Homebrew wood lathe...sort of

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Here's a little rig I made up to build drum shells.  I wanted to be able to turn the outside of drum shells fairly accurately and wanted something that's going to last me a while.  I don't have any pictures of the rig being built, but it's built from 2"x3"x.125" tubing and I used 1" precision ground rod for the rails for the linear bearings and the center spindle.  Basically you just rotate the drum shell and run the router back and forth on the rails.  It takes about 45 minutes for me to turn and sand a shell, but some better quality router bits might speed up the process.  You can slide the center spindle up and down to turn different diamter drums.  I can turn up to a 28" drum with this setup.So far the rig is better than I could have hoped.  The shells come out as prefectly round as I can measure.  I have another rig drawn up that'll index the outside of the already round shell and cut the inside round as well.  And for the those who are obsessed with saftey, this thing is no more dangerous than any other power tool.   Anyway, here's a few pics. Attached ImagesThermal Arc Fabricator 281Miller 350PMiller Syncrowave 200Lincoln ProCut-55Jackson NexGen
Reply:that's neat
Reply:Nice looking job.I see the only thing you have left is a system to adjust the vertical height as I can imagine setting it now is a pia  . How 'bout a piece of threaded rod on each end run vertically thru a nut attached to a carrier for the bearing?. You could make index marks on each end bearing to the frame  so the drum turns out parallel.
Reply:Very clever machine, nice work.  I like the threaded rod, vertical adjustment idea in the previous post.
Reply:Veeeeeryyyy nice.But-Since the cutter is rotating, wouldn't it be closer to a mill?I mean a lathe is cool, but how many wood mills have you seen?This could be a First!A butterfly without wings, is just an ugly bug
Reply:Lathe...Mill...whatever you want to call it.  These pics we're from my first test run of the machine and I just had the clamps as a temporary solution.  I have since drilled holes in the uprights that the center shaft bearing carrier bolts into.  I cut spacers to set the spacing exactly the same on each side.  The router has quite a bit of vertical adjustment, so I only have to have holes every couple inches.  This lets quickly set the machine for whatever diameter drum I'd like to build.What I'd really like to do is build a CNC system for the whole thing and be able to make detailed carvings on the outside of the drums.  I have some ideas, but it'll probably have to wait until time and funds permit.Last edited by jschulze; 07-26-2009 at 02:15 AM.Thermal Arc Fabricator 281Miller 350PMiller Syncrowave 200Lincoln ProCut-55Jackson NexGen
Reply:Originally Posted by jschulze I have some ideas, but it'll probably have to wait until time and funds permit.
Reply:Originally Posted by jschulzeLathe...Mill...whatever you want to call it.  These pics we're from my first test run of the machine and I just had the clamps as a temporary solution.  I have since drilled holes in the uprights that the center shaft bearing carrier bolts into.  I cut spacers to set the spacing exactly the same on each side.  The router has quite a bit of vertical adjustment, so I only have to have holes every couple inches.  This lets quickly set the machine for whatever diameter drum I'd like to build.What I'd really like to do is build a CNC system for the whole thing and be able to make detailed carvings on the outside of the drums.  I have some ideas, but it'll probably have to wait until time and funds permit.