If you were to buy a rotary table again- would you change it’s size?

[StevSmar]

Eventually… I’ll get a rotary table for my mill.

I like the 8”, but thinking of 15 years from now I may not appreciate the +60lb weight of it…

Today, I can’t imagine needing a rotary table bigger than 6” (probably even 4”) which has led to the question of this post: If you were to buy a rotary table again- would you change it’s size?

 

[cuslog]

My 8" H/V is about as heavy as I care to lift by hand -- and the 8" doesn't give you a lot of real estate to clamp stuff down on.

 

[DPittman]

I haven't bought one myself yet but all the advice I've got is get as big as you can handle and fit. 15 years time frame you'll be able to think of lots of possible solutions to maneuver that weight around.

 

[Susquatch]

I wish my 10" was a 12.

I also wish it had the side flange so it could be flipped on its side on my mill table.

Both would make it heavier.

No problem for me cuz I use it with a side cart so I can slide it on and off of my mill table and don't really have to lift it.

 

[YotaBota]

I like the 8”, but thinking of 15 years from now I may not appreciate the +60lb weight of it…

You can always down size when you need to or just have a smaller one as well.

I wish my 10" was a 12.

Don't we all! LOL

 

[kstrauss]

I find a H/V rotary table one of the more awkward things to lift onto the mill table. I have a 6-inch (CNC controlled 4th axis) and have never felt the need for something larger. Of course I make mostly small stuff! You could always add a top-plate for mounting larger work.

 

[jcdammeyer]

Thirteen years ago I had to make a number of identical parts where the holes all had to be in the same place. But these were small and a four inch rotary table was more than adequate.

With a DRO you can also place holes in a repeatable pattern. What you can't do manually very easily is curves. If they work with the part clamped in a rotary table then turn the table to get that curve.
But isn't CNC really an overall better solution for 99% of the applications?

 

[trevj]

I did a fair amount of work, including making cams and cam tracks on an R/T, and if you can afford larger, get larger, bearing in mind of course, your expected work, and the size of the machine. IIRC, the ones I worked with were 15 inch tables.

It's easier to do small work on a large R/T than the other way around, and most of the larger tables have better accuracy when dividing out the circles, if you are using a bunch of trig to figure out your start and stop locations of your curves so they blend.

Pay attention, no matter the size of the R/T, to your built up height, if you need to add a chuck on the table, AND mount the R/T on an angle plate to get the results you need, you can get really tight on head room to work in... That aside, almost all the rotary table work we did was directly mounted to the R/T's own surface, with at most, a layer of sacrificial material between the R/T and the work. By carefully clamping parallel bars to the table, offsetting them with gage blocks, and re-clamping the work after it was moved, we could move where the center of the axis of rotation was, as we required.

Along the lines of what was mentioned above, rather than worrying about how to deal with the weight later, fix that crap now, and set up a hoist, or acquire a hydraulic table capable of reaching to the level of the mill table, so as to avoid destroying your back any sooner than you must. Got the pins in my back to support this theory, too!

 

[a smile]

I would like to say that if your milling machine is large enough, be sure to use as large a turntable as possible, because you will find that there are always some large parts that you cannot clamp.

Then to extend the discussion, I found that many friends of the shop machine tools are small machine tools, I think this is a wrong choice, It was also my previous choice, when I realized this mistake I chose a larger industrial machine tool. This avoids having to doubt some of your process Settings because of machine defects. The right choice of machine tool let me take a lot less detours. I hope common enthusiasts will avoid some detours.

 

[CWret]

Good question? When i started looking for a RT, I figured that an 8” would work for me and that a 10” would likely be better but almost too big for my RF45 clone. Susq said above, he’d rather his 10” was a 12”. Bigger is usually better.
Well this is a timely thread!
Three days ago an 8” (Kijiji find) followed me home.
It needed a bit of a cleanup so yesterday was the first time i set it up on the mill. As you can see in the pic below - it’s a pretty good match for my mill size. (that’s a 5” vise beside it). It’ll be awhile before i know if i still want a 10”, but for now I’m extremely happy with my new accessory.
It’s made in Japan and appears to be excellent quality. It’s also in very good condition and well worth paying the seller’s ask of $200.
It weighs in at just over 58lb - i have a nearby steel shelf (at the same height) where it can slide onto when not in use.
Also in pic below- using 123’s the tailstock from my dividing head would work but not likely get used with the RT. (dividing head was another very good Kijiji find).
PS - I like the top plate idea, thanks kstrauss.

