Evaluating used knee mill

[Jakedaawg]

Does anyone remember a good thread or how-to regarding how to check out a used mill?

I am actively shopping for a Bridgeport or other vertical milling machine and find that I have no real idea of how to make sure the machine isn't clapped out. Things may look great visually but are there any measurements I could perform quickly and easily without actually milling something to make sure things are decent? Quite a few of the machines I have looked at have been sitting since the user passed on. The folks that have them for sale dont ever seem to know much and there is always a family friend there telling them they are sitting on a pile of gold.

 

[mikey]

You might PM Richard King - he is extremely knowledgeable about this sort of thing.

 

[markba633csi]

Check out Dave Ficken's old site:
www.mermac.com
Not a lot on mills specifically but good info on checking machines in general

 

[Jakedaawg]

Thank you. I haven't read it in full yet but that appears to be the kind of research I am looking for. I hope nobody will mind questions when I am done reading this.

 

[Splat]

For anyone with no knowledge of either machines or the machine they'd like to buy I recommend buying new. I went thru this with and I can tell you it's easy to get burned. A fresh coat of paint or a seemingly nice, honest seller can hide important details about the machine. At least with new you get a new machine and a warranty. You're starting off, most likely, from a bettet place already. Even if you get smaller machine or one without a feature like power table feed, you'd be learning on a good machine. I would look at Precision Matthews or Grizzly and see what fits your budget and/or needs.

 

[Mitch Alsup]

For anyone with no knowledge of either machines or the machine they'd like to buy I recommend buying new. I went thru this with and I can tell you it's easy to get burned. A fresh coat of paint or a seemingly nice, honest seller can hide important details about the machine. At least with new you get a new machine and a warranty. You're starting off, most likely, from a bettet place already. Even if you get smaller machine or one without a feature like power table feed, you'd be learning on a good machine. I would look at Precision Matthews or Grizzly and see what fits your budget and/or needs.

Basically this.

If you are buying a machine to start using it right away, then you either:
a) need to know a fair amount about the kind of machine and how it works to understand if its good to go or all clapped out
or
b) you buy a new one
or
c) you buy an old one and spend 1/2 to a whole year rebuilding it.

 

[Splat]

And actually "C" is like "A" cuz you need to know about the machine to repair/rebuild it. Not all machines have a nice rebuild manual out like you can find for a South Bend lathe.

 

[Jakedaawg]

Well, thanks guys. I get what your saying.

I believe I will still be looking for a good used one. I think I'll get more for my money that way even if some repairs are in order. I have no doubt that I have the skills and brains to figure this out. I was just looking for some tips.

It's all part of the fun, and hopefully it will become another service I can offer in the shop down the road. A lot of the parts for the stuff i get paid to work on are becoming obsolete and being able to repair or replace them is attractive. The challenge will prove rewarding hopefully.