Burke vs Rongfu mill?

[Swiftfingers]

Hello all,

I'm finally at a place in my life where I can afford and have room for a small mill.
I've been scouring FB marketplace and craigslist, and I've found that I can get an RF30-style mill for about $800-1k OR I can get a Burke no4 for about the same money.

The burke comes with the vertical milling attachment, and looks to be in decent shape, AND I know I can add a traditional milling head to it, BUT it has a pretty small working area (something like 11"x4"), but it's so darn neat!

RF30-style mills are popular, and I don't mind doing some mods to make it more serviceable.

I know it's subjective, but which one is a better pick?

 

[markba633csi]

The Burke, being a horizontal mill doesn't have a quill so that limits it's usefulness as a precision drill press- big negative for some folks
Mill/drills are more useful, generally speaking- although the Burke might be nice to have
if you already had a drill press. That is a small working area though. Kinda depends on what type/size of parts you plan on making
If you were to add a motorized vertical head to the Burke it would be a very versatile machine- I have something similar

 

[Swiftfingers]

The Burke, being a horizontal mill doesn't have a quill so that limits it's usefulness as a precision drill press- big negative for some folks
Mill/drills are more useful, generally speaking- although the Burke might be nice to have
if you already had a drill press. That is a small working area though. Kinda depends on what type/size of parts you plan on making
If you were to add a motorized vertical head to the Burke it would be a very versatile machine- I have something similar

I *happen* to have a Bridgeport J head in my garage needing a host....
it might be a bit overkill, though.

 

[matthewsx]

Depends on what work you want to do with it. I had an RF30 and it was a pretty good tool for what it's worth. I paid about what you're looking at and used it for a while. Then, I got a deal on a Taiwan 3/4 size Bridgeport clone and sold the RF30. I still have my little horizontal mill and have decided to keep it since I think some of the things I want to do will be more suited there (cutting small gears).

If you just want a general purpose machine to start making parts with I'd recommend getting the RF30 and live with it's shortcomings. If however, your desire is to tinker the Burke might be a better choice. I've seen J heads adapted to almost everything so why not....

Most of us have been through multiple machines with learning involved on all of them. If you look at it as a journey it doesn't really matter which one you choose, or if you decide to wait for something better.

Oh, one more thing....

You didn't mention if you already have a lathe. If not you should consider purchasing a lathe before getting any milling machine. There are many operations which can be done on a lathe that you can also do with a mill, but not so much the other way around. Tooling is simpler, and you'll learn about speeds & feeds in a little more controlled manner.

So, hope that helps.

John

 

[Swiftfingers]

Depends on what work you want to do with it. I had an RF30 and it was a pretty good tool for what it's worth. I paid about what you're looking at and used it for a while. Then, I got a deal on a Taiwan 3/4 size Bridgeport clone and sold the RF30. I still have my little horizontal mill and have decided to keep it since I think some of the things I want to do will be more suited there (cutting small gears).

If you just want a general purpose machine to start making parts with I'd recommend getting the RF30 and live with it's shortcomings. If however, your desire is to tinker the Burke might be a better choice. I've seen J heads adapted to almost everything so why not....

Most of us have been through multiple machines with learning involved on all of them. If you look at it as a journey it doesn't really matter which one you choose, or if you decide to wait for something better.

Oh, one more thing....

You didn't mention if you already have a lathe. If not you should consider purchasing a lathe before getting any milling machine. There are many operations which can be done on a lathe that you can also do with a mill, but not so much the other way around. Tooling is simpler, and you'll learn about speeds & feeds in a little more controlled manner.

So, hope that helps.

John

Thanks for the insight.
I do have a lathe, it's a Birmingham YCL-1236. It's in pretty rough shape, but it's coming together.
I WAS considering a "milling attachment" for the lathe, but they seem like way more of a hassle than they're worth.

 

[markba633csi]

J-head eh? You just need a mill to put under it LOL
Actually, an M-head might be a better match for the Burke, but those don't have backgear, and they are not R-8

 

[matthewsx]

Thanks for the insight.
I do have a lathe, it's a Birmingham YCL-1236. It's in pretty rough shape, but it's coming together.
I WAS considering a "milling attachment" for the lathe, but they seem like way more of a hassle than they're worth.

Good, 12x36 is the perfect size for a home shop IMHO (that's what I have)....

The main feature of lathe milling attachments is to help justify purchasing a mill. So, up to you. RF30 = get going now and start building stuff. Burke = cute and stout for it's size, maybe can adapt the Bridgeport head but small work envelope. Wait = maybe get something better, I thought the RF30 was as big as I could go but am happy I stretched my space and budget for a real (little) vertical knee mill.

Or get something now and keep saving your money for something else better when it comes along, it's not like getting married after all....

John

 

[Aaron_W]

If this is going to be your only mill, the RF30 is probably more practical for general use as many own them and find them satisfactory. They are pretty common at that price so nothing really special unless it comes with a lot of swag.

The Burke with a vertical attachment is much less common, but to me anyway is more interesting. It offers some long term benefit being both a vertical and horizontal mill. Although the RF30 is a more capable vertical mill, it offers little as a second machine if you later find a better vertical mill, where you may find the Burke still desirable.

 

[jwmay]

With patience, you can get a Bridgeport, Burke Millrite, or several other import named Bridgeport clones for not a lot more than that. And the difference between that and what you’re considering is imo, dramatic.
I’d concentrate on getting that lathe in tip top shape, while scraping together a few hundred more dollars, and prowling for a true vertical milling machine.
But that’s just me. I think the Burke is cool, but not to use regularly. And I think the RC mills are so much less user friendly, less rigid, and more fiddly that it’s not worth the trouble. I did have one. And I did like it, when it was all I had. But I picked up a Rockwell mill somewhere along the way and the RC mill became nothing more than a thing I wanted out of my way after about a month.
Actually now that I’m thinking about it…I DID use the RC mill for about 4 years before my dream came true. That would have been a serious drag on my progress to not have ANY machine capable of milling.
Well I guess never mind. I vote for the RC mill if’n that’s the quickest route to chips in your beard.

 

[Swiftfingers]

With patience, you can get a Bridgeport, Burke Millrite, or several other import named Bridgeport clones for not a lot more than that. And the difference between that and what you’re considering is imo, dramatic.
I’d concentrate on getting that lathe in tip top shape, while scraping together a few hundred more dollars, and prowling for a true vertical milling machine.
But that’s just me. I think the Burke is cool, but not to use regularly. And I think the RC mills are so much less user friendly, less rigid, and more fiddly that it’s not worth the trouble. I did have one. And I did like it, when it was all I had. But I picked up a Rockwell mill somewhere along the way and the RC mill became nothing more than a thing I wanted out of my way after about a month.
Actually now that I’m thinking about it…I DID use the RC mill for about 4 years before my dream came true. That would have been a serious drag on my progress to not have ANY machine capable of milling.
Well I guess never mind. I vote for the RC mill if’n that’s the quickest route to chips in your beard.

I appreciate the input. Footprint is a big factor, and it's hard for me to grasp how big some of the floor-standing knee mills are from a few (bad) pictures. I would love a "big" mill, but I definitely can't get a big-big mill.
Any suggestions on how to look for a smaller knee mill?