PM 932 mods????

p500hemi

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I have a 932 which should be on the way soon and I was wondering what kind of modification that others may have done to improve performance or just a general upgrades that make it easier to use. Thought it would be easier to incorporate some of these ideas that you pros have before setting my mill up. I know that once it is up and working tearing it back down to do an improvement always seems to get put off.
 
In all honesty -none! The best medicine is to build a base suitable for your height and posture preferences. Other than that, the best mods are A) Plenty of metal to work on and B) maybe some good chip shields.

Oh, I'm not sure if the 932 comes with front way chip shields. I think it's optional. Just get a thick piece of rubber or leather and use one of the front bolts on the table to attach a flap that hangs over the front ways and keeps swarf off them.

Also, please note: There was a single incident where the screws in the motor terminal block were not fully tightened. Matt has notified the factory and he's probably checking all the machines in current inventory but in the mean time, unplug the machine and spend 5 minutes to take the cover off and check the screws. It's probably just one machine where a factory worker put them on finger tight and forgot to torque them... The problem was not detected during Matt's burn in (he does the obligatory wear-in at the warehouse on all lathes and mills) and it showed up after several hours of use. Minor bumps and glitches can and do happen... The user has been polite about this and I believe a new terminal block is being sent to him today.

Ray


I have a 932 which should be on the way soon and I was wondering what kind of modification that others may have done to improve performance or just a general upgrades that make it easier to use. Thought it would be easier to incorporate some of these ideas that you pros have before setting my mill up. I know that once it is up and working tearing it back down to do an improvement always seems to get put off.
 
I've only had mine for just over a week now so I'm just a beginner too. I followed Ray's advise and made up a simple base from 2" square tube and welded a coupling nut for 5/8" all-thread on each corner. I then made 4 legs from 5/8 all-thread to use for attaching wheels to move the machine and feet when it is in place. This allows easy moving and leveling.

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Another thing that wouldn't bother most people but annoyed me was the large amount of clearance between the drawbar and the inside diameter of the quill. While the machine was running, every time I glanced up at the top of the drawbar the nut was rotating off center. My wife even noticed it and commented. I made up a bushing on my lathe that is a tight fit to the OD of the drawbar and to ID of the quill. Now it runs nice and straight.

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It's good, Johnnyc14, that you put some method of rollers in that base. I should have done that to mine but, just didn't feel like tracking down more suitable rollers/wheels.

So, have you made anything yet? -If you can get some aluminum to work on, that's really good stuff to practice with if you're new to milling.


Ray
 
Anyone made any brackets to assist in tramming the mill head or is it easy to get and keep level? I have seen where other have made these for smaller China mills and wondered if this model has any of the same issues
 
Not really a mod, but when was I was cleaning and lubing my ways today (finally got my way oil from Enco). I pulled the black cover plate behind the quill and found a drain plug for the gear box. The manual says to tilt the head 90 degs to change the gear oil, but I think I'm going to try using the drain plug I found, so I don't have to realign my head. I was also thinking about replacing the plug with a small valve and barb fitting, so next year when I change the gear oil again all I have to do is pull the plate, hookup a small hose and open the valve to drain the gear box. As long as the plug is not some weird metric pipe thread I might go ahead and try this.
 
Is it possible to add a power draw bar onto the PM932?

If so is there a particular type necessary?
 
Yes, its fine to use the drain plug behind the spindle...


ray

Not really a mod, but when was I was cleaning and lubing my ways today (finally got my way oil from Enco). I pulled the black cover plate behind the quill and found a drain plug for the gear box. The manual says to tilt the head 90 degs to change the gear oil, but I think I'm going to try using the drain plug I found, so I don't have to realign my head. I was also thinking about replacing the plug with a small valve and barb fitting, so next year when I change the gear oil again all I have to do is pull the plate, hookup a small hose and open the valve to drain the gear box. As long as the plug is not some weird metric pipe thread I might go ahead and try this.
 
How does the 932 compare to the 945? The 945 has a variable speed option, but other than that, they seem to be about the same specs.
 
932 has power table and z. Very slight differences in the castings to accommodate the z powerfeed. And as you noted, the 932 does not come in variable speed.

EDIT: The 932 can be converted to 3Phase variable with a VFD ...


How does the 932 compare to the 945? The 945 has a variable speed option, but other than that, they seem to be about the same specs.
 
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