Question about small milling machines

stupoty said:
The round coloum mills are very capable for the cash they cost but do have a few limitations, for example the head moving relative to work when the heads raised and lowered, tramming isnt easy.

on the postive its very versatile and good value.

I am currently lusting after the real small bench knee milling machines i think they look proper tasty for smaller work.

Stuart
Click to expand...

I agree round column mills are hard to tram for a beginner. If you have to move the head in or out due to travel limitations they can be hard to re-align.
 
Just a tip on round column mills:

Make a holder for a laser pointer, and mount it on the head. Clear off a space on the opposite wall, then get the head as low as possible and centered over the table. Turn on the pointer, and make a mark on the wall. Raise the head to the top, re-center it, and mark the laser point again. Turn off the pointer, and use a straight edge to connect the dots. Now if you move the head, you can simply bump the head to get the laser dot on the line, and the head will be pretty darn close to where it was. With an 8-10' long "pointer" you can get the head incredibly close to it's original rotational position.
 
Vince_O said:
I've been wanting to get a small milling machine, don't have room or power for a Bridgeport, ext. This being said, I'm no machinest, nor do I know anything about it, so I would like your input on these machines. In have a SB9 now in my shop, mostly doing repairs on old garden tractors.

I don't know anything about milling, or milling machines. So what could a person do with a small unit like this?

Epay 171647504418

CL. https://athensga.craigslist.org/tls/4853482733.html
Click to expand...

I just went down the same road your on now. Wanting a mill not knowing which one to buy. Lacking space, having to run power. As everyone says take your time. Not that your going to buy a Grizzly, but on their site you can compare several different mill at the same time. This will give you an ideal of what you may, or may not, need or want in a mill. One thing to consider is the weight more is usually better. In my case I knew I didn't really need a large mill, but then I didn't want to cut my self short. Like I did with my lathe. I ended up buying the 12Z jr. from Charter oak automation, which I picked up yesterday. I cannot comment on It yet, as it is still in the crate, but it looks well made and is very heavy for it 'size. Good luck, let us know what you end up doing.
 
Get the bigest mill you can aford and have space for. You won't regret it. I have the grizzly G0704 for that reason. It has done everything I need.
 
Had a round column mill for a few years. Was quite capable of making whatever I put on it. With 5" of quill stroke, a little planning with tooling will go a long way. Short drills and center drills in a drill chuck, long in a collet.
 
Nothing wrong with those round column mills. I've had 3 of them. I wish I had kept them even after I found a nice knee mill, because they make a great HD drill press.

Small mills - Benchtop - US-made -Benchmaster and not much else.
Asian there are the minimills and then a step up to the X3 or similar. Skip the standard minimill, although Littlemachineshop makes a hybride with big table and rigid column that I think is worth considering. I think the Asian X3 type mills are the ultimate benchtop, if you have a stout bench..

Small knee mills - floor models - US-made in size order - Clausing, Rockwell (Centex), Millrite. The Clausing can be bench-mounted. The Millrite is as stout as a Bridgeport, but the table size starts at 8x27, so the workspace is small.

Speaking of Clausing, the Asians make a clone, generically called "6x26". Those are very worthwhile.

Of course, you haven't told us what you expect to use it for - model engines, gunsmithing can be done on the smallest mills.

Are you confused yet?
 
Maybe something like this? These guys are in my back yard.

http://www.travers.com/115323-87-115-929?Category=UserSearch=milling machine

And this one is the noisy problem matic motor?

http://www.travers.com/38581-87-115-905?Category=UserSearch=milling machine#


This one from Grizzly

http://www.grizzly.com/products/Drill-Mill-with-Stand/G0704


Maybe this one?

http://www.grizzly.com/products/Mill-Drill/G0758



I think the ones for Grizzly have a bit nicer features, but the 1 hp motor on Travers, will I see a differance between 3/4 and 1 hp?
 
I am a little confused about the Precision Matthews mills. They look like the same castings and hardware as the Chinese mills that Grizzly sells? Is that correct? What is the difference? I will be in the market for a small mill soon so I am starting to look. Are you guys with the PM's happy with your mills?
R
 
Of the 4 listed, the G0704 Grizzly is by far the best choice IMO.
It is also a popular basis for CNC conversion should you later decide to go that route
 
rwm said:
I am a little confused about the Precision Matthews mills. They look like the same castings and hardware as the Chinese mills that Grizzly sells? Is that correct? What is the difference? I will be in the market for a small mill soon so I am starting to look. Are you guys with the PM's happy with your mills?
R
Click to expand...


I have a PM-25MV which is nearly identical to the G0704. It comes with an installed belt drive(very quiet), brushless motor with digital controller, and a three year warranty. Matt is great to deal with and I have been very happy with the mill. Check out http://www.g0704.com for info on this style of mill.

good luck!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top