 

[CWret]

You could always add a top-plate for mounting larger work.

I’ve been doing some thinking (that’s dangerous) about the top-plate idea.
Maybe use a piece of 1/2” thick plate that is 12” diameter (or square) & bolted to the RT slots (using countersunk bolts). Wondering if it must be located (centred) using the #2 Morse Taper of the RT. Then drill and tap holes on a grid to use my bar clamps.
Comments from you or others on top-plate design would be appreciated (pictures would also be helpful)

PS - I tapped this out before lunch. Then found the below link to a RT fixture plate.

Rotary Table Fixture Plate

The Vertex 6" rotary table is incredibly useful in my shop. It's perfect for the size of work that I do, and not too heavy to lift on and off the mill table. However, I have often found that there is...

www.clickspringprojects.com

 

[CWret]

This (below) MT2 part would make accurately locating the plate on the RT easy and consistent.
- Cut off the top threaded portion
- mill a recess (hole) in the underside of the plate to match the diameter of the top collar on the shank adapter
- done


Brand: Kuuleyn

MT2 Morse Taper Shank, Lathe Live Center, MT2-1/2"-20 UK MT2 Morse Taper Shank Drill Chuck Shank Adapter for Boring Tool​

 

[Dabbler]

You could always add a top-plate for mounting larger work

It's easier to do small work on a large R/T than the other way around,

I would like to say that if your milling machine is large enough, be sure to use as large a turntable as possible

I started with a 6" RT, and made a 10" X 10" plate for it. I found it was too small. I sold the 6" and bought an 8", and then a low profile 10" RT fell into my lap. Still a little too small for clamping some jobs, but it works. I'll probably make a 12" plate for the 10" table...

 

[Susquatch]

I'll probably make a 12" plate for the 10" table...

I think there is a plate like that in my future too.....

Will need to noodle features. Very cool project!

 

[Dabbler]

"noodle features"? I'm not familiar with the vernacular...

 

[CWret]

He’ll be putting that big u.ly ‘noodle’ on top of his neck to use and figure out how he’ll build it.

 

[Susquatch]

"noodle features"? I'm not familiar with the vernacular...

From the great void of the interweb:

Noodle - To discuss, speak, or think about something in an idle, aimless, or purely speculative manner. ("Noodle" here is slang for head or brain.) ...

From the urban dictionary:

Noodle - contemplate, ponder, puzzle over or brain-storm. 1) "Jack, do we have a way to make gold from salt-water, ...

I think the use of the word noodle stems from a common view of the brain as a gourd of soggy wet noodles.

In referring to my own thoughts as noodling, I'm admitting I'm pretty clueless at the moment.

I'm really just prompting others to offer their suggestions about what the ideal expanded plate on a rotary table would look like and how it might be used.

Edit - If I had seen @CWret 's rather eloquent and accurate response before posting, I would have replied differently. But both work......

 

[Dabbler]

... AH! Somehow I got in the mental model of chicken noodle soup... Once there I couldn't resolve it.

 

[thestelster]

From the great void of the interweb:

Noodle - To discuss, speak, or think about something in an idle, aimless, or purely speculative manner. ("Noodle" here is slang for head or brain.) ...

From the urban dictionary:

Noodle - contemplate, ponder, puzzle over or brain-storm. 1) "Jack, do we have a way to make gold from salt-water, ...

I think the use of the word noodle stems from a common view of the brain as a gourd of soggy wet noodles.

In referring to my own thoughts as noodling, I'm admitting I'm pretty clueless at the moment.

I'm really just prompting others to offer their suggestions about what the ideal expanded plate on a rotary table would look like and how it might be used.

Edit - If I had seen @CWret 's rather eloquent and accurate response before posting, I would have replied differently. But both work......

Check out this video for some ideas.

 

[CWret]

Check out this video for some ideas.

A YouTube good one. Interesting project - but WAY over my paygrade!