Looking at a bench mill.

[Silverback51]

Just wondering if anyone has any opinions.


http://industrial.jettools.com/Produ...018&cat=333020


Been looking at this one and it seems like more than enough for what I want to do.

Anyone have any experience with the Jet Mills?

[mickmate]

Jet stuff gets the job done. It's one of those tools you'll wonder how you lived without it.

[ztarum]

It depends what you want to do. Those round column mill drills are pretty crappy for milling. If you will use it mostly as a drill press with the occasional milling job it should be fine, but if you already have a drill press and want it for milling I wouldn't waste my money.
At a minimum I would look for something with dovetail way box column (not round). At least then you can raise and lower the head without losing X and Y position.

This machine is small, but will function better as a true mill for a reasonable price. Just make sure the work envelope is big enough.
http://www.grizzlyindustrial.com/pro...ll-Drill/G0619

If that one is too small, then you might move up to something like this. Same basic size as the one you posted, but with the box column/dovetail ways.
http://www.grizzlyindustrial.com/pro...th-Stand/G0484

By the way, I'm not recommending Grizzly. They just have a nice website with pictures. Most of the same machine can be had in other paint colors (Jet, etc.).

For what its worth, I started out with a Rockwell milling machine. It is small and compact, but is a true knee mill. Like a half size Bridgeport. It was a good machine. Much better than the imports I listed above, but still light duty machine.
http://www.lathes.co.uk/rockwellmillers/

My next machine was/is a Deckel FP1, which is fantastic. Small, but stout and extremely versatile. Unfortunately they are somewhat rare and expensive.
http://www.lathes.co.uk/deckel/index.html

Best bet really is to get a used Bridgeport or similar. You can get a decent one for the same price as the mill drill. Tooling is cheap and available everywhere. They do take up some space however.

[Tony Losiniecki]

I have been using a Smithy for the last couple of years. Its not a very big machine but the fact that it has an OK mill / drill along with a lathe makes it a nice think to have. Great for making those small parts. I bought mine from ebay (I think I paid more for shipping than the machine). Good luck and do plenty of shopping.

[ERA649]

How much would a used Bridgeport cost?

[Three Peaks]

Check ebay for pricing on this stuff. It runs the gamut, so do a little research so you know what you're buying or you could end up with a mill that has been used hard and put away wet and needs a ton of work to get up to snuff.

I've got a Smithy also and it works okay for light duty lathe work, but the mill is pretty much useless for anything heavy. There just isn't a good way to lock down the mill head without the dovetailed column to keep everything in line.

When I get a few extra bucks and a little more room in my shop, the Smithy is going down the road for a dedicated lathe- probably an older craftsman or Atlas, and a dedicated mill, probably an older 2/3 sized Bridgeport if I can find one for a decent price.

Bob

Bob

[Aussie Mike]

Look at a Geared head unit with a dove tail column if you can. The dove tail column is a lot more rigid and you will get a better finish. That being said the round colomn has it's advantages in that it alows you to swing the head left and right and cover more of the table. Also most of the geared head units allow you to tilt the head left and right where the belt drives only work straight up and down. This can be very useful on a lot of jobs once you get the hang of using a mill.

My first mill was a geared head bench top machine and I did a lot of stuff on it. I've got a pic of it some where. They are a lot of fun to use and you will amaze yourself at the things you can make when you set your mind to it.

Grizzly seem to have some reasonable Chinese and Taiwanese machines for good prices in the US http://www.grizzlyindustrial.com/pro...spx?key=480000

I enjoy using the mill so much that I've moved on to my 3rd milling machine now. I replaced the bench top unit with a big old turret mill that I restored.

This thing probably weighs 2 tons and stands 7' tall.



Restored and in the workshop



In the last month or so I sold the old turret mill and bought a brand new Taiwanese machine. This thing is awesome. I thought the old turret mill was great but this machine makes the old one look like a dinosaur.



