I have an Enco mill-drill. I have a ton of tooling, R8 collets, and end-mill holders, a cheap vise and two sets of clamps. I'd like to use it eventually to make metal versions of wooden moulding planes. I've got a plan in my head for a version with replacable bottoms for different shapes of moulding.
The above paragraph is my ENTIRE knowledge of mills and milling.
I spend 6 hours today doing a simple task - the base for my new lathe QCTP needed milled down to size and a rabbet on two sides so I could mount it on the cross-slide. First I had to torque everythng down like crazy to keep the head from shifting. Then the only way to get a halfway clean cut was to put it in reverse and make climb cuts. I used three new end-mills. The first one cut nicely until I burned it. The second one actually snapped. (1/2" double end-mill and it snapped like a twig. The third finished the job, but barely. And this was all in soft chinese steel.
My biggest problem is that the factory stand that came with the mill is junk. It vibrates like crazy and then the mill itself vibrates and shakes. I need to make a better stand and quick. I don't weld, and don't have the money at this time to buy (and learn how to use) a welder. I am a woodworker though, so I'm thinking I can make a big wooden box as a form, scrounge up some rebar from behind the shed, and pour a solid cement stand 2' x2' x3' tall. Is this feasible? Is it extreme? Is there an easier solution? Is there something else out there made of cement (or iron, or cryptonite) that I can probably find cheaply and repurpose?
I'm just a bit frustrated. I'm sure I can learn to use it a lot quicker if I didn't have to fight the machine, and since I can't afford a 2-ton mill at this time, It's going to have to be with the mill/drill.
thanks in advance for any help
Joe
The above paragraph is my ENTIRE knowledge of mills and milling.
I spend 6 hours today doing a simple task - the base for my new lathe QCTP needed milled down to size and a rabbet on two sides so I could mount it on the cross-slide. First I had to torque everythng down like crazy to keep the head from shifting. Then the only way to get a halfway clean cut was to put it in reverse and make climb cuts. I used three new end-mills. The first one cut nicely until I burned it. The second one actually snapped. (1/2" double end-mill and it snapped like a twig. The third finished the job, but barely. And this was all in soft chinese steel.
My biggest problem is that the factory stand that came with the mill is junk. It vibrates like crazy and then the mill itself vibrates and shakes. I need to make a better stand and quick. I don't weld, and don't have the money at this time to buy (and learn how to use) a welder. I am a woodworker though, so I'm thinking I can make a big wooden box as a form, scrounge up some rebar from behind the shed, and pour a solid cement stand 2' x2' x3' tall. Is this feasible? Is it extreme? Is there an easier solution? Is there something else out there made of cement (or iron, or cryptonite) that I can probably find cheaply and repurpose?
I'm just a bit frustrated. I'm sure I can learn to use it a lot quicker if I didn't have to fight the machine, and since I can't afford a 2-ton mill at this time, It's going to have to be with the mill/drill.
thanks in advance for any help
Joe