Setting up my PM-935T-V. Loving it...

[ycroosh]

Hi folks,
Last week I finally got my new PM-935 set up, wired, leveled, etc. This is my fifth milling machine over the years. Started with a mini mill, LMS mini mill, then Grizzly SX3 and SX4; basically all import machines.

The fit and finish on this machine is definitely a level above those. This is the first machine that was ready to go from the crate; didn't have to scrape anything, the gibs are fitted the way they are supposed to be, etc. Overall, I love this things so far.
Ended up making a few mods, like adding a VFD and a custom control panel, fog buster, and a DRO. Here are a few photos of what it looks like so far.

The only major thing to figure out is how to install a DRO scale on the quill. I have pretty much "one of everything" at this point, ranging from the default Mitutoyo quill scale to AcuRite SENC 50 and Newall MicroSyn, and nothing really fits that casting well without obstructing at least something. So far the best candidate is an Electronica miniature magnetic scale.

Really, the only part that gave me some issues was the lubrication pump. There was something weird going on with the valve (it would stop pumping randomly), so I replaced it with a decent Trico unit from McMaster.

Regards
Yuriy

 

[davidpbest]

Hi folks,
Last week I finally got my new PM-935 set up, wired, leveled, etc. This is my fifth milling machine over the years. Started with a mini mill, LMS mini mill, then Grizzly SX3 and SX4; basically all import machines.

The fit and finish on this machine is definitely a level above those. This is the first machine that was ready to go from the crate; didn't have to scrape anything, the gibs are fitted the way they are supposed to be, etc. Overall, I love this things so far.
Ended up making a few mods, like adding a VFD and a custom control panel, fog buster, and a DRO. Here are a few photos of what it looks like so far.

View attachment 491186

View attachment 491187

View attachment 491188


View attachment 491189

The only major thing to figure out is how to install a DRO scale on the quill. I have pretty much "one of everything" at this point, ranging from the default Mitutoyo quill scale to AcuRite SENC 50 and Newall MicroSyn, and nothing really fits that casting well without obstructing at least something. So far the best candidate is an Electronica miniature magnetic scale.

Really, the only part that gave me some issues was the lubrication pump. There was something weird going on with the valve (it would stop pumping randomly), so I replaced it with a decent Trico unit from McMaster.

Regards
Yuriy

You might want to check out what I did on my 935. My VFD setup includes an auto-reverse sensor as part of the quill stop, so I integrated that into the quill DRO setup. Details here including drawings.

Custom Install - Mitutoyo Scale on J-Head Mill - PM935

This album documents the brackets required to couple the back of a Mitutoyo scale to the quill depth ring on the mill head in a manner that supports the attachment of an auto-reversing proximity sensor.

flic.kr

 

[ycroosh]

You might want to check out what I did on my 935. My VFD setup includes an auto-reverse sensor as part of the quill stop, so I integrated that into the quill DRO setup. Details here including drawings.

Custom Install - Mitutoyo Scale on J-Head Mill - PM935

This album documents the brackets required to couple the back of a Mitutoyo scale to the quill depth ring on the mill head in a manner that supports the attachment of an auto-reversing proximity sensor.

flic.kr

David, I looked thorough your albums. Your work is truly inspiring.
Unrelated question - how do you like the Newall scales in the long run? I've heard from one of my customers that they had issues with small chips embedding into the carbon fiber. Have you run into anything of that sort?

Thank you
Yuriy

 

[wrmiller]

Nice rig. Had the TS with a VFD. Very quiet.

 

[davidpbest]

David, I looked thorough your albums. Your work is truly inspiring.
Unrelated question - how do you like the Newall scales in the long run? I've heard from one of my customers that they had issues with small chips embedding into the carbon fiber. Have you run into anything of that sort?

