Looking for advice on a small (ish) mill

Where can I source hand cranks for it? Besides ebay?
Eisen has them:
handle
handwheel

Also, for the rust, paper towels soaked in evaporust and held in place with magnets make a great first pass. When the paper towel dries out, go in with the scotchbrite and mineral spirits.
 
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Mcmaster is a good source for many things also. Might be something to bookmark. Nice "smallish" mill lol wish mine was that small :grin:
 
Everything I said at first still stands.

Buy it, convert to modern CNC controls, etc and make chips.

I'm jealous over your Rottller, I recently got a Kwik-Way but haven't had a chance to get it fired up yet.
 
Regarding conversion to manual ... just remember that, unlike Acme lead screws, ball screws can be back-driven, often with relatively low force. So be sure to lock down the unused axes when milling. Otherwise, your table might start wandering all over the place unexpectedly.

Other than that minor caution - Congratulations!
 
I'm jealous over your Rottller, I recently got a Kwik-Way but haven't had a chance to get it fired up yet.

That rottler was the first piece of machinery I bought (besides a forklift haha). It is awesome to use, and produces an amazing cylinder. But selling it will fund tooling/upgrades for this new BP. I had someone offer $1k for it on ebay. I counter offered at $1100, but they didn't accept it. I started to take it out of commission today so I can crate it up to ship it.
 
So I'm hoping to go up this weekend and get this thing somehow. When I'm actually near it, I'll take pics of all the motors and stuff and post. I signed for cnczone, but holy!! There's a lot of places to post. Didn't know where to start. General cnc?

I'll post pics of what this thing is and maybe someone can point a finger in the general direction, then I'll research like crazy and probably start spending at that point too. Haha.
 
So I'm hoping to go up this weekend and get this thing somehow. When I'm actually near it, I'll take pics of all the motors and stuff and post. I signed for cnczone, but holy!! There's a lot of places to post. Didn't know where to start. General cnc?

I'll post pics of what this thing is and maybe someone can point a finger in the general direction, then I'll research like crazy and probably start spending at that point too. Haha.

Take your time figuring out how to move it, if your buddy already has it on a trailer it might be worth putting new tires and bearings on his rather than trying to transfer it without the proper forklift or crane to pick it up. Chain & strap it down good and take the journey slow with lots of stops to make sure everything is tight. Also make sure the boards/skid underneath are in good shape, you don't want that giving out on the highway. Be EXTRA CAREFUL, that thing weighs more than either of you think;)

As for CNCZone you can post in the general area and the moderators will move your post if needed. Certainly the first post from someone getting a new machine is always welcome. Posts with pictures of moving stuff is even better.

Cheers,

John
 
Take your time figuring out how to move it, if your buddy already has it on a trailer it might be worth putting new tires and bearings on his rather than trying to transfer it without the proper forklift or crane to pick it up. Chain & strap it down good and take the journey slow with lots of stops to make sure everything is tight. Also make sure the boards/skid underneath are in good shape, you don't want that giving out on the highway. Be EXTRA CAREFUL, that thing weighs more than either of you think;)

As for CNCZone you can post in the general area and the moderators will move your post if needed. Certainly the first post from someone getting a new machine is always welcome. Posts with pictures of moving stuff is even better.

Cheers,

John
Thanks for the advice! I'll hopefully have updates this week on what happens. I'll update.
 
So I came up today and saw the mill for the first time in person. She's gorgeous. Really rough around the edges.... But I can tell she's got sweet spirit. . Here are some current pics. The rust on the table is far less than I thought. I was curious enough to try and move things. The x axis motor has a shaft you can grab onto, and we were able to spin it and move the whole table way easy. Only moved it back and forth about 0.060" each way. I'll clean it good before I do too much. The knee won't go up or down. The crank spins almost a full turn then binds, so hopefully my gib isn't ultra stuck/broken. I didn't check anything else beyond that mechanically. The spindle had a spindle wizard built in, but I might try and convert that. Have to research that a bit. It came with an old desktop computer and a stand that bolts onto the machine to hold it all. I'll be converting to just a laptop. Haha. The control box on the back...... I need opinions. Do I try and get it to work, or do I just scrap that and replace it with something more current? I have pics of the whole machine, the main motor, the stepper motor tag (3 identical motors for X, Y, and Z (not knee, that's still manual, but I want to get a power feed).

We're taking his beat up trailer about 5 miles to a equipment rental center tomorrow morning. I talked to them, they said for $50, I can use forklift to move it. So we'll lift it up (my buddy has moved a lot of machines over the years), we'll drive out from under it. Then back my trailer under it, and set it down and get her secure.

Advice? Thoughts? I'll post more pics and Info as it comes.
 

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For moving make sure to rotate the head and block it against the table. Go slow and take it easy, more straps and chains than you think you need, others probably have more/better advice.

As for the control box, you will probably end up tearing it all out but it's worth trying it as-is to see what it'll do if you can get the correct power to it. There may be parts you can re-use so don't throw anything away of course. If it were mine I would make a comprehensive plan on what parts are needed and the required specs first. Then you can look for used/surplus pieces that are suitable, you will have plenty of time while you clean and inspect the mechanical aspect.

Looks like a beauty, take your time to get it right and you will have a machine that will last a lifetime and you won't outgrow:cool:

John
 
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