# G0695 Mill Vibration Issues! I Need Guidance....



## Ironken

I have a brand new Grizzly G0695 knee mill. I was in the process of spindle break-in as outlined in the manual, 200rpm in each direction for 20 min and 1800rpm in each direction for 20 min. When I wound it up to 1800 I could hear and feel a strong vibration throughout the head along with some squeeking (belt slippage or bearings). I removed the drive belt and ran the motor free. At about 1500rpms the motor had a pretty high freq vibration.....not a hum but a buzz/rattle. I have a cogged Dayton belt on order to try and eliminate the belt as a secondary issue. Any thoughts would be much appreciated. I have contacted Grizzly and sent them a video of the issue. I am sorry for the rotated pic......I can't get it to rotate.


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## DoogieB

My G0678 mill is almost exactly the same as your mill with just a different motor layout.  Yours should be quiet with very little vibration even at full speed.  I did eventually replace the factory belt with a new Gates belt, but that was more because mine was a showroom demo and the belt took a nasty set from sitting around for a few years.  It still didn't make much of a difference.

Sounds like there is something wrong with either the motor or the VFD.


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## seasicksteve

Probably did this but check the pulley on the motor to be sure it is secure


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## Ironken

Thanks Doogie for the insight. I'm thinking motor too. The vibration gets way worse when the motor is powering the machine though.

Steve, I did check the motor pulley. Still a good suggestion.......kinda like with motorcycles....."turn on the gas, dummy!"


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## seasicksteve

I used to get a similar problem when servicing printing presses strange vibration several times it traced back to a loose pulley or damage key. May be an electrical issue, I wont be much help there


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## DoogieB

I managed to sneak down to the shop and shoot a little video of my G0678 mill at various speeds for a comparison with your mill.






Please be aware that I'm not a professional or even amateur at shooting videos.  Also, the mic on this camera tends to pick-up more noise than if you were actually there in person.  Anyway, hopefully this will help.


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## Ironken

Doogie, you are a good guy! Thank you. I'm creating a YooToob channel and will post a vid shortly. I will go out and compare yours to mine. This helps immensely.

Steve, anything helps. Thanks!


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## Ironken

Deleted. Replaced with next post.


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## Ironken

Here's a vid, you can hear the squeeking and vibration. You can even hear the sheet metal on the machine rattling.


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## T Bredehoft

That's just not right. I would expect an increase in volume, but not the other stuff.


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## Ironken

I agree Tom. I am suspect of the quill as well as the motor due to the different vibrations, some low freq and some high. I guess I'll see what Griz says when they get back with me. I am willing to change out a motor but I am not going to change out bearings/parts in the head as was mentioned when I was on the phone with tech support. They can send a head. I just threw over 4k down and don't wanna play machine repair man.


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## Sandia

Don't blame you Ironken. Grizzly needs to make it right.


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## Ironken

Thanks Bob.


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## tmarks11

Could be the motor or VFD.

I bought a Teco L510 VFD to put on my lathe.  It made my brand new Leeson motor jump on the workbench between 30 and 55 Hz.  Tried it on another 3 phase motor I had lying around.   Same issue.  Took a Teco JNEV off my mill, and it ran the Leeson motor smoothly.

So I sent it back and replaced it with a (more expensive) Hitachi WJ200, and the motor is smooth as silk.  Nothing against the Teco L510, others have them and like them, but the one I got was obviously messed up; oscilloscope showed it was dropping a phase.  I wasn't willing to waste time, so I upgraded my purchase.

Moral of the story is: a VFD can make your motor act like it has severe mechanical problems.  If I hadn't had the JNEV available, I would probably have shipped the motor back.  It was hard to believe that that much vibration was due to the VFD, and not a mechanical fault in the motor.

That being said, Grizzly doesn't always have a good track record with their motors.  But their CS does have a good track record of looking after customers.  Word of advice: be friendly and reasonable and they will make it all good.  Don't let your frustration over spending $4k and getting something that isn't working get the best of you.

Two more things:
1. pop off the fan cowling on the top of the motor and make sure the fan isn't loose (just takes 3 screws), and when you put it back on, make sure the end of the fan isn't touching the cowling.
2. hold your camera sideways when you take a video.  Those sideway letterbox videos are way too small.


