I took two years of machine tool in vo-tech in the late 90's. I've been a heavy equipment mechanic for the past 17 years. Worked for a Caterpillar dealer for over a decade and still work mainly on large Caterpillar mining equipment in a coal mine. I am a hobbyist knife maker and have been wanting to get a mill for sometime.
Grizzly in Speingfield Missouri is only two hours away from my home. This mill will go in my basement in my knife workshop. I don't know that my basement concrete floor is thick enough to support a Bridgeport or clone, and it won't fit thru the doors for a mill that large.
I'm looking at either a tabletop mill like perhaps the G0619 or G0755 table top or perhaps the 6" x 26" knee mill like the G0801, G0802, or G0728.
I think the table top mill will serve my current needs, like the G0619, but at that price I'm just 600$ away from the G0801. The G0801 looks to be a more solid more robust machine. The G0619 looks like it has a reverse that the G0801 does not. I don't think I really need reversing. I'm not thinking I will do any power tapping, I also don't think I want to do CNC. Which I understand some of the tabletop mills will do easily.
The g0619 is 1 HP while the G0801 is 1.5 HP
Also the G0755 seems to be a popular machine.
I also have some concern about the plastic gears in some of the smaller mills.
The main thing I guess is it seems like the G0801 might do heavier cuts, I may be wrong. I searched thru quite a few threads and didn't find anything relating to this topic.
So appreciate any and all help.
The G0801 looks like quite the machine, but I can't find really much info on it or the variations of that particular 6" x 26" mill. The 2000$ table top mills seem so close to just go ahead and get a small knee mill.
Grizzly in Speingfield Missouri is only two hours away from my home. This mill will go in my basement in my knife workshop. I don't know that my basement concrete floor is thick enough to support a Bridgeport or clone, and it won't fit thru the doors for a mill that large.
I'm looking at either a tabletop mill like perhaps the G0619 or G0755 table top or perhaps the 6" x 26" knee mill like the G0801, G0802, or G0728.
I think the table top mill will serve my current needs, like the G0619, but at that price I'm just 600$ away from the G0801. The G0801 looks to be a more solid more robust machine. The G0619 looks like it has a reverse that the G0801 does not. I don't think I really need reversing. I'm not thinking I will do any power tapping, I also don't think I want to do CNC. Which I understand some of the tabletop mills will do easily.
The g0619 is 1 HP while the G0801 is 1.5 HP
Also the G0755 seems to be a popular machine.
I also have some concern about the plastic gears in some of the smaller mills.
The main thing I guess is it seems like the G0801 might do heavier cuts, I may be wrong. I searched thru quite a few threads and didn't find anything relating to this topic.
So appreciate any and all help.
The G0801 looks like quite the machine, but I can't find really much info on it or the variations of that particular 6" x 26" mill. The 2000$ table top mills seem so close to just go ahead and get a small knee mill.