;-(
if only i knew what the gibs were....
i purchased the tooling kit http://littlemachineshop.com/products/product_view.php?ProductID=4491&category=
however i'll be honest, the 10 piece end mill kit is a rip off.... only the smaller sizes fit in the chuck, so why the hell did they sell me the larger sizes for if they wont fit with the provided chuck..
i'm sure at some point i'll upgrade but they made it seem as if this tooling package is mated with this machine...
anyhow, rant over...
i also purchased the http://www.ebay.com/itm/Igaging-3-P...862796?hash=item1e7f5da68c:g:UPIAAOxyUSFSK8nN
and in my haste i tried to use a self tapping screw into the cast iron and of course it snapped off... rookie mistake.
i'll take my impatient butt over to the bolt store to buy a proper drill bit, a proper tap and proper bolts... lol...
;-(
if only i knew what the gibs were....
i purchased the tooling kit http://littlemachineshop.com/products/product_view.php?ProductID=4491&category=
however i'll be honest, the 10 piece end mill kit is a rip off.... only the smaller sizes fit in the chuck, so why the hell did they sell me the larger sizes for if they wont fit with the provided chuck..
i'm sure at some point i'll upgrade but they made it seem as if this tooling package is mated with this machine...
anyhow, rant over...
i also purchased the http://www.ebay.com/itm/Igaging-3-P...862796?hash=item1e7f5da68c:g:UPIAAOxyUSFSK8nN
and in my haste i tried to use a self tapping screw into the cast iron and of course it snapped off... rookie mistake.
i'll take my impatient butt over to the bolt store to buy a proper drill bit, a proper tap and proper bolts... lol...
Thanks @royesses
I'm a complete newbie to milling and i appreciate any and all feedback, criticism, suggestions.
So to clarify. do i remove the whole drill chuck assembly to use the collets? or do i insert the end mill into the collet into the drill chuck?
;-(
if only i knew what the gibs were....
...
and in my haste i tried to use a self tapping screw into the cast iron and of course it snapped off... rookie mistake.
i'll take my impatient butt over to the bolt store to buy a proper drill bit, a proper tap and proper bolts... lol...
another issue i'm having, when clamping my piece into the vice, one end rises up.
how do i keep the piece flat??
On my mini mill, you definitely need to use the pin. I don't see how you could get the collet tight enough by hand.Ah, sweet. I was on a tight budget at the time of ordering, so I picked and chose a similar, but cheaper kit. I'll post details when my pallet arrives.
It's not a rip-off...you don't use the chuck with the end-mills, only for drill bits and the center-drill bits. The collet set is used for endmills, and they did match up the two sets so you have the right collets for the endmills in that 10-piece set.
You pop off the black cap in front of the motor on top, then loosen that bolt (the "drawbar") with one of the included wrenches a half-turn or so. Use the pin to hold the spindle from turning when you do. Then give it a knock with a softer item...that is, not a steel wrench. A hammer handle, or brass head hammer would work. The wrench would work too, but over time it could mushroom the end of the drawbar.
That'll pop the collet holding the drill chuck loose, but it'll still be held by the remaining threads. Hold the chuck, then unscrew the drawbar the rest of the way by hand. Then you can insert an appropriate sized collet (there's an alignment pin..turn it until it slides in), and catch a few threads to hold it up.
At this point, you can insert an endmill into the collet, and tighten the drawbar the rest of the way. One thing I read said don't use the pin to hold the spindle when tightening, just grab it by your hand. Otherwise you can make it too tight to remove.