Mill tooling from scratch.

[428Bird]

I'm about to finish the spindle bearing replacement on my Bridgeport, but I have absolutely no tooling of any kind, not even a vice.

I was wondering if you folks could help me create a list of must haves for my home shop. Here's what I have on the list so far:

1. T-slot hold down kit.
2. A decent 6" vice.
3. R8 collet set. What sizes?
4. R8 drill chuck.

Your suggestions along with recommended manufacturers would be greatly appreciated.

Britt Bettell

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[dlane]

1,2,3 good , 4, ied get a straight shank drill arbor ,don't forget end mills ied start with mid grade.

 

[T Bredehoft]

R8 'Collets come in (I think) 1/8 or 1/16 increments up to nearly if not to one inch. Most tooling comes in fractional sizes, usually 1/4 increments, except for smaller than 1/4. You'll need collets to fit the tooling you don't have yet. I have a set by 1/8ths, also R8 Weldon holders for 1/8, 3/16, 1/4, so far, soon will get 3/8. These do for standard sized end mills.

You'll also want an R8 mounted drill chuck, get a high dollar keyless drill chuck, I have a cheap one, it's cheap.
Get an assortment of end mills, look on Ebay for used or bulk sales, you can often get a small number of like end mills cheaper than buying one retail.
You'll want parallels to support work in your vice but don't go overboard, I bought some 1/8 and 1/2 by 1 flat ground O1 steel, its accurate enough, cut it to 6" lengths and you are good to go.
There's hundreds or thousands of dollars just waiting to be spent, you'll never have enough tools.

Edit typo

 

[ferlum]

1. I have a set from Shars and it's fine.
2. I only have a mini-mill so haven't really studied vises that big, but wouldn't be afraid to look at Shars (Discount Machine on ebay).
3. Get a set from 1/8 to 3/4 in sixteenths. Again I have a set from Shars and they're fine. End up using 3/8 thru 5/8 the most and the others occasionally.
4. I use one of these all the time. Not a fan of keyless chucks on stationary machines but that's just me.

As the previous poster said, parallels.

And an edge finder. I like the wiggler type.

Some might not agree with my Shars recommendations but I have quite a few of their tools and have always found them to be a good value.

 

[Bob Korves]

3. R8 collet set. What sizes?

R8 collets are made in sizes by 64ths from 1/16" (I think) up to 7/8". R8 collets larger than 3/4" do not take that size all the way into the collet, there is a step an inch or so into the collet. R8 collets are also available in metric sizes, and emergency, step and other specialty collets are also available. The Hardinge catalog has lots of different ones they would be happy to sell you. I have a set by sixteenths, 1/8 to 7/8" and I may have used one of the sixteenth collets once, though I do have some oddball old school end mills with sixteenth shanks, still new and unused.

The fact of the matter is that the ones you will use 95+ percent of the time will be 1/4, 3/8, 1/2, 5/8, and 3/4". I could easily live with those ONLY. I try to get tooling with shanks in those sizes, which makes the tooling easily transferable to other machines and to any replacement mill somewhere down the road that has a different collet system. Anything you can do to change collets less often makes the work go much easier and faster. R8 tooling takes much more room to get the tool in and out of the spindle. Straight shank tooling makes it easy to sneak tool changes in and out of a tight setup.

Another option is to ignore R8 tooling for round tooling and go with an ER collet system instead.

 

[mikey]

• T-slot set: Check out Northwestern Tools. Good stuff for a fair price, made in the USA.
• Vise: get a good one - Kurt, Glacern are good. Most of your work will be held in a vise so buy a decent one.
• Right angle plate to clamp work to when a vise will not do.
  
• I would suggest an ER-32 chuck instead of an R8 setup. Better accuracy, greater flexibility. Consider the Tormach TTS system. An R8 set in 1/8" increments is useful at times when you need the head room. Whichever collet system you choose, buy good collets - they make a difference.
  
• I agree on a good keyless chuck, Albrecht if you can find a good one. If you plan to power tap then a keyless chuck won't work. In that case, a Jacobs made in the USA Super Chuck would work well. Albrechts and Jacobs chuck can be found on ebay for good prices if you're patient.
• Buy parallels in 1/8" and thin 1/32" thickness. The former will be used the most. The latter when you have to drill close to an edge.
• Buy some Starrett screw jacks or make a set. You need these when you have to hang a part beyond the ends of your vise jaws. Not a high priority item.
• Agree with the edge finder. One of the cheapest and best is a Starrett 827A.
• Buy or make a good flycutter. I have and sort of like the Tormach Superfly - works well. You will have to square almost every work piece you make from solid stock and a good flycutter will get this done quickly and accurately.
  