It's got a much bigger table and more travel in every direction plus the 3 axis Digital readout makes machining dimessionally accurate parts easy.

You need a bit of floor space for one of these bigger turret machines but you can pick up some bargians with 2nd hand industrial stuff. I reccomend getting the biggest machine you can fit in there/afford. As an old machinist friend has often quoted to me "You can do a small job on a big machine but you can't do a big job on a small machine"

What ever way you go, milling machines are a lot of fun and satisfying to use. Every home fabricators workshop should have one.

Cheers

[Aussie Mike]

Here's a pic of the bench top mill I used to own.



I'm using it here to bore out the engine case for a bike I built to take larger sleeves for a big bore kit.

Cheers

[BFBurk]

HI;
I have a Grizzly G1007 mill/drill and it is adequate for aluminum but on steel it wanders a lot. I have tried cutting 1/4' slots in 1/4" steel angle and the cut moves a lot. Plunge down to start the cut and when cutting the slot it will be
off from the plunge cut. The return cut will be different, also.

I think the problem is as a previous writer stated, the round column mills flex a lot. I've tried some boring in cast iron and you can see the whole spindle flexing as the boring head rotates.

I eventually want a Bridgeport clone like the ones Grizzly sells. I just can not
justify the cost. I am retired and just putter around. I live 40 miles from the Grizzly showroom in Muncy,Pa. I like the Grizzly equipment and have a 12X36 lathe, a metal cutting bandsaw and the mill/drill.

My 12x36 Grizzly lathe has quite a bit of flex in it too. When I want to do precision work I use a toolpost grinder in my lathe.I previously had a 6 inch Craftsman lathe and it flexed a lot more than my Grizzly. If you want to do good work on steel the more massive the machine the better it will be.

I like the idea of getting a used Bridgeport clone.
Have fun.

[Aussie Mike]

I don't reckon a 1/4" cutter will ever cut a 1/4" slot. The flutes of the end mill will tend to pull into the workpiece in one direection of traverse and ride up over in the other direction. Also the cutter will move in the slot just with the flex in the tool itself regardless of how rigid the mill is.

I use a cutter smaller than the slot and cut it in several passes and cutting the 2 sides of the slot seperately. For the most accurate slotting in a mill I reckon you need to use a slotting blade.

You can still get accurate results with the lighter machines, it just takes longer because you have to take smaller cuts and more of them.

Cheers

[mickmate]

There's a lot of companies going out of business right now. Check local auctions. You should be able to score a Bridgeport and tooling for about $1000, maybe less if you shop hard.

[SuperHart]

I own a Jet JMD-15 machine and love it. Both the JMD-15 and JMD-18 work about the same with the JMD-18 being a little more heavy duty with a slightly larger table. The JMD-18 is 230V only, however, while the JMD-15 can be set up for either 110 or 230V use. Both machines adjust the Z axis manually by loosening 2 bolts at the rear of the housing and raising or lowering the head via a crank, the only feature of the machine I don't like. I would prefer a Bridgeport style Z axis adjust with the front mounted crank to raise the table. However, I picked up my JMD-15 used for $400 so I wasn't going to complain much.

If you opt for a large floor mounted Bridgeport, many of them require three phase electric which would require some fancy wiring tricks. They are extremely heavy and space taking machines but sure do work well especially when equipped with digital scales.

[ERA649]

ASSie Mike,

Are you the guy who's wife bought you a lathe with her money? How did you get her to that?

[Aussie Mike]

I'm asuming ASSie Mike is a typo?

Yes my wife did shell out for the new Lathe. I'm just lucky to have a loving wife that understands me I guess. We've been together 16 years now and I can't imagine being with anyone else.

Cheers

[ERA649]

Aussie Mike,

Sorry about that, I should do better proof reading

[Aussie Mike]

No offence taken. I thought it was a pretty funny slip. I probably can be an Ass at times

Cheers