first mill and its a Wells Index 745

jimbo762

Registered
Registered
Joined
Jul 14, 2017
Messages
29
I haven't touched a mill in at least 25 years but i've been needing a drill press. Not just a little drill press but a decent one. after seeing the prices on those and having been playing a friends cnc plasma table, well, more like total teardown, electrical troubleshooting, computer/software replacement, and then full setup, i was hooked on cnc.
So i've been watching local ads for roughly 8 months, just waiting for the right deal to come along. It finally did this week.
I learned you can pick up a Wells Index 745 with a 2 ton cherry picker too LOL.
I ended up with the mill, some kind of rotary table with swappable "surfaces", one is like a lathe chuck, and one is a flat plate with grooves, made by Rutland. Also got a complete collet set, all R8, few handfuls of various used end mills, couple of boring heads, 3 snap on tap and die sets (not sure how its related to the mill but i wasn't complaining), a huge wooden box of what looks like 99 (10x10 layout minus 1) incremental woodruff key bits with only one having any use, a chineseum vise, starret dial indicator with magnet base, and all the t bolts, i guess they are called, that slide in the table to hold work in place as well as all the interlocking stepped pieces for those.
The quill spins freely and moves up and down well, x, y, and z, all move nice now but took a little back and forth to get going. This thing has been in storage in Arizona for a decade so i'm sure all the grease is shot. Even if it is not, its getting replaced. Only thing i couldn't test was the motor and i'm not too concerned about that. Its a 2hp 220 3 phase, so if its bad, its cheap. Just need to hunt down a VFD and figure that out.
My biggest fear was something being seized up and rust on the ways but they look great since they are coated with a fine layer of grease.
As i tear into it next week, i'll get some pics to help with the many questions i'm sure to have.
So far, the only noticeable issue is the shaft for z axis is bent at handle. The handle still goes on and it still works, but it is noticeably bent.
I only got two pics after i got it home and unloaded and the head is still rotated down. The pic in the storage shed was all i had to go on but you can see the rotary thing on the table. It has to weigh 80+ pounds. Took a camera with me but it was WAY to hot today to mess with it. Thinking i couldn't go wrong for $1000 out the door, no delivery though :).

IMG_2542.jpg IMG_2541.jpg c90f198050c24005bf06b24b42e9ac25.jpg
 
Hey, great find!
I could kick myself for not buying one near me a couple years back. Let us know your progress. Ken

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G920A using Tapatalk
 
Great mill! The grease is not so good. All the sliding ways and lead screws are supposed to be oiled, not greased. Yes, they look like automotive Zerk fittings, but they are definitely for oil. The tightness in the machine is because of the grease. The grease will also capture the swarf and turn it into lapping paste, wearing the surfaces away. The table, saddle and knee will need to be taken off, completely disassembled, cleaned to bare metal, and any lube lines cleaned out, and then put back together using a way oil like Mobil Vactra #2. The good news is that the grease kept rust away over the last decade, you will get to know the mill, and you will have an opportunity to adjust the gibs for a nice sliding fit.
 
Your "Rotary thing on the table" is worth what you paid. Generally known as a "Dividing Head". It can be rotated (crank on the back) to make either rotary cuts, or used as a spacer, to make a number of identical cuts in a round piece. Gears, or holes in a circle or what have you. Once you get apart and back together you'll have fun putting CNC to it. Should work a charm.
 
Your "Rotary thing on the table" is worth what you paid. Generally known as a "Dividing Head". It can be rotated (crank on the back) to make either rotary cuts, or used as a spacer, to make a number of identical cuts in a round piece. Gears, or holes in a circle or what have you. Once you get apart and back together you'll have fun putting CNC to it. Should work a charm.
That style is not a dividing head, it is commonly called a "super spacer." It does plain indexing, and can use masks to avoid the increments you do not want while dropping into the increments you do want. Tom is correct that they are quite expensive new.
 
