Milling machine

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SkytopBrewster

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That's about what you gotta pay for anything decent. As long as you be gentle, adjust your ways properly, and keep it oiled, it should serve you well.

Remember, no rapid traverse with the table clamps on!

Do you have much experience machining? I have my Journeyman ticket with Interprovincial Red Seal if you need advice...
 
Get a NMTB-40 taper spindle if you can, R-8 can get the job done if you have to but its pretty toyish.
There's quite a lot of taiwan and chinese imports, many which look the same so I can't speak for that exact one.
Generally they are quite decent, stuff like switches are usually the first to go, some of them go through belts a little fast if used a lot every day but its minor and fixable.
 
Nice enough mill, but I think the 40 taper suggestion is really good. R-8 is pretty common, but is kinda lightweight as far as a commercial environment goes.

But, what do you want it for? Hobby? General purpose jobbing? Home gun work only? Etc.

Try to keep in mind (without flinching too much) that you can easily spend far far more than the cost of the mill itself, in tooling and accessories for the mill. And still not have the tool you need for what came in the door... Or for a lathe, for that matter.
If you choose wisely, you can limit that amount a bit, and if you choose very wisely, those same tools and accessories will be of use far into the future and on different machines as your needs may change.

I'm more of a cheapskate's cheapskate than most, and I am more willing to look at used than some, so I would be looking elsewhere first.

I have a Sino DRO on order for one of my lathes right now. Gonna come in around $375 for 2 axis, by the time it reaches me. They are not a super expensive unit.

I know a guy in Saskatoon that deals in Chinese new, and whatever used, machine tools, if you want a contact.

Cheers
Trev
 
trevj said:
Nice enough mill, but I think the 40 taper suggestion is really good. R-8 is pretty common, but is kinda lightweight as far as a commercial environment goes.

But, what do you want it for? Hobby? General purpose jobbing? Home gun work only? Etc.

Try to keep in mind (without flinching too much) that you can easily spend far far more than the cost of the mill itself, in tooling and accessories for the mill. And still not have the tool you need for what came in the door... Or for a lathe, for that matter.
If you choose wisely, you can limit that amount a bit, and if you choose very wisely, those same tools and accessories will be of use far into the future and on different machines as your needs may change.



I'm more of a cheapskate's cheapskate than most, and I am more willing to look at used than some, so I would be looking elsewhere first.

I have a Sino DRO on order for one of my lathes right now. Gonna come in around $375 for 2 axis, by the time it reaches me. They are not a super expensive unit.

I know a guy in Saskatoon that deals in Chinese new, and whatever used, machine tools, if you want a contact.

Cheers
Trev
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Thanks, the machine is for hobby and gunwork and who knows maybe someday I will do gunwork for a living/retirement. I have waited and shopped for used but usually they are old junk or just way too big for hobby work (mostly big machine shop used machines). For now just a learning machine, make some parts, flute some barrels or whatever. I like to think I am a fast learner, have worked around all types of equipment my whole life, but no, I am not a machinist.
 
This is my 40th year in the shop. That is really close to what I put in my own home shop.
It will serve you well there is little in the smithing business that you can't handle with a machine like that
Have fun.
 
SkytopBrewster said:
Thanks, the machine is for hobby and gunwork and who knows maybe someday I will do gunwork for a living/retirement. I have waited and shopped for used but usually they are old junk or just way too big for hobby work (mostly big machine shop used machines). For now just a learning machine, make some parts, flute some barrels or whatever. I like to think I am a fast learner, have worked around all types of equipment my whole life, but no, I am not a machinist.
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Yeah. I can see that. BTDT, as far as the waiting and shopping. Nothing seems to drag them out of the woodwork quite like having one already, though.

The Bridgeport mill was not the be-all to end all, but it was a pretty flexible (as in, adaptable) tool that could be made to do a great number of jobs well enough, and it was (at least originally) affordable enough to get to become pretty much the standard mill in a lot of shops. They got a lot more right than wrong in the design, and that is why you see a LOT of mills along the same basic lines. R-8 tooling is available and affordable, even if somewhat limiting from a commercial shop perspective. If you are not having to keep the lights lit with the stuff, and even if you do, in many cases, it will serve. If I were choosing, though... 40 taper is a bunch more solid, and the tooling is a bit more expensive, but still very available.

One of these days my lottery ticket will come in (I should buy a ticket once in a while, eh?) and I'll have the tools I want in my shop, but in the meantime...:)

Unless you really really want that local guy to yell at when things go wrong, I'd suggest shopping around the country and into the US, to compare pricing on similar machines from different sources. Lots out there.
Nice to be able to put hands on the stuff up front though too.

Cheers
Trev
 
I think for that price you can get a made in Taiwan machine. I haven't checked in awhile so maybe not but I wouldn't buy china made again
 
http://www.practicalmachinist.com/vb/general/suggestions-smaller-mill-279492/

Subscribe to that forum, and read that thread.

