New Mill

[benchmark]

Woohoo,  i just won myself a new mill.
Even though i have a pillar drill and also small milling attachment on my emco compact lathe this new one at 80 kgs is just sure power. It will be sent to me from Germany.



more detailed picture in the link below

http://cgi.ebay.de/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=140498162155&ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT

i hope its a good one.

[mhh]

Nothing better than getting a new toy! 

Bare lige en sidebemærkning, og det er ikke fordi jeg sidder og laver reklame her, men hvis du mangler diverse værktøj til fræser og drejebænk, så prøv net2l.dk, han har en hel del og er en reel gut.

Mads.

[benchmark]

Thanks guys.

[Brass_Machine]

Nice find!

I am assuming it is new? It is very clean. Let us know how you like it.

Eric

[benchmark]

yes its Brand new, the ebay seller apparently has a number of them and is selling them on german ebay. I am expecting it any moment form now and i will post feedback on it.

[Stilldrillin]

That looks a sturdy little beast, Kenneth!  

Looking forward to your installation write up, and future production.......  

David D

[krv3000]

OOOOO it looks brill    i wish i had a mill

[benchmark]

It arrived today and i am very happy with it so far.

[Pete.]

That's a drill press, with a table fitted.

[John Stevenson]

No it's not, it's a round column Rung Fu type machine literally 1,000's have been made or sold.

The table is part of the base, not an add on.

[benchmark]

That's a drill press, with a table fitted.

Here are some videos of the machine on youtube with CNC fitted

[Pete.]

My apologies, so it is. The picture scrolled right off my screen. It does bear many features of a typical drill press though. What's the winding handle on the side do?

Edit: wow only just seen the top pic. Don't know how I missed that on first viewing. I see the handle raises the column now.

[andyf]

Hi Benchmark,

I'm sure you will get a lot of use from it.

You may find that it helps to get a proper milling vice, rather than the drilling vice shown in your last photo, and the similar vice in the first video. The usual story - you buy a machine tool, and then have to spend half as much again on accessories to get the best out of it.

Andy

PS: Ken, I've got an old Dore Westbury - round column, with a very coarse thread (something like 0.75 TPI)  and a nut which bears on the base and jacks the column and head up and down. Pain in the neck, sometimes. And you have to cut a hole in your benchtop for the column to drop into, so drawers under the bench have to be very short, front to back.

[benchmark]

You may find that it helps to get a proper milling vice, rather than the drilling vice shown in your last photo, and the similar vice in the first video. .

Ok  will , can you explain the difference between these two types?

[Bogstandard]

Just to jump back to the round column bit.

I think the reason for having the lift at the bottom, with the rack inset into the column and running up and down in that add on casting at the bottom of the column is an attempt at keeping spindle position as the head is raised/lowered, the main cause of concern with the normal mill/drill design, where the head can usually swing side to side as it is raised or lowered.

With reference to the different types of vices.

To simplify it, a drill vice is usually not so rigid or well made as even a cheapo milling vice.
For milling, the jaws need to be very square to the base and to each other and also able to have much larger clamping forces than a drilling vice. So a milling vice normally has an extended handle to allow you to tighten up onto the job a lot more, rather than the usual open screw, knurled handle of the drill vice.
The accurately squared jaws of the milling vice allow more precision when machining your parts, while the drill vice is just designed to hold a part while a hole is drilled, with very little precision involved at all.

Bogs

[sub-xtx]

Hi Benchmark,
sorry for my English, I can't sse the drawbar to lock chuck in the spindle.
I think your machine is a drill,not a mill.
Pay attention using it because your tool may loose and trow becoming very dangerous for you.

[benchmark]

Hi Benchmark,
sorry for my English, I can't sse the drawbar to lock chuck in the spindle.
I think your machine is a drill,not a mill.
Pay attention using it because your tool may loose and trow becoming very dangerous for you.

There is a Drawbar. You see it when the top cover to the pulleys are opened.

[benchmark]

One of the biggest differences is the way pressure is applied to the part being clamped.  Typically, when clamping onto a piece of steel for heavy machining operartions on wishes to apply a significantly higher amount of pressure that would be used so simply secure a piece of material when drilling, due to the high axial forces that can be exerted when milling compared to those exerted whe drilling.

It is not uncommon for a good 6-in milling machine vise to excert 500lbs of force.  If a common vise were used, then the jaws would tend to bend away from each other leaving the faces not parallel and not completely in contact with the material up and down its face.   Additionally, often one wishes to mill along the perhipery of a part as much as possible, so they wish to raise the part up in the vise and hold onto the part by only a tiny 'fignernail' of material at the bottom of the part.  If a conventional vise is used the material will want to "pop" out as the vise jaws are no-longer parallel forming a slight "v" shape as they are tightented heavily.

A common milling machine type is called a ball-angle lock or just an angle lock vise.  The angle lock ensures that forces are exerted in such a way that the vise jaws stay parallel to each other and do not try to bend back in a "V".



-Kenneth

Thanks for that very educative explanation.

[andyf]

Benchmark, I'll be very interested to see what you think of the machine when you start using it, because it seems to be available in Germany for about €180/€200 including shipping. That is around £160/£180, or US$245/$272, and is remarkably cheap.

Andy