# PM932 Arrival and Move Into House



## Walt (Sep 22, 2013)

Hi,

I've recently purchased and have begun to install a Precision Matthews PM932 milling machine. 



As arrived


First step was to shorten the skid.


Next, I raised the crate and removed the rest of the skid. The Roll A Lifts were on loan from Atlas Baking Equipment, my brother's company.


I stored the crated machine in the back of my garage for several weeks while I was busy with getting the mountain bike trails at Blue Mound State Park in condition for the summer riding season. It was hard to wait to tear the crate open and move the machine into my workshop, but trail riding and trail building are very seasonal and while I ordered the milling machine before riding season started, the machines arrive in batches from China and mine had to sail across the Pacific while the spring rainy season played out here in the Midwest.


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## Ray C (Sep 22, 2013)

Good luck Walt... Keep us apprised.

Say, those are really nice equipment jacks!


Ray


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## Walt (Sep 22, 2013)

I didn't take any pictures of removing the top crate with the machine base off of the stack of crates, and uncrating the milling machine. I just used a hand winch to lift the crate using the garage ceiling rafters. With a timber across two rafters they were more than strong enough to lift the ~200 lb. base.



Here's a start to the move with the uncrated machine on rollers, on 4x4" tracks



A little farther down the side of the garage.



The machine is restrained from rolling off the end of the track with a wire cable anchored to a good-size tree. Much slower going.



The rollers are restrained with plywood scraps as they are fed in on the downhill run. As the machine traverses rail joints that are not of the same slope, the machine base will be out of parallel with one of the rail segments and the rollers will roll out of position. There is a lot of walking back and forth to reposition the rollers as the machine is eased down the slope.

Walt


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## Walt (Sep 22, 2013)

I mostly got around the problem of turning the machine on the roller tracks by simply not turning it. I added 2x6" bits of lumber under the crate bottom to allow rollers to move smoothly under the machine. It was just a matter then of jacking the machine up, sliding the 4x6" timber tracks out, and sliding new ones in at right angles to the original tracks. The PM932 cleared the door to my shop with very close to zero clearance, but I got lucky and it did move through OK. 

Originally I planned to build a gantry out of 4x6" timbers and lift the PM932 up onto its base with hand winches. The more I thought it through however, the more appealing it became to rent an engine lift from the local rental store.


I rigged the machine to the lift with chain attached to rings bolted to the mounting holes in the machine base. The stand is in position between the lift's legs (outriggers?). I do not make any claims that this is the correct way to approach the lift. Note the use of a heavy strap across the top of the machine and the chains. The assembly was not completely stable and this addition reduced the tendency of the machine to tip inside the chain assembly.



The lift went smoothly. Here is touchdown on the stand. It felt like a huge weight had been taken off my shoulders at this point. There is always the possibility for something to go wrong no matter how careful you are in planning a move. At this point much less so.

I am in the process of figuring out how to add a 220 volt line to my shop. The connection is complicated by the need to share the line with my Monarch lathe and install a rotary phase converter. Only one machine at a time will be run, but I still need to safely run a 7.5 hp idler motor plus run another feed back to the garage for my air compressor. All in good time.

Walt


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## johnnyc14 (Sep 22, 2013)

Glad you got it on the stand with no issues Walt. I just got my 932 a few weeks ago, I agree it sure felt good to get it up on to the stand!hew:

John


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## HangLoose (Sep 22, 2013)

Nicely done, can't wait to get mine mounted as well


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## Hawkeye (Sep 22, 2013)

For reference for anyone needing to turn a machine while moving it on rollers, I wanted my 3200 pound Victoria mill turned 90[SUP]o[/SUP] from the path that brought it into the shop. As seen above, I was using pipe rollers. I arranged the pipes like wheel spokes, turning to the left. I pushed the mill forward and, when it got onto the angled pipes, it turned smoothly to the left and ended up exactly where I needed it.

I realize that the case is different here. Since the mill needed to be raised onto the stand, it could be rotated at the same time. A roughly square footprint meant it didn't matter which way it faced as it traveled. An elegant solution.

Congrats on your new machine.


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## Walt (Sep 22, 2013)

Hawkeye said:


> For reference for anyone needing to turn a machine while moving it on rollers, I wanted my 3200 pound Victoria mill turned 90[SUP]o[/SUP] from the path that brought it into the shop. As seen above, I was using pipe rollers. I arranged the pipes like wheel spokes, turning to the left. I pushed the mill forward and, when it got onto the angled pipes, it turned smoothly to the left and ended up exactly where I needed it.
> 
> I realize that the case is different here. Since the mill needed to be raised onto the stand, it could be rotated at the same time. A roughly square footprint meant it didn't matter which way it faced as it traveled. An elegant solution.
> 
> Congrats on your new machine.



