Anotrher new PM32PDF mill

[HangLoose]

Great thread, very informative!

Hey Johnny, if you don't mind me asking... How do the wheels on your base work? I'd love to build something similar for when my mill arrives (within the month) but I am clueless about how you went about that. Also if you don't mind sharing, do you have the plans for your base available?
Thanks

 

[johnnyc14]

Good. You got the big craters out of it and won't have to worry about anything coming back at you.

So, how was it? Was it what you expected? Sometimes those surface cuts make weird noise and shaky/shimmy the machine. If that happens, make sure the jib locks are tight on the head and pull the slack out of the table locks.


Ray

It was pretty smooth actually, except when the tool went over a crater and started an interrupted cut it made quite a knocking sound. I did tighten up the jib locks on the Y and Z before I started. I sure like the powered X feed. It would have been a lot of work cranking that thing back and forth by hand. The surface finish is pretty good too. I played with different speeds on the quill and the table feed to get the smoothest operation I could.

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Great thread, very informative!

Hey Johnny, if you don't mind me asking... How do the wheels on your base work? I'd love to build something similar for when my mill arrives (within the month) but I am clueless about how you went about that. Also if you don't mind sharing, do you have the plans for your base available?
Thanks

I,ll take some better pictures of the wheels and post them tomorrow. I actually made them for my lathe but used the same foot/wheel system on the mill. I made them after I got frustrated trying to find good wheels for a reasonable price. I have the dimensions for the base drawn up somewhere. I'll post them tomorrow too.

 

[HangLoose]

Sweet! I look forward to seeing them, thanks

 

[johnnyc14]

Here are some pics of the wheel system I made. They are made from the coupling nuts you get for all-thread rod. I bought 8 of the cheapest bearings I could find ($2.50 each) and machined the ends of 7/16" round rod to fit the ID of the bearing and drilled a couple of holes for the cotter pins. I drilled a 7/16" hole through the bottom of each nut across 2 flats and welded the axles I made into the nuts. The leveling legs are just made up from the same size all-thread with a nut welded to the top to act like the head of a bolt. Each leg has a lock nut so that once level is achieved they won't turn. To move the machine I just adjust the legs up to provide enough space for the wheels. I slide a block of wood under one corner at a time and back the threaded rod up then thread it down into the nut. The nuts can be turned in any direction with a wrench as you manouver the machine where you want it. The reason the adjusters on the lathe are so long is to allow me to jack it up high enough to get the engine crane under it as the base is too wide to go between the legs of my crane.









Here are a couple of crude drawings of the base I made from 2" square tube and the bottom of the cast iron stand that came with the machine. I welded a 2" square of 1/4" material over the 4 exposed tube ends to give it a finished look. I then welded the 5/8" coupling nuts to the flat surface that provided at the end of each tube. Because the bolt holes are in-set 1.25-1.5" from the outside edges of the stand I moved those supports in 1/2" on each side so the bolt holes could be in the middle of the tube. That why that dimension is 17" and not 18". I wouldn't build the stand until you actually get your machine because there may be slightly different dimensions for each machine. You can see by the drawings that not all the hole locations are symetrical in the cast iron base.





Cheers,

John

 

[johnnyc14]

I got word from Matt today that he has shipped out the parts to repair my machine. That's impressive, less that 2 days after he knew of the problem he has already shipped the replacement parts. He also suggested that I check for voltage drops between the cord the machine is plugged into, and the motor. I measured the open circuit voltage at the cord and then measured the voltage at the motor with the machine running on the highest speed. Less than 2 volts difference makes it OK I think.







John

 

[Ray C]

That's good voltage. You're fine. All machinery needs the proper gauge wire on the supply side as inadequate wiring heats things up considerably. Matt apparently had this problem with a customer who was running long extension cords.

 

[HangLoose]

Thanks again Johnny, this is very helpful.
Cheers!

 

[johnnyc14]

Well I received the new junction block and tried to install it but the plastic was so flimsy it broke when I tried to tighten the first screw. I decided to just use regular terminal connectors instead to make sure of a good connection without any more meltdowns. I had to extend the wires to the motor then solder on all the terminal ends but it worked out well and I've been using the machine quite as bit and monitoring the connections and they are not getting hot. I removed the screw/pin from the quill taper to stop the interfernace issue I was having with my collets. Thanks to Chipsalloy and Ray C. for cluing me in to that fix.
I've been learning as I go and having lots of fun making some little parts. I made this socket to use on a special nut on my motorcycle the other day and it turned out well.





The square hole was a pain to make on the mill and didn't turn out perfect but not too bad.

 

[Ray C]

Looks great! I remember having only a lathe for a long time and when I got a mill, it felt sooo good to make strategically located flat spots instead of just round stuff all the time...


Ray