[Newbie] Newbie Mill-Drill Input questions

[shootur44]

I am new to all of this and I have purchased a Enco 9x20 and got most of the bugs worked out thanks to a fellow member locally , now I looking for different thoughts on bench-top mill-drill .
I have to get a bench top because of weight issues in my workshop building is a wood floor etc . Please give opinions on the round column verses the dove tail machines in the $1200 to $1500 range . I appreciate all input thanks Mike (shootur44)

 

[Tony Wells]

Never owned either, so take that into consideration. I have used a round column mill, just a little. A employer bought a couple to use as deburr machines. Seemed pretty light to me. These were Enco branded Taiwanese at the time. Probably Chinese these days. from what I have heard and read about them, they are a little limber in the column, and there is nothing to hold your X-Y position if you need to raise or lower the head during an operation. To me that would be a deal breaker. The dovetail machines don't have that issue, and should be much stiffer.

Others who actually own and operate these, both of them, will be weighing in.

 

[JPigg55]

If you're looking for a mini mill, Little Machine Shop has a comparison chart that may help.
http://littlemachineshop.com/Info/minimill_compare.php
These are all the Sieg X3 type mills I believe.
If you're wanting something a little bigger, the choices go down a bit and information harder to find.
When I was searching, the general concensus was to stay away from round column mills, especially in the smaller, lighter ones.
That said, I have an old Clausing 8520 which is a round column mill, and said to be "Prized by the Hobby Machinist community". It's a larger knee type mill though, tips the scale at aroung 660# give or take.

 

[swatson144]

I've used large production mills in the past but now own a '80s vintage jet 16 . The round columns are not near the plague that many people claim though I'd rather have a Cincinnati. The mill drills are not overly rigid to say the least but I'll take the capacity over a smaller stiffer mill.

You need to, ! above all ! either make sure you can easily re zero your project accurately or that all operations can be completed at the beginning height.

I lucked into this one for pretty much free, so knowing that owning any mill is a little like having a mistress with expensive taste I figured it would let me gather up tooling that would work fine with a B'port or clone. We now have a decent vice, rotary table, and a plethora of tooling, endmills, involute cutters, slitting saws, etc and $%$. My friend has a B'port down the road about 2 miles my litmus test to replace this machine (assuming I don't get to "steal" a B'port) is when I end up using Paul's several times. So far not once!

It is all a compromise, It just happens that sometimes the compromise ends on the light side,:yikes: 7500 pound mill or 700 pound with price also a function.

Steve

 

[stevecmo]

"That said, I have an old Clausing 8520 which is a round column mill"

JPigg55,

This is your lucky day! The Clausing is NOT a round column mill! :winner: It's a small knee mill. On a round column mill the height adjustment is thru the round COLUMN similar to the table on a drill press. On a knee mill the vertical travel is via the knee.

You have a nice mill. I have the Rockwell which is very similar in size.

Steve

 

[JPigg55]

Thanks for the correction Steve.

 

[David Kirtley]

The ones on the LMS comparisons are the X2 and SX2 models. Quite a bit smaller than the X3.

Since it doesn't sound like you will be doing big production milling, I would say that the biggest consideration is the work envelope. The stiffness can be overcome by smaller cutters and lighter cuts. A lot of people have the square column mills and do good work with them. In that price range you are looking at an X3 or similar unless you are patient and can watch for something used.

 

[kd4gij]

I wen't with a G0704 best deal in that price range.

 

[24more]

I also went with the g0704. Love it so far.

 

[Kevin45]

I am new to all of this and I have purchased a Enco 9x20 and got most of the bugs worked out thanks to a fellow member locally , now I looking for different thoughts on bench-top mill-drill .
I have to get a bench top because of weight issues in my workshop building is a wood floor etc . Please give opinions on the round column verses the dove tail machines in the $1200 to $1500 range . I appreciate all input thanks Mike (shootur44)

You don't say what type of workshop yours is. Is it a shed, is it an apartment building, a room in your house......you get my point. Depending on how the floor is constructed, for the money that you have to spend, you may possibly go with a fullsize mill. Every once in a while there are real decent Bridgeports that pop up on CL.

But if you really need a benchtop mill, from all that I have read on smaller mills, I would go with a Rong Fu. I don't know what Grizzly tools would be like, but I have a JET lathe 13" x 40" and from what I see from the lathe, I wouldn't be afraid to have a JET mill, whether fullsize or benchtop.