silentC,

That is a perfect lathe stand. Beautiful work and the price of materials is right.

Anyone who makes snide comments about whatever kind of ballast on the bottom of a lathe stand does not do large work roughed out with an ax and chain saw.

A stick of wood for a pen is not likely to throw a lathe over on you.

I dragged home two cast iron heads, and two cast iron intake manifolds from a Dodge V-8 engine as ballast for my new lathe stand.