lathe height

[Chasper]

After hours bent over the lathe and looking down at the turnings, my neck and back were killing me. I put a chunk of 2 X 4 under each leg of my lathe stand, than helped. Then I tried two under each leg and it helped more.

Now I'm up to an 8" concrete block plus a 2X4, my right elbow is up about ear height and the chips are hitting me in the face; but my neck feels better. Other than chips in my eyes and the possibility of the tool bouncing up and getting stuck up my nose, is there any reason not to elevate the lathe this high?

I know some people work at sit down lathes and it seems that their faces would be at about the same closeness to the turning as I'm at.

 

[wolftat]

I have one lathe at 48" high and another one on the Jet stand that it came with. The high one is much more comfortable for me and is used a lot more than any of the others I have. I am about to set one up for younger kids to work on, but it is hard to find the hieght that is going to work best. I have been considering an adjustable hieght bench for turning so everyone can be comfortable.

 

[Rifleman1776]

There are formulas and 'rules' for lathe height.
My standard response when this come up is whatever is comfortable for you.
My first lathe was too low for me so I put 4" blocks under the feet and that corrected the problem. I had been hurting from bending over while working. And, I am not big, only 5'7". My new lathe is a comfortable height for me so I left it alone.
It is your tool, ignore the 'rules' and do what works for you.

 

[ed4copies]

Gerry,

As you get higher my only concern would be the effect on your shoulders, as more of the stress will "rise" with your elbows coming up.

In short, if your shoulders start to hurt, this is probably why.

As the old joke goes, "My shoulders hurt when I do this --- Don't do that!"

I believe if you are not pushing hard nor spending long hours, you will be fine.

 

[Glass Scratcher]

I was told long ago, and I don't remember who or where I heard this but but you should adjust the height of the lathe till the spindle height and the bend in your elbow (when standing) are the same. In my case 49" for my short, round self.

Of course I could be absolutely, positivley, confused and wrong so I'll return this to the Pros.

 

[leehljp]

A good rule of thumb for lathes is elbow height.

Fine control of tools such as router tables, lathes, scroll saws, generally should be at elbow height.

Table saws and band saws should be at a height in which the body can supply more power and yet provide some degree of control - ideally between waist and elbow height.

Thickness planers should be a little lower where more power and less control is needed.

This is not esthetically pleasing to the organizer who likes everything the same height, but as the body gets older, it begins it to dictate care in using tools - including height.

 

[DonWood]

I have been turning pens sitting down using a normal Rikon lathe for some time now. Had some very bad back problems which precluded me from standing for any length of time at the lathe so I was forced to sit. Honestly, you get used to it. I have a 2 X 4 under the back legs to tilt the lathe slightly but no other changes. I do the complete pen from rough to finish sitting. I was going to ask if anyone else sits and then saw this post and thought I would just respond to it. Take care.

 

[flyingmelon]

Not to be a jerk or doubt you but what does elevating the back of the lathe with a 2x4 do? You are working on a cylindrical piece. I would think that the whole thing would need to be raised to have an effect. Just my lack of spacial relation that is not making this work in my mind.

 

[leehljp]

Not to be a jerk or doubt you but what does elevating the back of the lathe with a 2x4 do? You are working on a cylindrical piece. I would think that the whole thing would need to be raised to have an effect. Just my lack of spacial relation that is not making this work in my mind.

What he is doing with the "tilt" is moving the centerline work area about 3/4 to 1 inch closer to him. Only he can say how effective it is for him. I know personally that over a period of 10 to 15 minutes with a chronic back pain, re-positioning a work piece 1 inch makes all the difference between tolerable and unbearable.

Sometimes and in some cases raising the work area solves the problem. In other cases, moving it closer (so that a person doesn't have to lean forward) solves the problem; then there is the combination of both that helps.

When I go to a post office here in Japan and need to fill out a form that takes a couple of minutes at the most - their counters are about 2 inches lower than US. When my back is acting up, I cannot tolerate even the 2 minutes to fill out a form and have to take it back home to fill out.

This is not really a "lathe" issue per se, it is more of an exercise in ergonomics as it relates to the back and shoulders.

 

[flyingmelon]

Thanks

Thanks for the explanation. Now that I read it it makes sense. Like I said I just couldn't get the spacial relation in my mind how this would work.

 

[marcruby]

Mine's too high. I'm not all that short, but it's just high enough to make it hard to tuck the tool in twixt my body and me comfortably. I don't get back aches, but sometimes I get cramps in my wrists and fingers because they do too much of the work.

Marc

 

[1JaredSchmidt]

I'm 6'5" and I have my table at about waist height. I don't really know how tall I should have it.

 

[ed4copies]

I'm 6'5" and I have my table at about waist height. I don't really know how tall I should have it.

At your age, don't worry about it!!!

You are gaining strength, you can SEE, your reflexes are as fast as they will ever be. ENJOY this time. :biggrin::biggrin::biggrin:

 

[VisExp]

I'm 6'5" and I have my table at about waist height. I don't really know how tall I should have it.

You're 6'5" Well there goes that mental image I had of what you looked like!

 

[nwcatman]

You're 6'5" Well there goes that mental image I had of what you looked like!

no kidding! i had him pegged at maybe 5'6" and 130. guess we better start being nice to him.

 

[flyingmelon]

Sounds like Texas just got another football player.