DIY Router Lathe

A homemade lathe can turn spindles and posts for stairways

A router is designed to mill decorative edges on wood. A lathe works on the same principle. However rather than using a spinning cutter head to mill a stationary piece of wood, the lathe uses a stationary cutter to cut decorative patterns into moving pieces of wood. With a bit of creativity and planning, woodworkers can build a jig which adapts a router for use as a lathe.

Things You'll Need

• Medium duty router, 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 HP
• 1/2-inch Baltic Birch plywood
• 2 hardwood dowels, 1-inch diameter
• Furniture polish
• 1 5/8 inch all purpose course thread screws
• 1 1/2 inch stove bolts with nut and washers
• Wood Glue
• Hammer and Brad Nails
• Table Saw
• Cordless drill w/ assorted drill and driver bits
• 1-inch PVC pipe
• 1-inch flat head wood screws
• Countersink Drill Bit
• Lathe live center adapter
• 3/8-by-6-inch metal hex bolt
• hack saw
• 3/8-inch shaft screw down collar
• 3/8-inch threaded floor escutcheon
• 3/8 ID-by-1/2OD brass bushing

Instructions

Lathe Carriage Box

1. Build a rectangle from 1/2-inch Baltic birch plywood and make it 36 to 40 inches long, 12 wide and 8 inches deep. The box lays on your workbench and is the framework for the router-lathe mechanism. Do not put a bottom, or a top on the box, so that you have access to the top, and wood shavings can fall to the workbench below.

2. Cut the dowels to length, so they fit from end to end in the box. Wax these dowels so they are smooth. The router carriage will slide back and forth along the dowels once the lathe body is complete. Mount the rails so they are parallel, 1 1/2 inches down from the top of the box, and in from the edge of the box the same amount on each side.

3. Drill a hole in the exact center of the right end of the box. Make the hole the same diameter as the live center shaft (usually around three-eights to one-half inch). Tap the live center into the hole.

4. Cut a 3-inch circle out of plywood to make the headstock pivot. Attach the threaded escutcheon at the center of the plywood circle, and then screw the 6-inch bolt into the escutcheon Cut the head off the bolt with the hacksaw, slide the adjustable collar onto the bolt shaft,

5. Mount the headstock pivot. Drill a half-inch hole in the exact center of the left end of your box. Insert the brass bushing into the hole. It should hold in place from the friction against the wood. Insert the bolt shaft into the hole so that the round plywood circle is inside the box. This assembly serves as the lathe's headstock.

Router Carriage

1. Cut a piece of plywood that is long enough to lay on top of the two dowels fastened into the lathe carriage box to mount the router. Cut the piece approximately 1/2 inch shorter than the width of the box, and 2 inches wider than the base of your router. Cut a hole in the plywood's center to allow the router bit to extend through the carriage. Remove the nylon skid plate from the bottom of the router, and then screw the router to the carriage.

2. Cut the PVC slides. Cut two pieces of PVC each 2 inches long. Carefully cut these pieces of pipe in half lengthwise, so you have four pieces of half-round PVC, each 2 inches long.

3. Lay the PVC half-round slides on the wood dowels, and then lay the router carriage on the slides. Mark the location of the slides at each corner of the router carriage, and then fasten them in that location. Make sure you countersink the screw heads inside the PVC tubing, so that they don't catch on the wood dowel as the carriage slides smoothly up and down the wood dowels.

Use the Router- Lathe

1. Attach the wood you want to turn into the lathe carriage box by screwing one end of the wood to the headstock plywood circle. Lay the wood into the box, insert the headstock shaft through the brass bushing, and then slide the wood to the right until it presses firmly against the live center. Screw down the adjustable collar on the headstock shaft to hold the wood in place.

2. Insert your router bit into the router, and then place the router carriage on the wood dowels to mount it. Adjust the depth of your router bit so it cuts into the surface of the wood to create your pattern. Set the router carriage aside once it is setup correctly.

3. Attach a drill to the headstock shaft on the left end of the lathe by tightening the drill chuck around the shaft. Turn the drill on to a slow speed and observe the spinning wood. Make sure it is firmly fastened in place. Set the trigger-locking mechanism on the drill so that the wood continues to spin.

4. Pick up the router carriage with router attached tp position it. Hold the router firmly by the handles on each side of the tool Turn on the router, and set it down onto the wood dowel rails. Set the PVC guides on the dowel nearest you first, and then tilt the router slowly backward. As the second set of PVC guides settle down on the dowel-rail, the router bit will come into contact with the spinning wood stock in the lathe carriage box.

5. Turn your spindle. Keep a firm grip on the router, and slowly slide the router to the right and left along the wood dowels. As the router travels over the spinning wood workpiece, it will “turn” the wood into a smooth, decorative spindle.

Tips & Warnings

• When working with power equipment, always wear safety equipment, including gloves, and safety glasses

References

• Popular Woodworking: Bicycles, Routers and Lathes
• Tool Monger: Turn Your Router Into A Lathe
• Lumber Jocks: Router Lathe

Resources

• Twisted Timber: Router Lathe