Largest size bowl on lathe

[Tiger]

Just wondering what the largest size bowl that can be turned on the MC900 lathes would be. If you built a longer toolrest, there really wouldn't be a limit, would there? Of cours, one has to be reasonable and consider the mechanical limitations of the lathe but with the right toolrest, you should be able to turn an 18 inch diameter bowl, I would think.

[Skew ChiDAMN!!]

No reason you couldn't turn a 6' diameter bowl on an MC-900 if you have the skills, a free-standing tool rest and the motor will spin up the blank.

I've turned an 18" platter on one. Ahhh... the joys of outboard turning. :D

[hughie]

No reason you couldn't turn a 6' diameter bowl on an MC-900 if you have the skills, a free-standing tool rest and the motor will spin up the blank.

yep as big as the lathe is high. :U

I

[joe greiner]

yep as big as the lathe is high. :U

I
Uh-huh. And if the lathe is at the edge of the roof ... :rolleyes:

Good luck getting it to spin, though. Keep a fire extinguisher handy, and have a spare motor on hand.

Cheers,
Joe

[dai sensei]

Hope to burst the bubble, but there is a limit on these lathes, the capacity of the spindle shaft. Out of balance or a decent dig-in can stuff them, spinning at turning speed that is.

Many many moons ago I used to have a MC900 look alike. It had a 25mm (I think - it was a while ago :rolleyes:) shaft and bent it with a decent hardwood blank.

[powderpost]

Just came across this thread. Large diameter turnings have complex problems. The largest job I have done was 1500mm diameter and 125mm thick. The lathe I used was home made and came down to 80 rpm. A 1500mm diameter spinning at a speed greater than 80 rpm is frightening. I would be very surprised if a mc900 survived. At 80 rpm the centre of the disc is not very fast, almost to slow to turn. I used a two hp motor and it was only just good enough.
The largest bowl turned, as far as I know, was turned at Proserpine. Have a look at The Big Bowl (http://www.proserpinewoodturners.com/The_Big_Bowl.html)
Jim

[Tiger]

I did try a 16 inch laminated platter which is the largest item I have tried on this lathe but I found that there was a lot of vibration which made the job more difficult than normal. So while this lathe can theoretically handle almost any size, bearings, rigidity etc do limit its potential.