Mini-mills

[DieLucas!]

Okay, did the search, and it was great if I had the money and wanted a Bridgeport (the wife would absolutely kill me!!!).

I'm looking for a smaller, "hobby" mill; something similar to the POS that Harbor Freight sells, without the Harbor Freight quality. New or used, I just need to be pointed in the right direction.

FWIW, some immediate uses will be dishing pistons to lower CR, milling a cast manifold "blank" flange to the turbocharger I plan on using. Obviously, some stuff I could do with a die-grinder; but this is the small one-off stuff I plan on fabricating for myself...e.g. no business, just personal use.

Thanks for the help!!!

[Explosivo]

http://www.sherline.com/

[PTSchram]

wanted a Bridgeport

FWIW, some immediate uses will be dishing pistons to lower CR, milling a cast manifold "blank" flange to the turbocharger I plan on using. Obviously, some stuff I could do with a die-grinder; but this is the small one-off stuff I plan on fabricating for myself...e.g. no business, just personal use.

Thanks for the help!!!

Bridgeport, schmidgeport. Everybody wants a Bridgeport, yet there are SO many other manufacturers.

First off, do you really want to use a milling machine to dish a piston? Wouldn't a lathe be a better tool to use for this? If you're cutting "Eyebrows" for valve clearance, perhaps a mill is appropriate.

Cast manifold blank? How big? Most of the micro-mills like the Sherline have very small tables and you won't be able to make a complete cut befpre running out of table travel (depending upon the size of the part you're working on).

Pay attention to cutter holders. Jacobs chucks are wholly inappropriate for milling purposes. Those with Morse taper quills may pose a limitation as the smaller MT quills wil only accept up to 5/16" shanks. The availability of bits with such tiny shanks is very limited. R8 quill machines tend to run more $.

How much horsepower? One HP is probably the least you'll want.

The micro mills are perhaps suitable for those making small engines, model train parts, etc. For our purposes, I feel the small mill-drills are the minimum acceptable, but they have so many limitations that they are marginal.

Tooling costs can be heavy, if you must use US made tools, but if you use low-end import stuff, you can outfit yourself pretty well.

Call me if you'd like to discuss further.

Peace,
PT

[DieLucas!]

First off, do you really want to use a milling machine to dish a piston? Wouldn't a lathe be a better tool to use for this? If you're cutting "Eyebrows" for valve clearance, perhaps a mill is appropriate.


Yes, I want a milling machine for this; the dish is oblong, assymetrical, and will be different for each of the 4 pistons (this is due to Fiat changing the block's bore-spacing, but not changing the head's bore spacing...don't ask).


Cast manifold blank? How big? Most of the micro-mills like the Sherline have very small tables and you won't be able to make a complete cut befpre running out of table travel (depending upon the size of the part you're working on).


The flange itself is about 4" by 6"; the cut needs to be about 3.5" by 3.5" to open the flange up to meet the turbo...

[MAD MAC]

I would never buy one of the mill drills you are speaking of they suck ass find a old bridgeport copy that would be your best best.

[cranker]

http://www.TAIGTOOLS.com
Here is another option. I have both the lathe and the mill. They work very well for the smaller stuff. I bought them for my RC hobby. I am interested in selling them together with all of the tooling that i have. LMK if you are interested..

[DieLucas!]

I would never buy one of the mill drills you are speaking of they suck ass find a old bridgeport copy that would be your best best.

Why? I would never get the use out of a Bridgeport to justify buying one...

[Kc J]

Check out www.use-enco.com .
They have some mill drill combos that use R-8 collets and even have digital readouts .
Just remember most Bridgeport style mills need 3 phase power , so you would also need a phase converter .

[camo]

if you look hard enuff you can find a bridgeport for under $1500. i bought mine for $1200 and it is in perfect condition. I had been looking for years and finally was at the right place at the right time. that said a buddy of mine has a mill/drill from enco tools that is similar to the harbor freight units and as much of a POS as it is in fact it is really a good tool for the price and he does alot of stuff on it. it is worth owning as long as you understand it's limits and don't need high presicion work done. for you average home fab guy it would be a great tool to own.
try http://www.use-enco.com/enco_dtn.htm

[fj40guy]

While the sherline is a nice machine, for the stuff you're talking about... you'll need a larger milling machine. (i.e. surfacing a manifold).

If you need something SMALLER than 4" x 6" by 2" high... look at the SHERLINE machine.

Kids are starting with CAD classes in high school. The Sherline CNC is very tempting (they would be making a bunch of custom R/C Car parts. Machine is near perfect for custom stuff like that. Slow to get the accuracy needed, but once they have the knowledge of CAD to CAM down... let them loose on the full size machine's)

Paid $2K for my full size INDEX milling machine. It was converted to R8 tooling,
had X & Y DRO's, and full X, Y, Z power feeds. Nice machine for the price. DRO's currently go for $800, just need my shop built to use it!!! :( [One reason I'm thinking of buying a CNC Sherline mini-mill... set up in a spare bedroom]

Tom :usa: