Older lathes are prized by wood turners because they were often built better than newer models. The only problem is that these vintage lathes often lack a stand or a working motor. Fortunately, it is easy to equip a lathe with both. Lathes need less powerful motors than most stationary machines. A1/2-ho model that runs at 1725 RPM-half the speed of a table saw motor-will do.

A lathe stand needs to be heavy and solid, like the rugged shop-built version, constructed primarily from 2-by-6s. The motor is mounted behind the lathe, with the pulleys under a safety guard. The stand also features a wooden tension pedal that allows you to release belt tension and stop the spindle instantly. Refer to the illustration for suggested dimensions.

For the stand, start by cutting the legs to length from four 2-by-6s, then saw a triangular notch from the bottom of each leg to make feet. Join each pair of legs with two crosspieces, locating one crosspiece just above the feet and the other 7/4 inches from the too of the legs. Cut the shelf from two 2-by-6s, and screw the pieces to the lower leg crosspieces.

Next, install the top, cut from two 2-by-6s and a piece of 3/4-inch plywood. Screw the boards and two braces to the upper leg crosspieces, then fasten the plywood to the 2-by-6s, as shown above. Bolt the lathe to the top of the stand. Screw the motor to a mounting board cut from 3/4-inch plywood. Then fasten the board to the top with butt hinges so the steps in the motor pulley are in line with the headstock pulley steps (below). Mount the drive belt on the pulleys.

Next, make and install the tension pedal. Connected by a length of wire to the motor-mounting plate, this wooden pedal will allow you to slacken the drive belt with simple foot pressure, disengaging the motor from the headstock and stopping spindle rotation. Cut the pedal from 2-by-4 stock so that it will extend out from under the shelf by about 4 inches when it is installed. Attach the tension pedal with another hinge to the underside of the shelf, directly under the motor. Bore holes through the top, the shelf, and the pedal to accommodate the wire that will connect the pedal to the motor-mounting board. Attach a length of heavy-gauge wire to the underside of the pedal and pass it through the three holes you drilled and over the headstock. Now push the motor-mounting board toward the lathe and hold the wire against it. Keeping the tension pedal f lat on the floor, pull the wire taut. Cut the wire and screw it to the back of the motor mounting board. Release the motor; the tension pedal should rise from the floor. To check the pedal step on it the wire should pull the motor-mounting board and motor towards the lathe, releasing the tension on the belt.

Lastly, install an on/off switch for the motor at the front of the lathe stand, and place concrete blocks or other heavy objects on the shelf to weigh down the stand and reduce vibration.

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