consider including tool boxes, cabinets, and other things that had to make room for. I plan to move it to the door end of the shop in the future, I just need more room, and my outside cover built so I can move the abrasive machines outside.
@@Abom79 The outside cover - it's coming!
It took me most of a day to level my LeBlond 1530 and I kept thinking I had to be doing something wrong. Thank you for making this video, it has validated that my effort was not in vain, that it takes time to level a lathe properly. Now I need to make some leveling feet for my old Bridgeport J head mill and get it level too.
Yes it takes some time to get it all done right. It goes faster with a friend helping though. floridawind1 ! LOL
Hey here. I'm about to introduce a new lathe into the family and just caught your video .
It's not about the lathe it's about the process. Even though I'm 7 years late I learnt heaps.
Timeless info. seeya
Nice video as always Adam, I'm a 60 year old chef and have no intentions of doing this kinda work, but love to watch your machining vids, I don't always comment, but always like your vids, thanks for sharing and keep em coming.
I bet you want to chime in when I show off some of the grilling and cooking. One thing better than machine work is good food!
Thanks John!
I'm certainly no expert but I will share what I was taught on how to level any table (machine). Find the high corner and level the other corners to it. Never move it unless you run out of adjustment elsewhere. Step 1, level the long side adjacent to the high corner. Next level the two short sides. Check the other long side to be sure. This should put you very close. Repeat the sequence as necessary until you are satisfied. I'm fairly new to your channel and have been working my way from oldest to newest to catch up with what you have been doing. This is as far as I have gotten so far. I've enjoyed every video so far.
Wow! Those before and after photos says it all. You have a new machine.
Well done Adam. Raising her up ought to help cleaning under it too. That cleaner works real well, I'll have to check into that.
Hey Adam,
I was feeling for you buddy. Its a miserable job going back and forth from the floor. Having your lathe at a good ergonomic height is really nice. Your back will thank you.
Talk you soon.
Tom
It's already been nice having it up a few inches higher Tom. Keeps me from bending over so much.
Thanks for checking me out! Talk to ya soon!
Adam
they look very good on the machine and it is very surprising what a couple of inches
can do to make a more comfortable working height
Now for the fun stuff Adam, put a length of round bar stock of a reasonable length, unsupported by the tailstock and take a light cut along it. Measure each end and the middle. This will check bed twist and bed wear. I'm guessing you will have bed jacks between the base and the bed casting to adjust the tailstock end to correct any discrepancy between the two end measurements. Nothing can be done about barrelling, short of a regrind as far as I know.
Yes we'll dig further into all that at another date.
I was hollowing Adam but don't think you could hear me. I really felt for you mate. Getting up and down checking your levels and doing all by yourself.
another nice job there Adam,
thanks for sharing , keep up the good work
regards...Keith in Swindon u.k
Hey Adam,
All your hard work sure paid off, the Victor looks great and is now sitting at a good working height, good job man!
I noticed the K&T gave you a little nudge at the end, I think she's a little jealous that the Victor got some new shoes and a rub down, lol....
Ray
You may be right about that Ray. It's been sitting lonely with no chip making yet, but hope to very soon.
Thanks bud.
Nice new set up Adam and such a great old machine looking much brighter
Great video! Good job on leveling the lathe. I can imagine how exhausting all these ups and downs are.
Thanks for sharing.
Phil
Adam that Victor looks like a new machine !!
Nicely done Adam, The feet look good. I always had my lathes up against the wall. The last time I rearranged the shop I set them at an 45 deg angle to the wall. I will never go back if I can help it.
Nice job, Adam. When I leveled my lathe I used the same 1-2-3 blocks on the flats method that you did. Several people on my lathe group beat me up for that and said I should have used the tops of the V-ways. I still disagree with that idea because the flat tops of the V's are not necessarily precision surfaces and also can be collectors of grime, corrosion and dings because nothing rubs there. We think alike!
