# Sieg X0 micro drill/mill



## gerene (Oct 7, 2012)

Hello everybody,

I am fairly new on this forum as well as in machining in general.
I was planning on acquiring a Sieg X0 drill/mill to do some watch and clock work (including making gears eventually) and was wondering if someone has some experience or other advise before I place the order.
Thanks in advance and hope to hear something.

Jan


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## 7HC (Oct 7, 2012)

gerene said:


> Hello everybody,
> 
> I am fairly new on this forum as well as in machining in general.
> I was planning on acquiring a Sieg X0 drill/mill to do some watch and clock work (including making gears eventually) and was wondering if someone has some experience or other advise before I place the order.
> ...



I've not come across the Sieg X0, have you got a link Jan?  
I have a Sieg X1 Micro Mill which I'm in the process of converting to CNC with some help from the forum.

I'd think that a CNC conversion would be helpful to you too for watch and clock work.


M


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## gerene (Oct 7, 2012)

There are several places selling the X0 (here in Europe at least).  Here is a link http://www.arceurotrade.co.uk/Catalogue/Machines-Accessories/Milling-Machines/Model-X0-Micro-Mill to one of them.
Thanks for your interest.
Are you happy with your X1?


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## 7HC (Oct 7, 2012)

gerene said:


> There are several places selling the X0 (here in Europe at least).  Here is a link http://www.arceurotrade.co.uk/Catalogue/Machines-Accessories/Milling-Machines/Model-X0-Micro-Mill to one of them.
> Thanks for your interest.
> Are you happy with your X1?



Yes, for a small mill I'm pleased with my X1, although I confess I've yet to do anything productive with it yet.  
That X0 looks interesting, but the downside will be the round column which may be prone to flex, and will probably mean re-tramming every time you move the head up or down the column.

I'd recommend a different make for the precision and accuracy that you'll need.
Have a look at the Proxxon MF70: http://www.emachinetool.com/new/catalog/vertical.cfm?ProductID=719

Here it is compared to my larger X1: http://darkfibre.nl/micro-mill-overview/ and there's some useful reading on that site too.

The Proxxon is available from many suppliers here in the US, including Amazon, so probably can be found in the UK as well.

If you don't go the CNC route you'll probably need to look into getting a rotary index or dividing head rotary table for the precise positioning that cutting gears and sprockets requires.

I'm not saying that the X0 is totally unsuitable, just that there might be better options that could save you a lot of frustration.


M


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## gerene (Oct 8, 2012)

Thanks for pointing me to the Proxxon MF 70.  
I got convinced that the Proxxon was indeed better suited for my needs after studying the specs and doing some searching on the internet.  
It seems to me that the German quality might be better than the Chinese, but that might just be an impression.  
The capacity for the Sieg is a little more than the Proxxon, but for now I would not need that.  I probably would be better of buying something bigger (and sturdier) than the X0 when need arises.
Anyhow, I ordered the Proxxon MF 70 today and am now waiting for it.  Hope it will arive this week ).


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## 7HC (Oct 8, 2012)

gerene said:


> Thanks for pointing me to the Proxxon MF 70.
> I got convinced that the Proxxon was indeed better suited for my needs after studying the specs and doing some searching on the internet.
> It seems to me that the German quality might be better than the Chinese, but that might just be an impression.
> The capacity for the Sieg is a little more than the Proxxon, but for now I would not need that.  I probably would be better of buying something bigger (and sturdier) than the X0 when need arises.
> Anyhow, I ordered the Proxxon MF 70 today and am now waiting for it.  Hope it will arive this week ).




Make sure you post your first impressions when it arrives.  You'll also need a watchmakers or jewelers lathe.  There are several good YouTube videos of those.


M


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## AR1911 (Oct 8, 2012)

You made the right choice with the Proxxon.

I've not seen an X0 before. How can you mill without a provision for X-Y movement?


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## 7HC (Oct 8, 2012)

AR1911 said:


> You made the right choice with the Proxxon.
> 
> I've not seen an X0 before. How can you mill without a provision for X-Y movement?




