Anybody know where in the SouthEast to go for a good deal on machine shop equipment? I went to Ebay and I can get a small bench top lathe 6" x 24" for a decent price but there is very little in the way of bench top milling machines. I can get a new small mill from Grizzly 6" x 22" table with 14.5 max spindle hight for about 1300.00 with shipping. I can find bigger machines locally but I dont want or need anything that big. Plus I am not running 3 phase power. For the price of a good rotary phase converter I can buy a new bench top mill that will run off single phase power. I just want something small to tinker with at home. I have access to a full scale machine shop if I need anything bigger.

 

auctions!!!!! Used equipment auctions (local city), "open-house" shops with floor model discounts, going-out-of-business shops, etc...my 2 cents.

 

Thanks. The only problem I have with the auctions is that they happen when I dont have any money. I try and save it for those occasions but it never fails whenI get some extra saved up something is going to happen and take it.

 

btdt, several times over. Good luck just the same.

 

Unless you're making really small stuff, I think you'll be disappointed w/ a table top mill. There's really no comparison. You can make a rotary phase converter pretty easily. A mill will run on a static converter, but at lower power, and they seem to get hot (the motor, not the converter). You can google phase converter plans. A rotary converter consists of a regular 3ph idler motor running on a static phase converter. Your single phase 220 goes through the idler motor and comes out 3 ph. 3 ph motors are usually pretty cheap cuz nobody wants them. I've had my best luck buying used equipment at auctions. I think you need to see some of those cheapie table top tools in person before you buy one. A 6 X 24 lathe is really, REALLY, small.

 

I have plans to build a rotary phase converter. I have thought about it. As I stated in the other post I have access to a complete machine shop for anything big. I just want something to tinker with at home and for drilling holes in go fast stuff when needed.

 

For phase converter help go to:
http://www.practicalmachinist.com/ub...p/forum/3.html

 

Fredric got a bench top mill from i think it was harbor freight. i saw it in use, and it seems like a pretty good machine.
granted, he was in the process of hooking it up to a computer to make it a cnc machine. give him a shout, and he can give you more info.

 

Thanks I will do that.

 

Howdy,

This what I bought:
http://frederic.midimonkey.com/yard-mill-overview.html

And this is what I went through to get it's 800+lb weight into the garage:
http://frederic.midimonkey.com/yard-mill-install.html

It's a harbor freight #33686 vertical milling machine. It's not really a benchtop machine because of the size and weight, but it's not a full size bridgeport either. It's big enough for any job *I* could throw at it, and it was on sale at the time and I printed off a 15% discount coupon off the Harbor Freight website which lowered the cost even more.

I was initially weary about purchasing an import milling machine because of several fears - machine flex while decking surfaces with a large fly cutter. I was also concerned about replacement part availability. Parts do not seem to be a problem, as there's a full parts list with part numbers in the included service manual. Plus, this is a milling machine, and I own a lathe, so between the two machines I can essentially make any part necessary for either machine.

The machine is very heavy, very stiff, and the dovetails on the X-Y table are massive. No major complaints about the machine at all.

It does have a few minor things that bug me.

1. The FWD-Stop-REV switch is cheasy. Very cheasy. It's absolutely, positively going to break eventually. I already have soldered up a relay box to replace this which has a huge 3" diameter red "stop" button, and a keyswitch to turn it on in either FWD or REV based on key position. The key prevents my 26 month old son from turning on the milling machine.

The depth gauge is the type that you'd find on most drill presses, and is useless for determining accurate milling depth. FOr a drill press it would be fine. I've already dismantled it and measured things, so I'll be replacing that with a digital slide that displays the depth to 3 digits. I also figured out how to make it tight enough where the digital scale to depth accuracy isn't "wiggly".

The included, free vice makes a good paperweight. It's on the right in this picture:
http://frederic.midimonkey.com/yard/mill/IM002246.JPG

The vice on the left is a real milling vice, which I use for everything, unless I clamp the work directly to the table (which I did last weekend when I decked a pair of aluminum heads for a friend of mine).

The optional steel base which I purchased also is too short - by about six inches. I could make a humorous reference about origin of manufacture but I won't be so rude. If it were six inches higher I and my back would be much happier. I may address this at some point. Right now I sit on a bar stool when I'll be at the machine for long periods of time.

It has an R8 spindle which is the key - R8 offers you access to a ton of tooling, much of which can be purchased used on ebay as Bridgeport tooling is all overy ebay.

It's a great machine and I really like it. I have zero regrets with this purchase, even though I am typically allergic to buying expensive import tools for a variety of reasons.

 

I was wondering how you were getting along with your machine. Thanks for the report!

Maybe a 6" thick slab of concrete would make a good height adjustment...

At 6'4" how thick would I need the slab to be?

 

Thanks Frederick, I have looked at this mill before but wasnt real sure about it. I may have to try one out.

 

Bhardy, a machinist I have used for years is selling everything and getting out of the business. He, I am located in Lawrenceville. PM me

Oh, benchtop mills have been a huge let down for me. Unless you are a model maker. You just can't mill anything larger than you hand.

 

Thanks, I will PM you and get some information.

 

I prefer machines much higher than most people my height (I'm 6'). This is one of the reasons why the workbenches I built in my garage are 4-5" taller than anything I'd have purchased at Lowes, Home Depot, or Sears. Another six inches in height of the milling table and I'd be happy. I have some 1/4" plate left over from when I cut superbumper down a bit, more than enough to weld together a spacer between the top of the table and the bottom of the mill. It's just a "get to it" thing.

I also want to drill and tap two holes in the x-y table, and attach brass bungs with say, 3/4" flexible tubing so when I flood the cutter in coolant the x=y table doesn't fill up and overflow. The overflow mostly lands on the base of the machine then pours into the table's fluid tray, however there are times that it overflows at the edge of the x-y table and of course it's overhanging the floor. Drill, tap, bung, hose solves the problem with the end of the hose dangling in the table's fluid tray.

I was skeptical as well, but when HF opened a store an hour or so south of me, I took a ride down there to look at it. I was impressed. Certainly I'd rather have an authentic, vintage bridgeport however there is something nice about buying a machine that's square, new, and not warn, for about the same or a little less money.

With the amount of milling I do (which is quite a bit, just not anywhere near as much as a shop would do), I'd expect the wear and tear to remain very low. I'll probably be wirewheeling surface rust off the machine before the dovetails are warn.