Rotary tables, of the 6 inch verity.

[moonmanParticipant @moonman]

Hello chaps,

I’m in need of a rotary table for some radius cuts, for my mill I think something about 6″ will be a good size (it’s a chester 16v).

I’ve seen a few youtube videos and it looks like the very cheap ones are not great.

I’m wondering what tables you guys use and if you recommend them or not? I don’t want to go mad budget wise but at the same time I want something worth keeping.

Thanks

[not done it yetParticipant @notdoneityet]

I have a couple of 6” (150mm) Vertex RTs.

Both were second hand (one unused).  They are certainly good enough for me.

Both were made in Taiwan (regarded as better than later versions).

One has three slots, the other has four.  You may have a preference.

There are, of course, better ones on the market.  If I was buying I would not entertain any of the Vevor ones (some will say they are perfect, but I always expect – and usually find – at least one thing to be out of spec, from that site), or anything that seems ‘cheap’.

You can do radius cuts without a RT if you have a suitable DRO, which could calculate co-ordinates on the curve.  Not a perfectly smooth way to do it, but possible.  The cuts are easily smoothed using a linisher.

[peak4Participant @peak4]

If you have the opportunity to see first hand, take a mag base and sensitive DTI and check out the morse taper hole for concentricity as you rotate the table, ideally with a test bar in the hole for a vertical check too.
I picked up one from a well known retailer at an ME show in Doncaster; it was reduced as the handle was missing, apparently the only fault.
Earlier this year I came to use it and found a 10thou total runout in the hole.
It only became obvious when I used one of the adaptor plates to fit a Myford threaded chuck to it, and I couldn’t work out why it was off centre.
The adaptor plate was perfectly concentric; they have a short MT2 stub on one side and a Myford nose on the other.
In the end, I set up the rotating part of the table on the lathe and re-bored the MT2 hole concentric.
Unfortunately, that meant that the wide end was then too big to locate the adaptor plate..
There was just enough meat on the plate, to machine some off the base, so the MT2 stub effectively became longer and would now register OK in the new hole.

Bill

[JasonBModerator @jasonb]

My Soba has done all I have asked of it for a number of years although in the last few I have mostly used my ARC one, both OK out of the box.

[Andrew TinsleyParticipant @andrewtinsley63637]

I have a Vertex, 4 slot, 6 inch table. It came second hand and has proved reliable an accurate. If all you want to do is to mill a circular shape. then a complex rotary table isn’t necessary. I have a small GHT table which simply rotates using a tommy bar. Good enough for cutting curves and a cheaper option.

Andrew.

[old martParticipant @oldmart]

I bought a very little used one with four tee slots years ago and found that the central bearing was a poor fit. There was noticable radial play. Upon dismantling, I found that the central needle roller bearing was running on a hardened steel bush which was about 0.006″ too small. The needle roller bearing was removed and had made in India chemically etched on its od, so I guessed it was a Soba made RT. The bush was too difficult to remove so I turned up an aluminium bush to replace the needle roller for a clearance of 0.0005″ when fitted and it has been going strong for about ten years with occasional strip down, clean and regrease. Apart from that, it has worked very well. The Vertex would be better made, but at a much higher price.

When used with the spindle horizontal, I have a little angle plate which attaches to the left hand end with SHCS and a tee nut in the bed to stiffen up the RT.

The four tee slots make fitting a front mount four jaw chuck very easy. I have also drilled and tapped three holes in the top to hold a 5″ Pratt Burnerd front mount chuck, which can be centralised by clamping on to a MT2 test bar in the centre of the RT before tightening the SHCS. Care has to be taken when thinking about where to drill the top as there may be an oilway and you have to miss the tee slots. Any drilling and tapping should be carried out with the top removed and blanking grubscrews fitted to stop swarf getting into the works when there is no chuck fitted. You will have to make custom tee nuts for the top.

[moonman]

On 23 August 2024 at 15:20 moonman Said:

…
I’m wondering what tables you guys use and if you recommend them or not? I don’t want to go mad budget wise but at the same time I want something worth keeping.

First make sure you understand the between a plain table that just rotates, an indexer which can be locked at a limited number of angles, and a rotary table driven by a worm and handle that can be positioned accurately at arbitrary angles.  The latter is often accessorised with a clock-hand / holed disc memory aid, attached where the handle goes.  Not needed for easy work like putting a hex head on a nut, but valuable when cutting lots of teeth on a big gearwheel.

A stepper motor and index software is a popular alternative to the clock because clocks are subject to human error, and the software does all the hard work.

Most of us go for a full rotary table.

The choices are:

1. Cough up for a new industrial rotary table.  Many newcomers are keen on buying the best until they discover industrial grade tools are typically 5 to 20 times more expensive than the hobby version!   A nice Bison costs about £6000.  Up to you to decide if that’s “mad budget wise” or not!   The item is guaranteed.
2. Search for a second-hand industrial table.    The risk here is buying SECONDHAND.   The item’s history and condition matter far more than who made it.  Anything between scrap and as new.   Unlikely to be guaranteed so best to inspect in person and know what to look for.
3. Buy a new hobby table.  Many different makers, typically copying a long out of patent protection western design, some good others too cheap.     If a lemon turns up, the game is replacing it or money back.  That’s when the vendor matters!

The internet gives purchasers plenty of opportunity to take risks!  Some examples:

1. Buy from abroad, saving loads of money unless it goes wrong!  Unexpected customs charges on more expensive goods.   UK consumer protection does not apply, so dealing with a lemon is your problem.
2. Buy via a UK Box Shifter like Vevor.   These firms aren’t tool suppliers so don’t expect any technical support.  They sell whatever they pick up, so quality varies.   UK consumer protection applies, so lemons are relatively low-risk
3. Buy from a UK hobby supplier.   UK consumer protection applies.   They are a little more expensive, but hobby suppliers are more likely to care about consistency than a box-shifter, and to understand the product, and to care about their reputation.   I normally buy from ArcEuro and Warco, but have also bought from RDG and others without complaint.

I suggest who the table is bought from matters more than the brand.  Being a pessimist, but not a fuss-pot perfectionist seeking to buy heirlooms, I go for option 3.

Important I think to keep a sense of perspective when buying hobby tools.  Some consider £500 to be a lot of money, and it isn’t!   Don’t expect a £500 rotary table to be as well finished or as accurate as the industrial version, but my experience is that mid-range tools are ‘fit for purpose’ in a hobby workshop.   Unless something special is required, don’t fret!   For what it’s worth, mine came from Warco:  About 10 years old, and still going strong, though I take care not to thrash it.

Dave

[Howard LewisParticipant @howardlewis46836]

I’ve used a Vertex HV6 for several years, and it does all that I need.

The 90:1 ratio should give greater percision than 40:1 or 36: tables (4 degrees per turn of the handwheel rather than 9 or 10 degrees)

BUT, I did find that the chart supplied with it contained errors and omissions.

Spent over a day making up an EXCEL spreadsheet to calculate a new chart.

Don’t know if they have been corrected, but might be worth checking! (Example, my chart said for 13 divisions use 30 holes on a 36 hole plate. WRONG! Should be 36 holes on the 39 hole plate)

There were a couple of other errors which looked like someone had mis read a handwritten 0 as a 6 and vice versa.

Howard

[Wade BeattyParticipant @wadebeatty78296]

Vertex HV6 that I received with the used mill I purchased and it has served me well. If you buy a used one make sure it comes with the accessories (plates, handles, pins and the arc plates) shown in SillyOldDuffer’s post above.

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