Newbie - Just Joined - Bought a New Mill

N

Nyala

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Dec 29, 2018
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Hello everyone,

At 70 years old I'm a newbie. I inherited a South Bend Model C 9" lathe from my machinist father. Small but accurate and very nice since he rebuilt it. He gave me lessons before passing. I also have all of his old equipment. I have made a number of items on the lathe that were for personal use and very much enjoy working with metal. To expand my horizons and have something new to sink my teeth into and get excited about, a few minutes ago I ordered a new Precision Matthews, PM-25MV mill, with 3 axis DRO.

I have been a lurker here for a few weeks, gleaning your ideas and thoughts regarding this mill as I waited to pull the pin and order one. Thanks to all of you, I believe that I'm ready for setup. Then a steep learning curve will begin. I don't know anything about a DRO but I have repeatedly watched a number of videos.

I don't have any projects in mind. I'll wait until I semi-learn how to use this thing before worrying about that. Everything that I would do with this would strictly be for personal use. I'm retired and don't plan on going back to work. I have no interest in setting this up as a CNC. It will be just me, turning dials and creating something that I might like. A small time home hobbyist.

I hope you don't mind but I might need to pick your brain from time to time as I learn what's what.

As for now, I am looking forward to the arrival of my mill.

Thank you.

Denny
 
Welcome aboard Denny! :)

We'll be happy to help out with any questions you have.
 
Welcome. You'll fit right in here.

Bill (another 70 year old semi-novice)
 
You will enjoy your PM25. I grew up (professionally) with a variety of large milling machines, have had my 25 for at least three years and find it adequate for my puttering. Don't expect it to equal a Bridgeport, etc. You will like the DRO, though it saves a lot of headaches.
 
Just bought a mill and a lathe...I am 63 and a novice...this web sight has a ton of information. If I had any gripe, some members will start a thread about a problem and after a few replies back and forth there is never a conclusion. GRRRRR
 
Welcome to HM, Denny!

Gonna' be a lot of fun learning to use the new mill. No matter our age, if we're learning, we're growing and that is what hobby machining is all about.
 
Denny, let me add another welcome. I also picked up this hobby after retirement. Some very knowledgeable guys have already replied here and there are many others to learn from.
Enjoy your new hobby.
 
Firstgear said:
Just bought a mill and a lathe...I am 63 and a novice...this web sight has a ton of information. If I had any gripe, some members will start a thread about a problem and after a few replies back and forth there is never a conclusion. GRRRRR
Click to expand...

A fair gripe, Firstgear. I've seen this, too, and am probably guilty of it at times myself. If I understand you correctly, you are referring to threads of the past and you cannot find the information you seek there. Threads do not close on HM so if you are looking for an answer in an old thread and can't find what you need then just post a response to that thread with a specific question and someone will chime in.

When starting a new post, it really helps if the OP is clear on what he is asking. All too often, the OP doesn't have the knowledge to frame the question properly or fails to give enough detail for us to give an appropriate answer. Under these circumstances, the guys will respond with what they think you want to know but not being clairvoyant, they miss the mark. So, the onus is on us as the OP to be very clear on what is being asked and to keep the discussion focused. Not all of us do that.

The other option is to PM one of the members who you think can give you the answer you seek. Sometimes a one-on-one is the best way to sort out what you need and most guys here will be open to that sort of thing, provided you don't over do it.

Hope this helps.
 
Purest . Did you order any tooling with the machine ? I'm pullin' up on 63 , retired and loving it .
 
Denny, I bought a PM30MV a few months ago, and am loving it. I've picked up a lot of knowledge on here and am still in the learning stages myself. I also just use it as a hobby, and have repaired, rebuilt, invented several things over the last few months.
My grandfather had a farm in Blanchard, Michigan and I spent a few summers there.
Good luck on your new machine, Steve (another 70 year old newbie)
 
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