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Flying chips!?

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Arbalist:
I hope to be setting up a new workshop after our house move and this time I'd like to contain the chips from the milling machine a little better. I use a fly cutter quite a bit and these things throw chips everywhere! I plan to locate the mill at the far end of the workshop against the (short) wall. The working envelope of the machine is about 5 foot wide and the planned shed is about double that on the short side. I had thought about putting it in the middle but now I'm not so sure. Anyone have any suggestions for siting the machine and swarf control?

awemawson:
I've had good results in a previous workshop using 'strip curtains' the transparent pvc strips used to keep heat in across open doors

Arbalist:
Yes, I have thought of those. Not sure if they"ll get in the way when not in use unless they can be slid out of the way. Are they expensive?

awemawson:
I've bought second hand so not sure of new prices. Could you have two hinged bars one on each wall, to fold them out of the way when not in use. Or mount them on a pole and rotate it to furl them like a sail?

Miner:
Arbilist,
Add 6 inches to the room and that's the wall length my mill is sitting on. But for various reasons I'm locked into only one wall my 3/4 sized Bridgeport clone can be located on. I do have an entry door that does line up with my mills table so that's very helpful. If you don't locate your mill centered on that wall you will sooner or later run into a very long part that can't be located on the table to fit how you have it arranged. Yes centering it you'll also have the same, but nothing is ever perfect or ever big enough.

I'm also a huge user of fly cutters, and for the home user that can afford to take the extra cutting time, there a very cheap alternative to end mills for sure. Since I don't yet have anything to sharpen end mills, I'll take a fly cutter every time unless there's a real definate need for an end mill. Slots etc. I've got a variable radius fly cutter that takes both triangular and round carbide tips that's the very best I've ever used. I actually doubt you can do what you'd like without going into something very much like a full CNC enclosure. The CNC Zone forum would be one place to start, But if you can come up with multiple hinged panels that can also be set for vertical height? That will keep most of the swarf where you want it. If your using flood coolant? That really complicates things. Personally I'd build it free standing and not attached to the mill at all. A lathe is pretty easy in comparison to a mill for swarf and coolant control.

But everyone is of course different. You may work on a general range of long parts that might be worth offsetting your mill. But to state the obvious? At less than 54" for any long parts you'd generally have, I'd just center the mill to the room. If it's a non concrete floor, I might shift it one way or another just to match up with the floor joist's. I had to do that.

Pete

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