Millrite Mill

[darkstar]

Picked this up today...

Millrite Model MV
Made by The U.S. Burke Machine Tool Comp.

Too tired to wire it up, let alone clean it up today.. But here it is. Tested it before loading it on the trailer, works fine. $800 including a few collets, couple of drawbars, a bit of tooling, a drill chuck, a vise, clamping kit, and a phase converter!

This unit is about 2/3 the size of a bridgeport. 6 feet tall, 32x7 table, 3.5 inches of quill travel.

That's about all I know about this machine.. anyone ever worked with these? anything else I need to know..

http://asmc.net/pics/d/4819-1/IMG_1641.JPG
http://asmc.net/pics/d/4824-1/IMG_1642.JPG
http://asmc.net/pics/d/4828-1/IMG_1643.JPG
http://asmc.net/pics/d/4832-1/IMG_1644.JPG

[bob large]

cool

make sure to get some pics up once you start using it.

[X-Rated]

you said you got a couple of draw bars? I bought a mill and the draw bar is a little f'd up. I have been looking for another one. If I cant find one, i will try and make one, but if you have a spare 1/2 13tpi drawbar in good shape, i would like to see if we can work something out

[darkstar]

I went through the box of stuff that came with it in detail late last night. one of the drawbars is the correct one for the machine. the other one is from a bridgeport (7/16 fine thread). the PO had taken an R8 collet and "machined" it on a grinder to fit the #9 taper and used a bridgeport drawbar. niiiice :flipoff2:

that one is going in the bottom drawer...

[RustoleumWhite]

Looked at one of those a few years back. From my research they seem like a damn good little Mill for their size. Missed out on that one and was always bummed.


Not a fullsize mill, but a big step up from a Mill-Drill or a Drill press.

Couple sites I still have saved:
http://www.lathes.co.uk/millrite/index.html
http://www.thehermitsmachineshop.com/Millrite.html

[Azzy2000]

I went through the box of stuff that came with it in detail late last night. one of the drawbars is the correct one for the machine. the other one is from a bridgeport (7/16 fine thread). the PO had taken an R8 collet and "machined" it on a grinder to fit the #9 taper and used a bridgeport drawbar. niiiice :flipoff2:

that one is going in the bottom drawer...

If you need B&S #9 collets check out www.tools4cheap.net

I just bought a set of collets and end mill collets from them for my old Index mill that is also B&S #9. They have an Ebay store also. The price was not bad, shipping was really fast and they look like good quality pieces.

http://www.tools4cheap.net/products.php?cat=17

Looks like they have the 11 piece collet set, but the 8 piece end mill holding collets are out of stock now. I may have gotten their last set.

[darkstar]

Yep, found them on ebay yesterday. My collets should be here tomorrow (or I guess today, since its 1:30 AM)

[HandBuilt]

That is a sweet mill man... Nice and small...

What is the big red motor looking thing hanging off the side of it? Phase converter?

[darkstar]

that's the phase converter. the PO was starting it manually, using a string on the pulley. I'm converting it to capacitor start this evening, and cutting the shaft flush wiht the housing. With as much crap as I have in the area, its just a matter of time before it munches something.

[Midwestzj]

It's cool you got this, especially since you are only five minutes away from me.:D

[darkstar]

sweet. come by and help me scrape the six layers of paint off it so I can make it look presentable :flipoff2:

[HandBuilt]

Dude, get a variable frequency drive, trust me, having on the fly speed adjustment and so much less noise is sooo nice. They are a 100$, best thing I have bought for mine (Induma). Do it, don't put any money into that converter...

www.factorymation.com

I have a Teco FM50, it works super slick.

[darkstar]

is this the one you're referring to? (the mill has a 3/4 hp motor)

http://www.factorymation.com/s.nl/it.A/id.197/.f?category=32

if I got this I would be able to get rid of the big orange idler motor... how does it work exactly? I put the mill on the highest speed using the belts, and use the VFD to control the speed? using the belts I can get the mill down to 250 RPM. a bit slower would be nice, but is there a reduction in power from the motor if you slow it down using the VFD?

[HandBuilt]

Mine is 2hp but just size it for the motor you have. That is the same model only less power capacity.

The VFD gets rid of the big ugly orange motor. You wire the little magical white box to 220V single phase input and wire the main motor directly to the box. Its built in electronic controller puts out 3 phase power at variable frequency that you can adjust, thereby varying the motor speed. Mine goes from 10 Hz to 90Hz so for any belt position I can go from super slow to mega fast. It has a start, stop, faster and slower button, you just turn it up or down as you need it, plus it has outputs so you can add a remote 5K potentiometer to control the speed instead of using the buttons.

Trust me this is sooo worth it. I rarely change belts anymore. It took 3 minutes to wire it up, 5 minutes to program it (super simple). It's the coolest thing I have ever seen, seriously.

Edit: They post the torque reduction figures in the info, I leave mine on the lowest gearing belt position, it will do 50 RPM with decent torque. They say 90% torque across the board but I am not sure if it's really true, mine seems weaker at really really low speeds.

Get one and thank me later!

[HandBuilt]

The best part is that because you only have one motor running at lower RPMs, you have little to no noise, I can carry a conversation next to the machine while milling, with a phase converter you have the steady drone of the converter in the background.

If you have any questions PM me your phone number, I can call you and explain it over the phone...

[darkstar]

VFD on order now! Thanks for the help. can't wait :D

[Azzy2000]

You mentioned painting it. Have you decided what type of paint and what color you'll be using?

Here is a good thread on PM about painting machine tools. The tractor paint seems to be the best bang for the buck from what I've read.

http://www.practicalmachinist.com/vb/showthread.php?t=175279

[darkstar]

I haven't really thought about it, I just know it needs doing. I'll check out the thread on practical machinist. thanks for the link.

[Murph]

VFD on order now! Thanks for the help. can't wait :D

And if you get an "OC" error, slow down the ramp up time on the FM50...BTDT :laughing:


Andy

[darkstar]

Got the VFD in. Thanks handbuilt!

Rewired the reversing drum switch that came on the mill as a remote for the VFD. made a quick and dirty mount for it out of scrap.

So now its usable. still needs some cleanup, some oiling and some paint...

http://asmc.net/pics/d/6063-2/IMG_1707.JPG (http://asmc.net/pics/d/6061-1/IMG_1707.JPG)
http://asmc.net/pics/d/6068-2/IMG_1708.JPG (http://asmc.net/pics/d/6066-1/IMG_1708.JPG)
http://asmc.net/pics/d/6073-2/IMG_1709.JPG (http://asmc.net/pics/d/6071-1/IMG_1709.JPG)
http://asmc.net/pics/d/6078-2/IMG_1710.JPG (http://asmc.net/pics/d/6076-1/IMG_1710.JPG)
http://asmc.net/pics/d/6083-2/IMG_1711.JPG (http://asmc.net/pics/d/6081-1/IMG_1711.JPG)

[darkstar]

Finally finished it yesterday. Man I'm sloooooow.

With three coats of primer and two coats of paint, it came out real nice. The total coating is amost 1/16" thick, very consistent and glossy. looks like a new machine....

Now to make some metal chips :D

http://asmc.net/pics/d/7264-2/IMG_1980.JPG (http://asmc.net/pics/d/7262-1/IMG_1980.JPG)

[HandBuilt]

Nice! Looks great with some paint on it.