Looking at mills
- Thread starter Brad
- Start date
I never had regrets purchasing to large or high quality tool. The same can't be said for the other end of the spectrum.
I have 3/4 & 1tons up here. Also have a fold up engine hoist & rigging supplies. You can have them load it right on my truck...
Honeyman over on 84th south of the freeway has a small hydro drop deck trailer that works splendid @40$ iirc
When I get the mill you will be getting a call!
smokeywolf
Well-Known Member
My Bridgeport is a 1985 vintage Series I with a 9"x48" table. One of the best things about it is, while I got it used, I was in the MGM Machine Shop when it was originally purchased and delivered. I have every scrap of paperwork connected with it back to the RFQ and know all the people (only about 5) who have ever used it.
I'm dreading what it's going to cost me to move the shop.
I've run a few different Bridgeport clones that were pretty good. Birmingham, Summit, WEBB and a couple of others. The WEBB was one of my favorites. If memory serves, it was an 10"x50" and had box ways.
I'm dreading what it's going to cost me to move the shop.
I've run a few different Bridgeport clones that were pretty good. Birmingham, Summit, WEBB and a couple of others. The WEBB was one of my favorites. If memory serves, it was an 10"x50" and had box ways.
Pistolero
Well-Known Member
You'll love it, Brad. I have my mini-mill which is fine for lots of small projects, gunsmithing
sized stuff, but having a friend nearby with a DRO variable speed Bridgeport sure is nice!
He lets me use it, knows I won't mess it up. His BPort is a '69 model, got it from an estate.
The original owner bought a pair of them new in '69, put one under a tarp in his shop and used
the other one. The second was his "spare". Never used the spare. It is actually a bit tight
in the spindle, due to low time, amazingly. Ways have 100% of the little jiggles that hold
the oil, no wear visible at all.
Two big limitations of the minimill.....no quill and short distance from spindle to bed.
Bill
Bill
sized stuff, but having a friend nearby with a DRO variable speed Bridgeport sure is nice!
He lets me use it, knows I won't mess it up. His BPort is a '69 model, got it from an estate.
The original owner bought a pair of them new in '69, put one under a tarp in his shop and used
the other one. The second was his "spare". Never used the spare. It is actually a bit tight
in the spindle, due to low time, amazingly. Ways have 100% of the little jiggles that hold
the oil, no wear visible at all.
Two big limitations of the minimill.....no quill and short distance from spindle to bed.
Bill
Bill
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http://www.precisionmatthews.com/shop/pm-835smill/
This is what I am leaning towards. Will get it with the DRO installed.
Is a 4" vise the right size or does this mill need a 6"?
This is what I am leaning towards. Will get it with the DRO installed.
Is a 4" vise the right size or does this mill need a 6"?
Pistolero
Well-Known Member
Looks really nice. DRO on a mill is just fantastic to have.
They have a 5" vise that would seem to be a good compromise. But...my friend's
BPort has a 6" Kurt, and that is what I got for my big Hurco CNC.....which is not in my shop,
or under power, yet.
Bill
They have a 5" vise that would seem to be a good compromise. But...my friend's
BPort has a 6" Kurt, and that is what I got for my big Hurco CNC.....which is not in my shop,
or under power, yet.
Bill
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That's not a bad $$.
I wouldn't get hung up on a swivel base on the vise.My air/hyd pair have a nice feature,they have ground pins installed in the base that register on the tee slots.They can be pushed in so as to not engage as well.But it sure makes quick work to get them aligned and/or repositioned.And you should try(don't get to hung up on it though) reposition the vise from time to time. It's a wear thing,like the bed of a lathe,all the wear is in one place.......
The advantage to longer mill beds,besides obvious travel is the ability to have multiple vises,but also multiple setups at the same time in different spots.