Thank you
Yuriy

I have installed a number of Newall DRO's on mills. Three on my own mills, and at least a dozen on mills owned by friends. I'm a huge fan of Newall (but no affiliation) - their products are not cheap but they are built to very high quality standards and can stand up to the rigors of a production environment. The MicroSyn scales are easy to damage if not protected. They are made of a carbon fiber rod about 6mm in diameter that his hollow and filled with metal balls which are the basis for the positioning system. On a mill where space constraints are not severe (including the 935), my first choice for scales would be their larger Spherosyn scales rather than the small carbon-fiber MicroSyn versions. The Spherosyn are much more rugged. If had had not already owned some uSyn scales left over from a benchtop mill project, I would have used the Spherosyn instead. I also wanted the additional resolution provided by the Microsyn as I often work in tolerances of a tenth.

All that said, if you protect the Microsyn scales properly, they will provide excellent long term reliability and durability. I have not heard of swarf chips getting imbeded into the carbon rods, but I can imagine that's possible with poor chip guard arrangements. If you look closely at my install, I went to great lengths to cover and protect the Microsyn scales - both from swarf and from physical contact. Here is an example - this is the scale/encoder setup for the knee on my 935 - the MicroSyn rod is fully protected:

Here is what Newall says about both scale versions:

Environmental Protection
All variants of Newall linear encoders carry an Ingress Protection (IP) rating of 67 (IEC 529). The encoders are fully submersible and will continue to provide accurate and dependable readings

under the harshest conditions. Dirt, swarf, cast iron dust, graphite dust and other common contaminates will not effect the performance of the linear encoder system.

 

[ycroosh]

I have installed a number of Newall DRO's on mills. Three on my own mills, and at least a dozen on mills owned by friends. I'm a huge fan of Newall (but no affiliation) - their products are not cheap but they are built to very high quality standards and can stand up to the rigors of a production environment. The MicroSyn scales are easy to damage if not protected. They are made of a carbon fiber rod about 6mm in diameter that his hollow and filled with metal balls which are the basis for the positioning system. On a mill where space constraints are not severe (including the 935), my first choice for scales would be their larger Spherosyn scales rather than the small carbon-fiber MicroSyn versions. The Spherosyn are much more rugged. If had had not already owned some uSyn scales left over from a benchtop mill project, I would have used the Spherosyn instead. I also wanted the additional resolution provided by the Microsyn as I often work in tolerances of a tenth.

All that said, if you protect the Microsyn scales properly, they will provide excellent long term reliability and durability. I have not heard of swarf chips getting imbeded into the carbon rods, but I can imagine that's possible with poor chip guard arrangements. If you look closely at my install, I went to great lengths to cover and protect the Microsyn scales - both from swarf and from physical contact. Here is an example - this is the scale/encoder setup for the knee on my 935 - the MicroSyn rod is fully protected:

View attachment 491273

Here is what Newall says about both scale versions:

David,
Thanks for the info. I'm looking at Microsyn specifically because I have no space for almost anything larger. At one point I had a miniature Chinese magnetic scales. That turned out to be a complete piece of crap with +/- 0.007" of cyclic error. Now I have a miniature Electronica/EMS scale, and although it's better, every time I even so much as think of machining cast iron, the thing accumulates ferrous dust and starts acting up.

By the way, do you participate in any of the PDX area machinist clubs?

Regards
Yuriy

 

[ChazzC]

Yuriy, have you checked out the Akron AKS slim linear scales that Stefan installed on his Weiler Primus lathe?

 

[woodchucker]

Yuri, why would you need a vfd on a variable speed head?

 

[ycroosh]

Yuriy, have you checked out the Akron AKS slim linear scales that Stefan installed on his Weiler Primus lathe?

I have that scale, and even the smaller AcuRite SENC 50. Here is the size comparison (Slim Ditron scale, Slim Aikron scale, SENC 50, Newall MicroSyn).

This is how it would fit. It will clear the gib adjustment screws, but still stick out more than the tiny MicroSyn rod (the head can be mounted out of the way).

 

[ycroosh]

Yuri, why would you need a vfd on a variable speed head?

It's more of the other way around - I don't really need the variable speed head with the VFD. I was originally going to use a rotary phase converter, but the VFD ended up being cheaper (and less noisy). I use the pulley ratio to get *really keep) the RPM close to the optimal range for the motor, and use the VFD for fine tuning.