Do urethane caster wheels deform over time under load

Not in my experience. They are quite good at remaining round. Steve

Hey Iggy,

My take on it is that is very specific to the compound formula. We had urethane roller guides on elevators that after a few years would get little flat spots just when they sat over a weekend in an office building and didn't move. First thing on Monday morning they would rumble like crazy but then smooth out after the first 5 or 6 runs. These problem ones were then replaced by another urethane product that didn't have that problem. So it's in the exact formula, and I don't know how you would find that out without some plain old empirical testing.

Take care.

Brian Lawson, Bothwell, Ontario.

What color are they? The softer Urethane will deform but the harder ones will not. In die work, Urethane is color coded to hardness but I'm not sure if is an adhered to standard and may even vary per mfgr.

At the risk of causing a serious consternation, I want to confess that I am going to make a base for this mill on casters. I will need to move it about quite a bit. We are likely doing a house addition this year and the mill will move into the new shop. I can always put 2x4s under the base for stable placement.

Anyhow, I have these Colson 1500 lbs casters with dark red urethane wheels, and I want to know if they would become unusable if I let the mill sit on them for a week or two.

Try pressing your thumb nail into the urethane. My guess is: If you can see an indentation, they will get a flat spot. If you can't, they won't.

Paul

Why can't you use casters with cast iron wheels? These will *not* deform.

I would ask Colson, but I would be suspicious of anything non-metallic.

Joe Gwinn

How about using whatever casters, but, after placing the mill use the "step on feet" that will take the weight off the casters until you need to move the mill again? I do this with a nice heavy duty castered table that I have.

Bob AZ

Beyond using solid metal wheels, also look to heavy duty screw down leveling feet. I think Surplus Center has/had some levelers, and if not, the usual sources should. If you take the weight off the wheels when the mill is parked, caster flat spotting won't be an issue.

I can, and I have them in my mcmaster cart. But I already have the colson casters.

As am I. I also think that metal wheels would be easier to move with a load this heavy.

If they are made for wheels, they are tough. Prober tables in semi-conductor houses and other equipment are mounted on them - cleaner.

I have a heavy tube table with my large bench vice on concrete and they roll for the past 9 years. Before that the table was in a Fab line.

Mart> This question is of great interest to me. If, say, I has a 1500 lb

My table saw is like that. I've got a similar base form my radial arm saw. Never thought about one for a mill.

Probably. The easy solution is to use them. Then put some blocks under the base. That would be better than using just the casters because the mill would also be more stable than on wheels.

Please don't say you aren't going to level it!

I made a base for my mill which wieghs aroud 700KG I used 4 x 200KG casters with the red urethane ,I made and attached screw down jacks to the four coners of the base so I could jack the weight off the wheels and level the machine .It also makes it alot more stable when using it.I was worried about the urethane flattening and the wheels moving while using it . When I need to move it I just screw the jacks up and lower it onto the wheels, reposition and raise it on the jacks an level .

The other problem with wheels (especially if made of cast iron) is that the mill may move around in response to machining motions. I like the suggestions of having a caster plus a retractable solid foot of some kind at each corner.

Mills are not as sensitive to leveling as lathes, but adjustability is nonetheless needed in at least one of the solid feet to handle floors that are not perfectly flat, or the mill may rock back and forth as machining proceeds, which would be really annoying.

Joe Gwinn

Once I get the mill in place, I will put 2x4s under the base.

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That's not the best base, unless the mill is heavy enough to partially crush the wood. In the most exact sense, you'll never get it to sit tight on the floor without a three-point or four-point-and-one-adjustable stance.

LLoyd

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I should have added... I have a #2 Cincy horizontal mill with a BP "M" head. It's on roller bars, just because I've never really decided where it should be.

It doesn't "rock" because the floor is quite level where it sits, but when I'm using a big out-of-balance tool at a fairly low spindle speed, the 3200lb machine actually rolls fore-and-back about 1/16". It's not a problem, but a little disconcerting. You don't so much see it as feel it when you're on the dials.

LLoyd