Whilst you made that look easy on your own , I got backache watching! Think most of us know how hard that is without help. Nicely done.
EXCELLENT video on the subject of lathe leveling! Of course all of your videos are excellent but this one take of of the mystery out of leveling the heavy lathe but works for smaller machines just as well. You are a great instructor! Thank you.
With the shiny new feet on the lathe it shamed you into cleaning up the rest, good job Adam. It is amazing what a nice big honking lever can do, toe jack is nice for straight up but you can snatch that big heavy mother where you want it with a good lever.
Nice to see the shop coming together. Thanks for sharing.
Nice and precise. Great video and thank you for taking the time to make it!
Adam, Aside from doing great machine work you also take excellent videos. Too bad you I don't live near by. Moving machines is one of my specialties and I have a Johnson Bar. (Prybar with wheels) Very easy to use and makes sling even the big stuff easy. All the best! Eric
Thanks Adam. I was feeling your pain on not having a buddy to help out with the levelling, having done this by myself not too long ago. The feet look good. Hope you like the Victor in that spot and don't feel you have to move it again in a few days.
Tim, NZ
nice job on levaling the lathe and it looks way better after you cleaned it. im in the process of levaling my lathe because the transformer went in it and i had to pull it away from the wall. its under warrenty thank god it was $395 bucks. its a gh 1440 metal lathe. thanks adam.
Now that is a nice intro song :)
Love your videos, keep em coming!
I just got a 12" Lufkin level last weekend at an auction. I had borrowed one when I set up my shop. Now I need to check everything again.
I think all your work on the lathe paid off. Looks really good up on those feet.
I love the back and forth you and tom do sorta on the down low. love those kinds of friends
after viewing hundreds of Adam’s videos, older ones and his newer ones, I’ve learned that when he says “pretty dang close”, he’s probably within .00001 of his desired dimension.
Looking good Adam
Nice new shoes for the "Victor", a little more fine tuning and she'll be good as new!
Shouldn't take to much to modify the brake pedal, depending on the linkage!
The "Shiny Shoes" make the rest of the lathe look a little dull! LOL! ;-)
Now I really need to get my lathe feet done!
Thanks!
Jeff
Thanks for good info. I'm setting up my first lathe , a clausing 6913, and I'm to the polnt of leveling.
Good video! Thanks Dave
Sweet, a Kojak with a toe jack! LOL
That cleaning job turned out nice. That made me think about all the machines you see on Ebay, Craigslist etc that are dirty as hell and makes you think they are junk. In reality they may be great machines hiding within the funk.
Love it!
those blocks look good. Having things at just the right height is important. I had to raise a jig i work on 4" cause it made me lean over just a little all the time, i eneded up getting hurt. Now its just fine though and nice to use.
Enjoyed the video Adam. Nice two part series on making some risers, raising, leveling, and cleaning. I would not need any risers, if you catch my drift. Just a platform.
Looks like the blue rags helped in the process as well.
Todd
Todd, those rags are great! Been using them everyday, and yes they are perfect for cleaning. Maybe when I run low i can have you ship me another box full...:)
I guess you could say we're both vertically challenged in a way.
Thanks man!
Adam
Abom79 No problem. I will get some more. I went and meet James Kilroy last Friday, great guy and friendly. I also promised him some rags as well.
It's the colour
Hey Adam,
Thanks for sharing that.
The Zep floor striper works well but it take paint off too if you leave it on for a while to loosen up the tough grease & gunk.
Great video Adam. Could tell stories about a 35' drill machine I designed, moved and leveled so I understand the intricacy as you get close. Took a 1/2 day with 2 people but many more feet to fiddle with. Your shoes and clean up are real purdy and should be ready to make some $$Chips for you now. You may want to check her again after about 40 hours as the new shoes and location will settle a bit. Nice Job and Thank for Sharing!!
Looks awesome Adam. I need to level my smithy up now but I've got to build a frame for the base so I can do it.
