Wood Lathe attachments & improvements pt 1, low buget sanding table.

Project:  I just bought a Sealy 10 speed wood lathe Mr Sealy wanted £35 for delivery to N, Ireland on something that is free delivery for the rest of the UK, anyhow I sourced it for the same price and only £20 delivery, but I vowed that Mr Sealy wold never see the ridiculous price of 60 odd quid for the sanding attachment.


This instructable shows how to build a sanding table from about 3 quids worth of 3/4" plywood scraps. 

Note, I buy the small cuttings of plywood from a local hardware store I once worked in, all I can carry for a few quid, sometimes if they have way to much scraps you get it for free as they don't have to dump it.

Materials:
3/4" plywood.
Your choice of a good quality sandpaper 
spray contact adhesive

Tools used
saw, drill, screwdriver, and not surprisingly a wood lathe.

This was a super easy build and is now one of my most useful tools.

Step 1: The sanding disk

The sanding disk is just a square of 3/4" plywood screw to the back plate  It is just under 8" and fits a standers sandpaper sheet with about 1/4" to spare.

I intend to make some new back plates so all my various disks are always ready to use.

The plywood was screwed to the backplate with 3/4" screws, picture only shows 4 screw in place but i did use all 8.

The back plate was then attached to the lathe and was turned down to the desired size.

Plywood is not the nicest to turn, tools need to be sharp and tend to get quite hot and require cooling and also sharpening more than usual.  safety goggles or even a face visor is highly recommended.

Comments

[freonfreez]

Thought I better stop back and tell you thanks for the great idea! Swearing every time I needed a disk sander for something it would do in a heartbeat and not wanting to drop the cash or lose the shop space I don't have, I saw your instructable about a year ago and finally made one for my lathe. Many projects later, my fingers, orbital sander and my sanity thank you!

[Dr Qui]

Thanks, glad you found the idea useful. 

I have found that good quality cloth backed abrasive sheet seem to last the longest and are worth the little extra, also a heat gun is the best thing to use when removing the old sheets.

[Wi11]

What kind of lathe is that? It looks a lot like mine.

[Dr Qui]

The lathe has Sealy stickers on it but the same lathe is also sold by Draper and several other tool companies with the sticker being the only thing that is changed.

[jwolski]

I made something like this years ago for my lathe and use it all of the time. Good job!

[Dr Qui]

I use this way more than I use the lathe for turning wood. Best of all this cost about £3 is way bigger than the one Mr Sealy wants you to pay £60 for.