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## Ironken

Tmarks, thanks for sharing your experience. The motor or VFD shooting craps doesn't bother me that much. Virtually just swapping easy to get to parts. As far as Grizzly c.s., I have nothing bad to say. Actually, I have had very good experiences with them with other equipment. I usually reserve getting nasty for when all else fails. As of now, I believe they will make good. I just don't intend to do a rebuild if hard parts are found to be the issue. They will need to start thinking about shipping assembles.


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## DoogieB

You have a vibration issue somewhere.  Since it rattles with the belt off, I would be surprised if it has anything to do with the spindle, quill or bearings.  

I would pull the belt sheave off the motor and observe it running.  If the motor is still vibrating, tmarks offered some great advice.


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## Ironken

tmarks11 said:


> Could be the motor or VFD.
> 
> I bought a Teco L510 VFD to put on my lathe.  It made my brand new Leeson motor jump on the workbench between 30 and 55 Hz.  Tried it on another 3 phase motor I had lying around.   Same issue.  Took a Teco JNEV off my mill, and it ran the Leeson motor smoothly.
> 
> So I sent it back and replaced it with a (more expensive) Hitachi WJ200, and the motor is smooth as silk.  Nothing against the Teco L510, others have them and like them, but the one I got was obviously messed up; oscilloscope should it was dropping a phase.  I wasn't willing to waste time, so I upgraded my purchase.
> 
> Moral of the story is: a VFD can make your motor act like it has severe mechanical problems.  If I hadn't had the JNEV available, I would probably have shipped the motor back.  It was hard to believe that that much vibration was due to the VFD, and not a mechanical fault in the motor.
> 
> That being said, Grizzly doesn't always have a good track record with their motors.  But their CS does have a good track record of looking after customers.  Word of advice: be friendly and reasonable and they will make it all good.  Don't let your frustration over spending $4k and getting something that isn't working get the best of you.
> 
> Two more things:
> 1. pop off the fan cowling on the top of the motor and make sure the fan isn't loose (just takes 3 screws), and when you put it back on, make sure the end of the fan isn't touching the cowling.
> 2. hold your camera sideways when you take a video.  Those sideway letterbox videos are way too small.



The fan shroud is a good idea, tomorrow I will pull the fan shroud and take a look. 

Yeah, my Youtube skills are poor as are my vid skills.....good advice on the camera.


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## Ironken

DoogieB said:


> You have a vibration issue somewhere.  Since it rattles with the belt off, I would be surprised if it has anything to do with the spindle, quill or bearings.
> 
> I would pull the belt sheave off the motor and observe it running.  If the motor is still vibrating, tmarks offered some great advice.



While I'm messin' with the fan, I'll pull the motor pulley and run it. Many thanks guys for the ideas. The grand scheme here....the further I can narrow this down, the more info I can give Grizzly CS possibly making both of our lives easier.


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## Ironken

Ok, I pulled the fan shroud......no fan???!!! Just the external aluminum heat sink on the motor. With the shroud off, I tried to indicate the motor shaft. I'm just now breaking into machining so my old dial indicator is a seized POS! I rotated the shaft at about 70rpms and used the old sharpie pen. Very crude but the shaft is clearly out. I'm guessing .005-.010.

Vibration still exists with the drive pulley removed.

Thanks for all of the good suggestions!


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## DoogieB

Your motor must be different because mine definitely has a plastic fan.

You aren't going to get to far in this hobby without a dial indicator.


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## tmarks11

Well looks like you might have found the culprit.  Now see if Grizzly will send you a new one.

Ohh... and go buy a new dial indicator.  Even a $15 one.  You NEED one to tram your mill.

Post a picture of your motor.  Most motors like this have a TEFC (Totally Enclosed Fan Cooled) motor... where the fan is under a cowling on the back which blows are over the outside of the motor.  Unusual to find a motor that is a Totally Enclosed Non-Ventilated (TENV) motor on a mill, which is what it seems you have, since I suspect it would overheat during extended milling, especially when running with a VFD.