Thanks for all the helpful videos.
Mike
Let me know if you need a hand, we can swap chore for chore. What do you need for the frame, I've got a little bit of I-beam leftover that isn't too nasty or rusted :)
Looks great I believe a pretty machine is either new or unused keep up the great videos
Dad gum it Adam. Now I have this urge to go level my lathe and clean it!! Thanks again for a good one. God bless.
Better get to it Jerry!
I enjoyed your Video Adam, even though you ache a bit it always feels good when you finish something that's been nagging at you for a long time, just keep em coming,
ya didnt hear me once adam,good job as always
Great Job Adom, I like the feet & the cleaning. Keep up the great viedo's
Proper setup, comfort and maintenance/cleaning is an important part of machining that you don't see often.
I think that is why apprenticeships work so great - I never went through an apprenticeship, I wish I had ...
Man, I hate cleaning machines. But they sure look better clean. I just found Bartenders friend ay Safeway. That worked wonders on the shower floor. Keep up the good work Adam.
Always good stuff ! Thanks
nice to see you giveing the victor a littel love.
Level love is even love.
looking good adam.
If you're going to get your A frame hoist in there, you will need to bury your power conduits in the floor
Looking nice and clean, if anyone says about repainting, tell them you like the patina and the history of the colours ;)
I plan on moving the conduit lines. They will run to the back wall, down, and right behind each lathe so that it's not in the way of the rolling crane.
Abom79 You could 'ramp over' the conduits.
arkansas13 not a good idea when you have a heavy piece of work on a hoist with relarively small casters when moving from lathe to mill for instance, it's hard work, and could overbalance the hoist
Looks good well done.
hey I hollered and you heard me. Great job Adam
Thanks for sharing. Good training video.
I have also found that the machinery in my shop does NOT move when I bump into it. Usually leaves a mark, sometimes a knot, often turns the air blue and that ain't from smokey cutting oil. Good job on the leveling.
Hi Adam long time viewer first time comment it has been good watching your channel have seen all your clips always enjoyable to watch.
As my Dad always told me (you never stop learning) which is true there is always someone who has a better way to do things.
Myself have been in this trade for over 30 years now. and I never stop finding/seeing a better way to do things.
Always better watching someone else doing these sorts of jobs as it is usually me doing it.
Thank you for the clips. All The Best Peter. Melbourne Australia.
Thanks for the video Adam! I know it's an older one but the I found really helped out a lot! Jason
Love your vids, but especially love this intro music!
wow, makes that whole area brighter, may not have to put in that extra lighting. great job. at my work at 16:30 we stop working on projects and do house keeping. i'm like you i don't like to clean or paint but when everyone is cleaning as a team it's not so bad. there is something magical about staring work with everything bright and clean. we take the time to set up tools, arraigned for the next day, ready to go or put away. in the oil field other people's perception is everything.
That's the way to do it. I wish I had a shop helper at work just to help me keep things cleaned up and put away.
It is so much nicer to start work on a clean machine.
The Engine shop I used to work in had the credo " You should leave every machine in the condition you would like it to be in when you start your shift " so time was allowed at the end of each shift to accomplish this.
Peer pressure soon sorted out those who slacked off at this necessary task for each operator.
Cheers Eric
...I have worked as 'The Welder' in 4 different machine shops...none of them ever cleaned up anything.....they complained about me 'wasting time and $' cleaning anything up in the welding area...
Just like the roman days...roll it with round stock. A clean lathe is the sign of a good operator/shop. If its worth doing, its worth doing right.
Spacial awareness, my friend. Fingers, fingers.
Good Job, Adam
Hey Adam, nice job, I thought I was going to break a sweat just watching.
Thought I heard your knee pop once or twice. I put my little lathe high
enough that I wouldn't have to bend over at all, it helps save the back
when your almost 70. I haven't forgot about making you a hammer, just
been tied up lately. Maybe a Christmas gift.
