Aussie Mike's machine shop

[Shootnride]

Originally Posted by Aussie Mike

I keep telling these guys its a fun and rewarding hobby.

It certainly is Mike.

Yes, my mill is also an R8 spindle. R8 certainly isn't the most robust system, but by far has the most readily available and affordable tooling. The system is plenty durable if you're not trying to push the limits with speeds and feeds.

Since you've already owned a mill, you're probably already pretty well set up with cutting tools, so you'll just need to acquire the necessary R8 tool holders. I personally prefer using R8 collets as much as possible as they offer the most usable distance between the spindle and the table. I have used the ER collet systems before but they eat up more of the usable space and their quick change advantage is kind of lost with a mill equipped with a power draw bar (which you now have ). For tooling with shanks larger than 7/8", I have R8 x 1", 1 1/8" and 1 1/4" holders. I also use R8 x MT1, MT2 & MT3 for my drill chucks and taper shank drills and reamers. If you prefer, you can use an R8 x Jacobs taper adapter for your drill chucks. I have MT shanks on my drill chucks because it allows me to also use them in the lathe tailstock. I also have a set of R8 shell mill arbors and slitting saw arbors. That is about all the R8 stuff I have and it seems to be enough to do what I need. But, as I'm sure you are well aware of, machine tools are kind of a bottomless pit in which to deposit your money ! (worse than Cobras I think)

Keep up the good work and keep posting your accomplishments. I'll likely be picking your brain in the future.

Ted