Excellent point Hawkeye. I used your idea for turning the machine around inside the workshop. It's amazing how well it works on a concrete slab. I wasn't as accurate as you and had to saw the mill back and forth a couple of times to make it work correctly. It was kind of like watching an old lady learn to parallel park, if you get my drift.

 Alas, I could not make the pipes behave that way on wooden rails, there wasn't enough support.

Walt


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## Rex1954 (Oct 14, 2013)

Hi 
I am new to the forum.  Just recently received my new pm932.  I enjoyed this post as now I see how I will get my machine lifted up on the stand.  Thanks for sharing the information.. my question is this.  Was doing some measuring and the stand is 2 ft. Tall and the top of the table is 10 inches from the base.  That dosent seem like it would be high enough to work at comfortably.  Anyone building stands or roller stands to raise the machine up to a comfortable working height?  Would be interested in seeing what other folks are doing.  Thanks in advance.  Rex


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## johnnyc14 (Oct 14, 2013)

Rex1954 said:


> Hi
> I am new to the forum. Just recently received my new pm932. I enjoyed this post as now I see how I will get my machine lifted up on the stand. Thanks for sharing the information.. my question is this. Was doing some measuring and the stand is 2 ft. Tall and the top of the table is 10 inches from the base. That dosent seem like it would be high enough to work at comfortably. Anyone building stands or roller stands to raise the machine up to a comfortable working height? Would be interested in seeing what other folks are doing. Thanks in advance. Rex





Hi Rex, welcome to the forum. Here's a link to the post showing how I mounted my PM32 and built a base for it.

http://www.hobby-machinist.com/showthread.php/17547-Anotrher-new-PM32PDF-mill


John


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## Rex1954 (Oct 14, 2013)

Thanks for the info John.  Do you have apic showing the wheels alittle closer?  From what I can tell you used a couple of bearings for each wheel.  Is there a swivel above the wheel?  Or does the wheel turn too when you level the machine?


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## Ed W (Oct 24, 2013)

johnnyc14 said:


> Hi Rex, welcome to the forum. Here's a link to the post showing how I mounted my PM32 and built a base for it.
> 
> http://www.hobby-machinist.com/showthread.php/17547-Anotrher-new-PM32PDF-mill
> 
> ...



Hi Johnny,
Great photo sequence for the installation of your mill!  What type and size of steel tube did you use to weld the base for your PM-932M?  i have one coming in a few days and want to start collecting materials for the stand.  Thanks.
Ed


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## johnnyc14 (Oct 24, 2013)

Ed W said:


> Hi Johnny,
> Great photo sequence for the installation of your mill!  What type and size of steel tube did you use to weld the base for your PM-932M?  i have one coming in a few days and want to start collecting materials for the stand.  Thanks.
> Ed



Thanks Ed, it is 2" X2" X .188" (wall thickness) steel. Have fun with you new machine.

John


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## Ed W (Nov 7, 2013)

Walt said:


> I mostly got around the problem of turning the machine on the roller tracks by simply not turning it. I added 2x6" bits of lumber under the crate bottom to allow rollers to move smoothly under the machine. It was just a matter then of jacking the machine up, sliding the 4x6" timber tracks out, and sliding new ones in at right angles to the original tracks. The PM932 cleared the door to my shop with very close to zero clearance, but I got lucky and it did move through OK.
> 
> Originally I planned to build a gantry out of 4x6" timbers and lift the PM932 up onto its base with hand winches. The more I thought it through however, the more appealing it became to rent an engine lift from the local rental store.
> View attachment 61038
> ...



Hi Walt!
I just received my PM-932 as well and am making plans to put it on the stand.  How did you get the eye bolts in the base out once the mill was resting on the base? As I understand it, the mill will bolt down to the stand where the cast iron is threaded to receive the bolt.  Sorry for not getting it but your photos were otherwise very helpful. Thanks.
Ed


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## Walt (Nov 7, 2013)

Ed W said:


> Hi Walt!
> I just received my PM-932 as well and am making plans to put it on the stand.  How did you get the eye bolts in the base out once the mill was resting on the base? As I understand it, the mill will bolt down to the stand where the cast iron is threaded to receive the bolt.  Sorry for not getting it but your photos were otherwise very helpful. Thanks.
> Ed



Hi Ed,

There are 2 sheet metal panels that screw onto the base covering rather large openings. Just remove one of them, reach up to the top of the base/bottom of the mill and remove the nuts from the eye bolts. It speaks well of your attention to detail to worry about this before you get into the project, but you can't trap the eye bolts on the machine.

I don't know how difficult it is to get a wrench on the nuts, it will pay dividends to make sure the nut-eye bolt assembly comes apart easily before committing to setting the mill on the base. Could be awkward working a ratchet blind, squatting, and not able to reach the eye bolt to prevent it from spinning.

Walt


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