What To Mount Mill On?

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HBilly1022

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So I just bought a King PDM-30 mill that weighs around 700 lbs and need to mount it on something. I could get their pedestal stand or make something myself. I think option 2 is in order so the question is; should it be mounted on a steel base or is a wooden one adequate. I can make wooden drawers easier than metal ones so wood would be my choice. I will need the same thing for my recently purchased lathe too but it only weighs 330 lbs.
 
If you make a stand out of wood, use joints that allow the wood, not the fasteners to support the weight. If you do not have nice woodworking tools, make your structure by laminating 2x4s using yellow wood glue. Just make sure you use a saw that makes very square accurate cuts. You can stiffen it even further by making the sides and back out of structural plywood.
 
I don't think the decision is real critical for the mill. The lathe I would do metal. The heavier the better....with leveling feet built in.
 
Thanks for the replies. Looks like I will go with wood for the mill and steel frame / wood drawers for the lathe.
 
I have a similar mill - RF30. I used the stand they sold with the mill, and in all honesty, I am glad I did. It's solid enough, but mainly I was able to fill the bottom enclosure with scraps of steel, sand, and whatever else I could fit in there. Ended up adding about 250 pounds to the base, which was extremely helpful in reducing vibration and chatter on this "smallish" machine. Don't get me wrong - I love my RF30 and use it constantly. A good solid heavy base or stand makes it even better! :aok:
 
brasssmanget said:
I have a similar mill - RF30. I used the stand they sold with the mill, and in all honesty, I am glad I did. It's solid enough, but mainly I was able to fill the bottom enclosure with scraps of steel, sand, and whatever else I could fit in there. Ended up adding about 250 pounds to the base, which was extremely helpful in reducing vibration and chatter on this "smallish" machine. Don't get me wrong - I love my RF30 and use it constantly. A good solid heavy base or stand makes it even better! :aok:
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I believe I've changed my mind and will get the optional metal stand for this unit. My initial concern was that the stand did not have storage in it and I want that for the tooling etc. KMS tools did not have one on display and there was not enough info on the King website to determine if the stand had storage. But I got the local dealer to contact another store that had one on display and they confirm it has storage, so I have one being shipped to the local dealer for me to check out when I pick up the mill. I think I will still build a heavy steel stand for the lathe though.
 
Slightly off topic but related is working height. When I bought my 700+ lb Grizzly Mill/Drill G0484 a couple years back it came with a cast stand. However, I found the working height to be too low for me at 6'2". I ended up building a wood base out of 8x8 pressure treated that is bolted together and braced with 2x8's. The stand is then bolted to the base. Base is a few inches wider than the cast stand so the entire unit is pretty stable and has no propensity to tip over. Another goal was not wanting to drill holes in new garage floor...
 
jkcrum said:
Slightly off topic but related is working height. When I bought my 700+ lb Grizzly Mill/Drill G0484 a couple years back it came with a cast stand. However, I found the working height to be too low for me at 6'2". I ended up building a wood base out of 8x8 pressure treated that is bolted together and braced with 2x8's. The stand is then bolted to the base. Base is a few inches wider than the cast stand so the entire unit is pretty stable and has no propensity to tip over. Another goal was not wanting to drill holes in new garage floor...
Click to expand...

Good point about the height. I'm only 5' 9" so it may not be an issue for me but that is certainly worth checking before I make the decision. I don't want to be bending over either. My old back gets sore even after standing straight up for a while. If I have to stay bent over to use the mill, I may not be able to straighten out when I'm done.:)
 
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