I have been VERY fortunate having mentors and friends who are machinists literally looking over my shoulder...... the one bit of advice or suggestion years ago that really stuck was,about the mess. Oily swarf and chips getting everywhere. Eggsactly the same as dust and chips in a cabinet shop.Airbourne funk(coolants and cutting oils)and slingin chips "are an important consideration" in an overall safety program.Even more so in a home shop environment. So,plan on it from the getgo.
There will be times your mill may not be turned on for days at a time...... don't think that way. And this is for guys on the fence considering a mill or lathe...... the feeling you get when needing a spot of machining and you walk over,turn on your lite,fixture the part and hit the go buttons is priceless.
I wouldn't get hung up on a swivel base on the vise.My air/hyd pair have a nice feature,they have ground pins installed in the base that register on the tee slots.They can be pushed in so as to not engage as well.But it sure makes quick work to get them aligned and/or repositioned.And you should try(don't get to hung up on it though) reposition the vise from time to time. It's a wear thing,like the bed of a lathe,all the wear is in one place.......
The advantage to longer mill beds,besides obvious travel is the ability to have multiple vises,but also multiple setups at the same time in different spots.
I have been VERY fortunate having mentors and friends who are machinists literally looking over my shoulder...... the one bit of advice or suggestion years ago that really stuck was,about the mess. Oily swarf and chips getting everywhere. Eggsactly the same as dust and chips in a cabinet shop.Airbourne funk(coolants and cutting oils)and slingin chips "are an important consideration" in an overall safety program.Even more so in a home shop environment. So,plan on it from the getgo.
There will be times your mill may not be turned on for days at a time...... don't think that way. And this is for guys on the fence considering a mill or lathe...... the feeling you get when needing a spot of machining and you walk over,turn on your lite,fixture the part and hit the go buttons is priceless.
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smokeywolf
Well-Known Member
Of the Taiwanese machinery, PM has a very good reputation. If this mill ends up being your choice and serves as well as your lathe, you'll be in great shape.
Agree with Keith and others. Power feed on X is just about too good to pass up. I've run several Bridgeports and clones without, and it is sorely missed.
Intheshop brought up something that I have done quite a few times. Mount the vise to left of center on the table and a collet indexer to right of center.
Tooling needed:
Immediately:
Good quality mill vise
T-Slot/Table covers (make these yourself: Masonite is my preference)
Clamping kit
Precision drill chuck
Collets
Parallels
End mills
Test indicator - for tramming head, indicating vise and locating part features
Edge finder
V-blocks
Future tooling; as needed:
Work Light on the mill
Mill/vise stop
Adjustable parallels
Machinist's level
Precision Toolmaker's/grinding vise
Fixture Plate
Criterion Boring head
1-2-3 Blocks
Machinist's square
Balanced fly cutters
30-60-90/45-90 angle plates
Agree with Keith and others. Power feed on X is just about too good to pass up. I've run several Bridgeports and clones without, and it is sorely missed.
Intheshop brought up something that I have done quite a few times. Mount the vise to left of center on the table and a collet indexer to right of center.
Tooling needed:
Immediately:
Good quality mill vise
T-Slot/Table covers (make these yourself: Masonite is my preference)
Clamping kit
Precision drill chuck
Collets
Parallels
End mills
Test indicator - for tramming head, indicating vise and locating part features
Edge finder
V-blocks
Future tooling; as needed:
Work Light on the mill
Mill/vise stop
Adjustable parallels
Machinist's level
Precision Toolmaker's/grinding vise
Fixture Plate
Criterion Boring head
1-2-3 Blocks
Machinist's square
Balanced fly cutters
30-60-90/45-90 angle plates
KeithB
Resident Half Fast Machinist
Can't argue much with Smokey's lists. Might move one or two things from one list to the other but that's more reflective of my own experiences and taste - all the things he mentions are extremely useful additions.