Thanks for the video
Great video as usual Adam, thanks...! But WOW, look at that Victor after a cleaning, it looks practically almost new....! Now your going to force me to clean my Colchester lathe, the SAIMP mill, the Archdale horizontal mill and the 18" Peerless shaper.....! The shaper needs it the most.... :-)
Get to work Daniel!
Abom79 Well Adam, paying work takes precedence, so the tooling jobs for AMS industries (metal spinning) has to get done first. I got two more tool holders to do....! Cheers, Daniel.
A clean tool is a happy tool.
And don't think your customers don't notice.
You can be the best machinist in the world, but if your shop is sloppy, half your business will go somewhere else.
Frank
If the neighbors throw out an old sofa with loose cushions you should grab a couple and put them up somewhere. They make the best knee pads.
Nice job Adam those risers look to good to be hidden though
life is short do what you can for your self when you can great job
Now 2.5" taller things can hide under there. Feet look great!
Great video learned alot
Smokey cleaner works very good best I've ever seen
looks great :) at the end I thought I heard john lol
Great how to video.
You a millwright too? Done lots of this stuff in the 80's ....(super heavy crap) Loved it. It would get me away from the welder for a while. Good work dude!
Great job Adam moving lathe, I've gat a jack sort of like that mine is manual jack it was in scrap bin at plant some call it a fork truck jack I don't know but it will lift anything, don't know why they throw away thing like that also a 5 gal. bucket of brand new bolts of all sizes they give us anything in scrap bin we want good haul.
..That yellow thing is usually called a 'Toe Jack'....lots of machinery has a 'cast-in' indentation just for this purpose....
@@dougankrum3328 Interesting!
Adam, very good job with the most important part, leveling. From my past equipment installation experiences, I've noticed that fine leveling adjustments had to be made to equipment after the concrete foundations and equipment acclimatized together, especially for equipment whose rigidity/leveling is critical. Your concrete is not freshly poured, so the fine adjustment should be small, if needed at all. However, I'd check the bed's level in 3-6 months. Just a suggestion.
Think of the up and down work as excrise. For me that would have been about a week's worth! Well done!
Thanks....13
Yes i am going to check there level once in a while to see if it has settled. Thanks 13.
Hi Adam, It always feels a bit better to have one setting up just a little higher, so you can stand straighter and not have to lean over quite so far to measure and see what is happening with the parts! Those are nice looking feet, now that they are installed, and will be easier to tweak when needed too... The ol' Victor looks good washed down... :o]
O,
Ceiling is done the lathe have new shoes, the AC is working:) Great shop and another great video. Like how you keep your shop so clean and tidy :) Can it get any better than this ? I doubt it :)
It's a pain in the ... back but a very nice job well done.
Hi Adam.
It`s a new lathe.........................
Regards from Germany
Well done young man.
Yep you have to do some things for yourself.
Scott
Adam
great vid as per norm
I am having to go the other way with my lathe and mill although I am 6 foot tall i am now on two crutches and or personal wheels, and have to use a stool to work at the machines so I have lowered them both
Stuart
Thanks for another great video --greg
Great job.
Sometimes work has to take second place to make room for improvement.
Look er there, got er all cleaned up with her new dancin shoes! Where are you going for dinner and dancin? After all that, celebration time!
Looks great Adam!! Very nice indeed. I too hate painting but as we speak I'm refurbishing my step pulley Bridgeport, just finished the head, and I must say, it's better than most new cars paint jobs!!
Nice job.
She's got a date with some work! It's always more pleasurable to work on a clean machine.
Id like to see pictures of that resto job your doing. Sounds interesting.
Abom79 I'll send some pics to your email.
Razor Works Adam,
Spent the last two hours trying to find your email!!
Help for us dummies!!!!!
Razor!
Try Abom1979 at g mail
Abom79 you are a gentleman and a scholar!!