Congratulations on your mill. Good deal too.
Cheers
Martin
 
That style is not a dividing head, it is commonly called a "super spacer." It does plain indexing, and can use masks to avoid the increments you do not want while dropping into the increments you do want. Tom is correct that they are quite expensive new.

Are these masks additional pieces added to the super spacer? If so, that explains what the box full of stuff that went with it is. Im pretty sure there are lathe gears in here that insisted couldnt go with this but he said just take it. On a side note, the reason i guessed they were lathe gears was because i had to move the very large lathe to get to the mill in the back of the storage unit in order to make a path. :)

I was planning on doing a full teardown on the table, saddle and knee so i could start with a known clean slate so to speak. It has the bijur oil pump on the side but most of the lines have been cut, i'm guessing, while it was in storage as the oil had leaked into the floor.

Really looking forward to getting into this thing now. Thank you all for the info so far. Much appreciated.
Jim
 
That style is not a dividing head, it is commonly called a "super spacer

You're right , Bob, its a super Spacer, It's been 17 years since I was in a large enough shop to use one. . On the other hand, does the Super Space have a hand wheel? that's what threw me.
 
Are these masks additional pieces added to the super spacer? If so, that explains what the box full of stuff that went with it is. Im pretty sure there are lathe gears in here that insisted couldnt go with this but he said just take it. On a side note, the reason i guessed they were lathe gears was because i had to move the very large lathe to get to the mill in the back of the storage unit in order to make a path. :)

I was planning on doing a full teardown on the table, saddle and knee so i could start with a known clean slate so to speak. It has the bijur oil pump on the side but most of the lines have been cut, i'm guessing, while it was in storage as the oil had leaked into the floor.

Really looking forward to getting into this thing now. Thank you all for the info so far. Much appreciated.
Jim
The masks are sheet metal, and keep the indexing pins out of holes you are not using for your job. As a guess, let's say the spacer has 36 notches or holes for indexing. You want a 6 hole pattern. You install a mask that blocks all the holes except for the 6 you are using. You can of course use it without the masks, but then mistakes are possible. The masks fit into the back of the super spacer, under a cover. Look in there regardless, so you understand how it works. It is a fairly simple mechanism, the reason for the high prices is a mystery to me. The first photo shows one that can also work like a rotary table, the second photo shows one that does not.
upload_2017-7-15_9-11-34.jpeg
upload_2017-7-15_9-12-54.jpeg
 
Got home and got to get it positioned where i want it as well a start tearing into it. At this point i am leaning towards a complete teardown, clean up and rebuild. Found some problems that werent evident and/or i didnt see them initially.
The most concerning is the table. It had swarf mixed with grease in the middle of the table when i picked it up and i assumed that the middle looked like the ends. Well, you know what you get when you assume lol.
Here is what i found when i cleaned it all off.
P7161270.jpg P7161271.jpg P7161272.jpg P7161273.jpg P7161274.jpg P7161275.jpg

Also found a missing bolt on the belt/motor housing:
P7161294.jpg

Here is a pic of the bent z axis shaft. It doesnt look unrepairable.
P7161277.jpg

and here are some overall condition pictures showing the ways and gibs, the cut oiler lines, name tags, etc.
P7161278.jpg P7161279.jpg P7161284.jpg P7161285.jpg P7161286.jpg P7161288.jpg P7161289.jpg

Oiler
P7161282.jpg P7161283.jpg

After having the head upside down all weekend, there are some leaks in spots that im pretty sure there shouldnt be leaks.
P7161287.jpg

Some missing/wrong dial lockdown screws.
P7161290.jpg P7161291.jpg P7161292.jpg

I have the handle for this but when i put it on, it will not rotate. Pretty sure this is for finer control of the quill but it wont budge and i'm not going to put a pipe wrench on it quite yet :). Also, cant get the quill feed rate lever to budge either. The levers on the other side all work as expected, the high/neutral/low and the power feed engage/disengage.
P7161293.jpg

The two name plates on it.
P7161280.jpg P7161281.jpg
 
Back
Top