We're just finishing up a batch of Supertracks for our main customer. We use our manual mill to flycut one side of a 3/4" x 3" x 14-3/4" piece of 6061 Al to get a flat finish. We then mount the finished side down in a fixture on our CNC mill to cut out all the rest of the part. We can set the feed stop on the manual mill to stop the table after it clears the part. This lets us tend the mill or even run a different job on the CNC lathe. Yesterday the apprentice was running the CNC mill, manual mill, and CNC lathe all at same time. The lathe job was a one-tool job so once the part was loaded it runs completely through (16 min) without needing any tending. The CNC mill has auto tool change so except for blowing off the chips at a few key spots it runs for 50 minutes. The manual mill takes 12 minutes to flycut a blank but it stops feeding at the end of a cut so if you don't get to it right away no problem. When he wasn't tending the machines he had enough time to debur the most recently finished Supertrack. All with no real haste or bustle. (I think he appreciates how much we get done with minimum physical effort.)
W/o power feed on our manual mill our work load and physical effort would be much greater and our output and part quality would be much less. Different situation than a home/hobby scenario but just the improvement in surface quality puts power feed at the top of my required mill features.
Edit to add: If you get a power feed I would let the dealer install and test it, the install price seems pretty reasonable to me.
We're just finishing up a batch of Supertracks for our main customer. We use our manual mill to flycut one side of a 3/4" x 3" x 14-3/4" piece of 6061 Al to get a flat finish. We then mount the finished side down in a fixture on our CNC mill to cut out all the rest of the part. We can set the feed stop on the manual mill to stop the table after it clears the part. This lets us tend the mill or even run a different job on the CNC lathe. Yesterday the apprentice was running the CNC mill, manual mill, and CNC lathe all at same time. The lathe job was a one-tool job so once the part was loaded it runs completely through (16 min) without needing any tending. The CNC mill has auto tool change so except for blowing off the chips at a few key spots it runs for 50 minutes. The manual mill takes 12 minutes to flycut a blank but it stops feeding at the end of a cut so if you don't get to it right away no problem. When he wasn't tending the machines he had enough time to debur the most recently finished Supertrack. All with no real haste or bustle. (I think he appreciates how much we get done with minimum physical effort.)
W/o power feed on our manual mill our work load and physical effort would be much greater and our output and part quality would be much less. Different situation than a home/hobby scenario but just the improvement in surface quality puts power feed at the top of my required mill features.
Edit to add: If you get a power feed I would let the dealer install and test it, the install price seems pretty reasonable to me.
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Lot's of things like that. They almost give the printers away and charge insane prices on ink. Diabetes glucose meters? They WILL give you the meter FREE, hundreds of dollars for the test strips.
KeithB
Resident Half Fast Machinist
No kidding...
smokeywolf
Well-Known Member
Keith, parts like your "Supertracks" or other squares destined for the mill, I would often put on the 20" G&E shaper to "square up". While that was running the Wilton horizontal band saw would be cutting material and I'd be operating a mill or lathe.
Won't have anything to do with inkjets anymore. We've never had an inkjet remain reliable for more than two years.
Buy a new home-office grade color laserjet about every 6 years. Have had the current one now for over a year. Have printed hundreds of pages (lots were duplex) and still haven't had to replace the toner cartridges.
The cartridges are insanely expensive.
Just called the rubbish company to rent a 40 yard drop-box and found out they're price has gone from $260 to $380 in just 2 years.
Concrete guys are here prepping to pour a new driveway, 2 walkways and an 8' x 10' pad in the back.
Won't have anything to do with inkjets anymore. We've never had an inkjet remain reliable for more than two years.
Buy a new home-office grade color laserjet about every 6 years. Have had the current one now for over a year. Have printed hundreds of pages (lots were duplex) and still haven't had to replace the toner cartridges.
The cartridges are insanely expensive.
Just called the rubbish company to rent a 40 yard drop-box and found out they're price has gone from $260 to $380 in just 2 years.
Concrete guys are here prepping to pour a new driveway, 2 walkways and an 8' x 10' pad in the back.
smokeywolf
Well-Known Member
Sorry. Got distracted and forgot we're not on the "What you doin' today" thread.