Wow you can see a big difference in those before and after picture. It don't look so much when you doing it.
Adam,
another awsome video. Do you intend to bolt the Victor to the floor?
Bob
Thank you learnt a lot
I just got a victor 16x30 lathe. I tried to level it but there's a twist. The problem is if I try to jack the lathe up on one corner the entire end lifts up. I ended up having to drill a hole in the concrete on two opposing corner and use toe clamps to force it down in order to correct the twist.
Adam: Suggestion for a better use of your time and body. Contact your local high school machine shop, or metal working program, or a local Scout Troop, or a young family member/relative that's interested in machine work to clean up around your shop once a week, or twice a month or whatever work's for a reasonable sum. They could watch and help you with your youtubing, or maybe you can assign some very basic projects they can make on your smaller machines. A hundred years ago no master machinist spent their valuable time cleaning their machines and the shop up, that's what a young apprentice was for in exchange for training and possibly a stipend. It was a good system and usually the apprentice paid it forward, just as what the master was doing usually, paying it forward.As much as you love to teach I suspect once you found the right apprentice you would find a renewed energy just as you do with youtubing. Also don't over look a young girl that's interested with aptitude, like my 13th year old grand daughter who's far more mechanical inclined that all of her brothers combined, (I'm in WA State so that wasn't a hint). Best of luck and once again thanks, Scott
That toe jack sure helped lift things but you also needed that long bar with the curve at one end.
What are you planning with regard to the power line to this machine when you have to bring in the crane over the lathe?
I'm having my electrician run new lines over to the back wall and under the back side of both lathes so that there's no obstructions in the way for the crane.
Adam’s “pretty close” = 0.00000x
Thanks for all your great videos Adam. Perhaps you could do one on that unique moving bar you have. I have many moving bars, but yours looks better than any of mine... is that a leaf-spring welded on a pipe?
It's a useful pry bar, and I use it for all the machine moves. It's a factory built tool, i just don;t know where it come from.
I always enjoy your videos Adam. Maybe this is common knowledge, but I am not a machinist, so I will ask. What is the image which looks like a water faucet on the front tailstock end of your lathe?
*****
Thats where you install the beer tap!
That image indicates the coolant pump hiding behind the cover, its also access to the coolant sump. The pump doesn't work, but I have future plans to get it working and plumb new lines.
Very nice,,,
Looks good, I have to do this very thing in the next few weeks with the same unit.Is yours a belt timing unit or a gear mesh unit? It makes me feel better when they're cleaned up:) . I just use a bit of solvent, shop towels,and a spray bottle. That jack was mighty slick!
Main headstock is driven by belts off the motor. The feeds are powered by a gear train.
Your Dad would be proud of how you are caring for the Victor, but I think he would still say to you 'what about paint' knowing how you hate painting! lol Paint is over subscribed to anyway. Its just to keep things from getting rusty. Besides the looking pretty factor won't make it run any better! A good cleaning looks just as good.
If I wasn;t so busy and had more time I would like to paint all the machines, but we we ain't got time for that! They still make money just the way they are.
Red or yellow stripes make it go faster ...
here is a thought use your camera focus on the level and use your phone to view the camera them you can see your level without all that up and down
Great work on cleaning that lathe! I think it´s easier to work with a clean machine =) But it´s really boring to clean it..
It depends what tool you use ...
To watch videos on youtube is free...kinda. When I watch your videos and Tom's videos it ends up costing me a bunch of money. How? Why? Cause all these neat tools you guy use to help get the job done causes me to scour E-bay, Craigslist, Enco and MSC to find some cool stuff. I'm not saying it's you and Tom's fault, it's more the case of you guys doing inspiring work. Thanks for putting in all the effort of filming, editing and posting these videos.
It's not a cheap hobby, or trade, but its fun, and satisfying. I too look at the tool catalogs and sales wishing for more all the time!