What do I have to know about lazy susan turntable bearings?

[Azbear]

Ok. This has nothing to do with our carving machines.

Mrs. Bear wants a home made lazy susan for our new large dining room table. This is a direct result of filling up the table with many dishes at yesterdays dinner. All of those dishes were full and very heavy.

She has mentioned that the table part itself of this susan should be about 32" across. It has to be made of wood. It also has to be round. It has to also rotate smooth and easy with out tiping over. I guess a low profile.

As I searched the web for the bearing assemblies, I lost my nerve. Shouldn't say lost, I just can't find it quickly. So many choices. 3", 4", 6", 12", 20lb, 50lb, 200lb, 1000lb? I do know that "bigger should be better", right? I found one about 17" across, heavy duty, etc. It sold for about $60.00!! For that price this bearing assembly had better last past my great grand children.

I'm listening and all help will be appreciated.

[Woodhacker]

I found one about 17" across, heavy duty, etc. It sold for about $60.00!! For that price this bearing assembly had better last past my great grand children.

I'm listening and all help will be appreciated.

At that price and with the weight load, it should last a looooooooooooooooonng time. Just make sure you use a good sturdy piece of good hard wood to make the upper part. That way the edges won't droop over time.

[Kenm810]

Azbear,

I used the ones from Rockler, the 12" round ones (1000lb.) for the price their well worth it,
and work Great for mine 7ft round tables down stairs with 32" lazy Susans.

3'' square is rated at 200 pounds.
4'' square is rated at 300 pounds.
6'' square is rated at 500 pounds.
9'' round is rated at 750 pounds.
12'' round is rated at 1000 pounds. About $9.00http://www.rockler.com/product.cfm?page=2273

Ps. Just went down and took a picture so you could see one
32" white Lam top and 28" base, no tipping even with off centered load. :wink:

[SteveEJ]

They have a couple of different sizes at Lowes as well. That's where I got mine.

[want2b]

Recently made a round one 24" across. I made a guess that we would have to stack things to go over 25 lbs. Yours' being 32 inches a guess would be 40 lbs, there will be lost space between pots, etc and that's still a lot of food. What's the biggest turkey you cook with a little weight added for the pan?
I made two circular boards, bottom one was 1 1/2" smaller, provides a wide base but allows easy gripping for turning. Made the upper one 1' thick for strength, the bottom 5/8 thick since it would rest on the table. Fastened to the bottom first, then spun the top plate of the bearing so the holes in it were centered between the bottom plate holes. Marked the hole locations, moved the plate and drilled holes through the bottom large enough to allow my screwdriver through and then attached the top. Covered the bottom with felt to protect the table. LOML seems to be really happy so I know I am.
Rick H.

[Azbear]

So I'm reading that the 12" is the one I need. I looked at the Rockler 12". Yup, 1000lbs.

The weight factor should hold a 24lb turkey with the serving dish thing. As big as this is going to be, it could hold more food stuff. Lots of weight will be on this susan. The wood I'm using is 50 + year old 12" x 1" cherry boards from a old storage shed in central western part of PA. I'll have to do a glue up to get the diameter needed. Hope this will be strong enough. I don't have enough to do the base in same wood. In the one picture of the white round susan, I don't see the base wood, so maybe matching wood is not an issue?

I did not think about mounting the bearing assembly to each board. You say there are holes for the screws in the plates? I guess I have to go do a hands on look see.

[Kenm810]

Azbear,

I'm sure it will work fine for you,
We have six set of Tables and Chairs in the Dinning Area of our lower lever Gathering Rooms,
(as Barb calls it -- I'm not allowed to say Recreation Room or Basement any more) http://forum.carvewright.com/images/icons/icon6.gif
Plus three 32" x 96" tables along the walls with cabinets underneath that we uses as self serve Buffet Tables
and to hold all the really heavy stuff.
Here's a couple rough drawings of the top and base of our Lazy Susans,
the bearing turn table is centered and mounted to the top of the Base first
then attached to the bottom of the top with screws through a hole drilled or cut in the Base
in to pre-Marked and centered index Dots.

[Azbear]

I just remembered about this. After the suggestions you guys gave me, I thought I should let you see how it turned out.

Thanks for the help. This made everyone at Christmas dinner very happy. No more of "please pass the... now it's watch yourself, the food table is moving".

Made the top piece 33" across. Bottom piece is 32". 3/4" thickness. Almost antique cherry from PA. My Mrs. stained it trying to match the dining room table. The pictures don't do it justice. One has to see it in person. The dining room table does not have the leaf inserted. With the leaf inserted, there is plenty of room for all of the plates, glasses, cups, and all that food. Seats 8 people easily. Everyone who see's this in person just loves it. Me too.

This project was much more simple than I thought it would.

Thanks again for the help.

I hope I shrunk the picture small enough to upload here. After and before after staining pics.

[Kenm810]

Great Job and Well Done, Looks like you have a hit project on your hands.
We use ours at every family get-together, or Wednesdays family board game night with the Grand Kids.
It's really worked out well as a perfect addition to our table for Meals, Entertaining, or just plain fun. :wink:

[mtylerfl]

Wow, that looks super! You did a great job.

By the way, I was in Mesa on Dec 30 and 31 - visiting my brother who works for MedTronics just before we flew back home to Georgia after a visit to Phoenix, Sedona, Flagstaff, Grand Canyon, and Show Low.

[wasacop75]

Those are great projects. I am sure if i made one, the grand kids would want to try and ride on it.

that would really get the LOML riled up..:-D

[Azbear]

Thanks for the compliments. My Mrs. was the one to make it pop. She wanted the turn table to match the dining room table or she would not accept it. It's hard to see in the pic, but it is a pretty close match. As I said earlier, this project was not as hard as I thought. When I was cleaning up the old boards, some of the knots were blown out by my planner. I got an inspiration from LG about the epoxy he uses on his guitars. This was the most intense part of this project. Filling in the holes from the missing knots. Wow. It worked great. There was no need for the worries. Easy as pie.

One more note. Nothing to do with the CC, but in the pic of the finished turn table sits my latest heart shaped band saw boxes. This box took me about 6 months or more to complete. Made it from a very old mesquite stump. The outer box doesn't look fancy, but it has the start of the heart shaped grain pattern. It's hard to see in the pic. The inner box is shaped like a heart further highlighting the heart shaped grain pattern. It's always a surprise to just start hacking on a chunk of wood to see what's it hiding.

Cool stuff this wood working.

[Azbear]

MT, it would have been nice to meet you in person. Next time you come to town, I'll buy the coffee.

[Azbear]

Those are great projects. I am sure if i made one, the grand kids would want to try and ride on it.

that would really get the LOML riled up..:-D

Mike, as strong as this turned out, it could hold many of your grand kids. You should give it a try. If your LOML doesn't like it, you could always use it to try turning this economy around. As I said, this project is strong enough and will handle the weight.

[Kenm810]

I don't have any photos of it, but when my kids were quite young, I built them what they called a "Spin and Puke".
I cut the top circle with a hole like a Do-nut and attached a 12" column with a 10" disk a the top shaped like a small steering wheel.
They would sit Indian style with the up-right column between their legs, then by pulling on the right or left side of the disk it would spin them in that direction.
It was quite hit with all the neighborhood Kids, and I have to admit (with a chuckle) it was sure a lot fun watching
them all stagger home after a few minutes on the S&P!! :mrgreen: then come running back for another turn.


I used the same Lazy Susan bearing ring as we use today.