I needed to put a couple cabinets on wheels. I've got some roller blade wheels that look like they'll do the job. Here's the summary of what I've learned:
Bearings are 608 size. They're available reasonably cheap from Amazon, $30 for 100. (These are standard bearings, not the fast and easily spun ones used for skates or fidget spinners.)
Each wheel uses 2 bearings and both need to be on the same shaft. If you try to make a shaft for each bearing and hold them to the cabinet with a screw, the wheels will not roll well. It's also not easy to get a screw in perfectly straight, it will always wind up angled a bit. One wheel will inevitably wind up way in the air.
The shaft needs to be a snug fit to the bearing. It doesn't have to be so tight the bearing has to be tapped on with a mallet, but does need to hold the center of the bearing in place while the outer race spins. Even with cheaper bearings, the wheel should move easily when turned.
The cabinets sit on 2x2 blocks. The blocks were drilled for the shafts and shafts glued in place. To make sure the shafts were as evenly spaced as possible, I drilled the blocks in the lathe, marking one side which was held under jaw #1. When flipped end-for-end, the same face was under jaw #1.
Sharpen your tools! Why is it I always forget this lesson? 5 minutes at the grinder and stone, and the lathe is once again throwing eating through wood instead of asking "would you pretty please separate from the board?"
Puckdropper