• End mills - do your homework on this. This is a whole separate thread of discussions.
• Drills, taps, reamers - eventually, you need them all. Again, homework on brands but it pays to buy decent tools here.
  
• Consider an angle block set; the imports will do. You will eventually need to mill an angled face and angle blocks are a fast and simple way to do it. Sine tables/plates and gauge blocks are more accurate but angle blocks will serve for most work.
  
• Later: rotary table, tilting angle table, a good boring head.
• If you don't already have them, good measuring tools - 6" dial caliper, 0-1" and 1-2" micrometers.
• Definitely buy a good quality Dial Test Indicator. You will need this to tram your mill and vise.

The list can go on and on but this will cover most of the bases to start.

 

[428Bird]

• T-slot set: Check out Northwestern Tools. Good stuff for a fair price, made in the USA.
• Vise: get a good one - Kurt, Glacern are good. Most of your work will be held in a vise so buy a decent one.
• Right angle plate to clamp work to when a vise will not do.
  
• I would suggest an ER-32 chuck instead of an R8 setup. Better accuracy, greater flexibility. Consider the Tormach TTS system. An R8 set in 1/8" increments is useful at times when you need the head room. Whichever collet system you choose, buy good collets - they make a difference.
  
• I agree on a good keyless chuck, Albrecht if you can find a good one. If you plan to power tap then a keyless chuck won't work. In that case, a Jacobs made in the USA Super Chuck would work well. Albrechts and Jacobs chuck can be found on ebay for good prices if you're patient.
• Buy parallels in 1/8" and thin 1/32" thickness. The former will be used the most. The latter when you have to drill close to an edge.
• Buy some Starrett screw jacks or make a set. You need these when you have to hang a part beyond the ends of your vise jaws. Not a high priority item.
• Agree with the edge finder. One of the cheapest and best is a Starrett 827A.
• Buy or make a good flycutter. I have and sort of like the Tormach Superfly - works well. You will have to square almost every work piece you make from solid stock and a good flycutter will get this done quickly and accurately.
  
• End mills - do your homework on this. This is a whole separate thread of discussions.
• Drills, taps, reamers - eventually, you need them all. Again, homework on brands but it pays to buy decent tools here.
  
• Consider an angle block set; the imports will do. You will eventually need to mill an angled face and angle blocks are a fast and simple way to do it. Sine tables/plates and gauge blocks are more accurate but angle blocks will serve for most work.
  
• Later: rotary table, tilting angle table, a good boring head.
• If you don't already have them, good measuring tools - 6" dial caliper, 0-1" and 1-2" micrometers.
• Definitely buy a good quality Dial Test Indicator. You will need this to tram your mill and vise.

The list can go on and on but this will cover most of the bases to start.

Oh wow, this one post should be made a sticky.

I have a few kurt D688's on watch on an auction site. I'll definitely check out northwestern, and for the measuring equipment I'm set.

Thanks for the feedback so far!

Britt Bettell

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[428Bird]

The fact of the matter is that the ones you will use 95+ percent of the time will be 1/4, 3/8, 1/2, 5/8, and 3/4". I could easily live with those ONLY.

I wondered about this. Why do I need collets in so many different sizes when the end mills come in the sizes you listed above? Seems a waste.

Britt Bettell

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[mikey]

I'll definitely check out northwestern, and for the measuring equipment I'm set.

Northwestern sells their stuff on ebay, too. If you don't see what you need, email the seller. He is an awesome guy and very helpful. Tell him Mike from the HM forum sent you.

 

[Bob Korves]

I wondered about this. Why do I need collets in so many different sizes when the end mills come in the sizes you listed above? Seems a waste.

Britt Bettell

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There are unconventional things you can do with a mill, and then collets in smaller increments or that cover larger ranges become useful. For instance, a mill can be used like a lathe by putting stock into the spindle and a lathe tool in the vise. Then the size of the stock comes into play. That is just one example. By the way, R8 (and 5C) collets only grip well a small range of diameters, the nominal size plus or minus a few thousandths. ER collets cover larger ranges.