I wondered that at first, but if you look further down in that link you'll see that the table is listed as an extra!  :nuts:






M


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## gerene (Oct 9, 2012)

7HC said:


> Make sure you post your first impressions when it arrives.  You'll also need a watchmakers or jewelers lathe.  There are several good YouTube videos of those.
> 
> 
> M



I do have a lathe.  It is not a classical watchmakers lathe like Boley etc, but a Sieg N1 http://www.siegind.com/products_det...=comp-FrontProducts_list01-1325833166395.html.
It does more or less what I need it for.  One drawback is that it does not take WW-collets and hence mounting very small watch parts can be impossible.  I do use ER-11 collets but the closing ring gets in the way sometimes.


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## 7HC (Oct 9, 2012)

gerene said:


> I do have a lathe.  It is not a classical watchmakers lathe like Boley etc, but a Sieg N1 http://www.siegind.com/products_det...=comp-FrontProducts_list01-1325833166395.html.
> It does more or less what I need it for.  One drawback is that it does not take WW-collets and hence mounting very small watch parts can be impossible.  I do use ER-11 collets but the closing ring gets in the way sometimes.



That's a cute lathe! )


I'm sure you've looked into it, but I guess that there's no possibility of adapting the Sherline WW collet adapter to fit the Sieg spindle?


M


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## gerene (Oct 9, 2012)

7HC said:


> That's a cute lathe! )
> 
> 
> I'm sure you've looked into it, but I guess that there's no possibility of adapting the Sherline WW collet adapter to fit the Sieg spindle?
> ...



Well, I have been toying with the idea but to be honest, I haven't pursued it so far.  Should do that one day )


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## gerene (Oct 9, 2012)

Well the Proxxon MF-70 arrived this afternoon.  
Installation was really easy and took less than 1/2 hour.
I did not do anything usefull yet, but it is a sturdy machine and really easy to operate.  As far as I can tell now, it seems to be verry accurate.

Thanks for the good advice and I am certain that I will enjoy this little machine.


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## 7HC (Oct 9, 2012)

gerene said:


> Well the Proxxon MF-70 arrived this afternoon.
> Installation was really easy and took less than 1/2 hour.
> I did not do anything usefull yet, but it is a sturdy machine and really easy to operate.  As far as I can tell now, it seems to be verry accurate.
> 
> Thanks for the good advice and I am certain that I will enjoy this little machine.



I'm glad to hear you're pleased with it, I'm sure it was the better choice.

Please post some pics once you start making a few parts.


M


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## gerene (Oct 10, 2012)

Here some pictures as promised.  Not exactly milling, but drilling holes to make a lantern pinion for a clock.


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## DenH (Jan 15, 2013)

7HC, thanks for those links in post#4. They lead to more links and now I've got a 1/2 doz windows open I need to bookmark, LOL.

I've got the JET version of the X1 and haven't seen most of those webpages before. 



Dennis


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## 7HC (Jan 15, 2013)

DenH said:


> 7HC, thanks for those links in post#4. They lead to more links and now I've got a 1/2 doz windows open I need to bookmark, LOL.
> 
> I've got the JET version of the X1 and haven't seen most of those webpages before.
> 
> ...



You're welcome! )


Make sure to post a couple pics of your machine in action.


M


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## catceefer (Dec 13, 2015)

Jan.

I  know that this is a very old thread, but I was wondering whether you are able to give an update onhow you have got on with your Proxxon MF70 mill. I am thinking about getting one and would like to know how they last over time.

Thank you.

James.


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## gerene (Dec 14, 2015)

Hello James,

I am still a happy user of this micro lathe.  I did buy a Sieg X1 mill as well which I use for bigger work.  The max mill cutter size for the Proxxon is 3 mm which is really small.  You will enjoy the Proxxon if you have work in that size category.

Jan


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## catceefer (Dec 14, 2015)

Jan.

Thank you for your reply. The type of work for which I am considering it is gear wheels for clocks and other clock parts. I would be mostly using it on brass, although if it can cope with mild steel, that would be a bonus.

I have seen a number of conversions of the machine to CNC operation. This is something that fascinates me, although I currently know nothing about doing it. As the conversion looks simple enough, I may look into this if I do buy one.

Regards,

James.


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