12 g's is an impressive budget to go shopping with. IMO you can get alot more machine for half that price if you do a bit of work. The bonus is the reading and research you do pays off in knowing your machines better and understanding how and why they work.

I've seen 3 Bridgeports locally in the 2-4g range that were excellent to minty so far this year. I'd bet that in Alberta used machines come up fairly regularly. 40 hours of reading and learning x $50/hour = 2k to be reasonably comfortable buying a used machine at 4k + a very nice tool package ( all that reading will give you a good idea of what you need and what you don't ) and you got a GT of 8 grand. Use the 4k savings to shop around for a mini horizontal and you're laughing.

gl
 
I hear you but you are in more of a MFG province, you don't see a lot of used machines for sale around here and if you do they are just too huge. Trust me, I have been looking for the last 3-4 years. At least this I can drive 1.5hrs and go pick it up. What am I supposed to do If I get some used machine from the US, have to ship it up here and find out it's NFG, then I am out 2-4K and stuck with a one ton pile of sh** to get rid of, that's my worry.
 
Yeah, but you either live with the risk/reward curve shopping used, or you spend the money on the sure thing. Although the interwebs seems to be full of tale of folks that payed for new, at new prices, and got less than they paid for.

Spent a few years in Edmonton before I went to Cold Lake. Machinery prices there are stupid, and the supply ....limited. At last for a decent full size machine.

Cheers
Trev
 
Before you buy that look at these:

http://www.kijiji.ca/v-business-ind...ine/535398421?enableSearchNavigationFlag=true
No DRO on z axis is not a big deal. For the price, you can spend 4k on tooling and still be in better shape. Might get some thrown in.

http://www.kijiji.ca/v-business-ind...ill/545534196?enableSearchNavigationFlag=true
bigger, sturdier machine, same price. Also might get some tooling thrown in.

http://www.kijiji.ca/v-business-ind...xis/536488321?enableSearchNavigationFlag=true
Go big or go home. For another 2k above your current budget, you can get yourself a decent setup and could actually go into production/business. You might be able to bargain a grand off the price if you take the package too.
 
Thanks, yes, they have been on there for a while. A little overkill for cleaning up bedding jobs, inletting a stock, cutting some flutes. I wish I knew how to run that CNC, can't quite afford to take a couple years off my regular job to get trained up properly though, not to mention might run the household power bill past my current mortgage payment cost :), remember this is just for gun work, I'm never going to go back to school and open a machine shop, I am down to the last few years of my current career and want to do nothing else but work on guns.

Does anyone know if the KBC or Jet brand are mfg in Taiwan? How about the Grizzly "Southbend machines"
 
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Those mills are really not overkill. Regardless of what you're specifically doing, a bigger machine, as a general rule, will be heavier, sturdier, more rigid, and more accurate. The larger machine can take heavier cuts and accommodate more rigid setups. Also, more travel on your x to cut those flutes. It would be nice to cut flutes in a barrel with 2 passes instead of 5 or 6 and have to move and re dial your work.

Power might be an issue with the CNC. You definitely wouldn't have to take 2 years off work to learn how to use it, though. I've seen guys off the street with no experience walk into a shop and become a half decent operator in a couple weeks. The programming isn't that hard either :)

Remember, bigger is always better if you have the space.
 
Ok, thanks. Really appreciate the feedback, this is why I posted the question. I only have a 30x30 workshop with 9' overhead doors on an acreage. Shop is all wired with 220 single phase, my 14x40 lathe is 2HP single and is more than enough for what I do. So space and power supply is my limitations (getting it in the door with a forklift). I guess if 3 phase is all I can find used I could get a converter wired in. I would love to have a CNC and learn to use but the fear of it messing up and having to pay huge money to have it repaired is the turn off.
 
You don't have to buy all the tooling at once. Won't save you anything but maybe it'll hurt a bit less. You will need a solid floor and industrial hydro for that puppy.
 
mwjones said:
Those mills are really not overkill. Regardless of what you're specifically doing, a bigger machine, as a general rule, will be heavier, sturdier, more rigid, and more accurate. The larger machine can take heavier cuts and accommodate more rigid setups. Also, more travel on your x to cut those flutes. It would be nice to cut flutes in a barrel with 2 passes instead of 5 or 6 and have to move and re dial your work.Power might be an issue with the CNC. You definitely wouldn't have to take 2 years off work to learn how to use it, though. I've seen guys off the street with no experience walk into a shop and become a half decent operator in a couple weeks. The programming isn't that hard either :)

Remember, bigger is always better if you have the space.
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The ad says it has 31" of longitudinal travel, I thought that would be sufficient for fluting or am I misunderstanding something?
 
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