EDIT: looking at your picture in the first post, that looks like a TEFC to me.  That black cowl on the top of the motor should cover the fan, and should be attached to the motor by three little screws.


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## Ironken

DoogieB said:


> Your motor must be different because mine definitely has a plastic fan.
> 
> You aren't going to get to far in this hobby without a dial indicator.



It may be different Doogie. To expand on the indicator situation. The mill is my first piece of equipment on the machining side of my toybox. I go in phases.....by that I buy the big hunks first, then the small stuff as money allows. That's how I outfitted my weld shop. The indicator will come along with tooling. But, I have a taste for top notch equip (the Grizzly being the exception.....a Bridgeport it aint) so until I stash enough to pop for Starrett, I'll hold off. I didn't wanna come off like a hack.


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## Ironken

tmarks11 said:


> Well looks like you might have found the culprit.  Now see if Grizzly will send you a new one.
> 
> Ohh... and go buy a new dial indicator.  Even a $15 one.  You NEED one to tram your mill.
> 
> Post a picture of your motor.  Most motors like this have a TEFC (Totally Enclosed Fan Cooled) motor... where the fan is under a cowling on the back which blows are over the outside of the motor.  Unusual to find a motor that is a Totally Enclosed Non-Ventilated (TENV) motor on a mill, which is what it seems you have, since I suspect it would overheat during extended milling, especially when running with a VFD.
> 
> EDIT: looking at your picture in the first post, that looks like a TEFC to me.  That black cowl on the top of the motor should cover the fan, and should be attached to the motor by three little screws.



Tmarks, I was surprised to find no fan (pic above). I literally just got a call from Grizzly. They want TIR of the shaft......so you guys win. Off to Horrible Freight I go for a cheapo DI. Thanks for helping a guy out. That applies to all of you!

EDIT: I'm a moron! My wife IS right!
I was looking at the parts diagram and there is a fan listed....what the hell?


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## DoogieB

Yeah, I took a picture of the motor on my mill:




The motors look very similar except for the mount.  I was thinking there has to be a fan, so I grabbed the manual for your mill and looked in the exploded diagram and there it was, listed as part 203-2.  You must have one of those motors that gives Grizzly a bad reputation. 

Even with the extra fins, without active cooling those motor windings probably got pretty hot during break-in and it's not your fault.  Grizzly should be sending you a new motor, TIR reading or not.  They obviously screwed-up here.


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## Ironken

I agree! I have been pretty understanding to this point but, I am just about burned out on machine diagnosis. No complaints about Grizzly yet but, damn! Lets get some parts coming. The runout at the very end of the fan end of the shaft indicated .005" runout. Is that enough to cause my problems? I don't know. I am awaiting a call back from the tech.


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## tmarks11

Yep, that looks like a TEFC to me... except with no fan.  Make sure you tell Grizzly about that, because if you end up spending an hour milling, say goodbye to the motor.

Guess I should have done what I normally do and check out the Grizzly drawings online (looks like you are missing PN203-2):



I don't know... your vibration looks worse than what 0.005" TIR would give you.  See what Grizzly says.  I would suspect that this is a rotor balancing issue (still means they owe you a new motor).


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## Ironken

I need to pass that info on to Grizzly but, I have a feeling they are going to blame the issue on the lack of a fan. As bad as the vibes are, I wouldn't be surprised if the spindle pulley (looks to have balancing holes drilled in it) has issues. Thanks for delving into this with me!


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## mksj

If you check the manual, the motor is specified as TEFC on the spec page and on the parts diagram. This is actually a bit unusual, because VFD systems often do not use a TEFC motor because of cooling issues below about 25% of base speed. TENV are designed for passive cooling, often there is a separate fan that cools the motor independent of the VFD speed. Shaft TIR of 0.005 for a Chinese motor is not unexpected, but it could also easily be a motor balance issue, sounds like sheet metal rattling. That it is missing the fan, really makes one wonder who is building these. You can also see the belt fluttering quite a bit, which could also exacerbate things. I would put on a higher quality cogged belt once you get the motor issue squared away.


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## stupoty

If it got properly hot during brake in it might have cooked the bearing grease/oil and made them run less than smothly.  You could press your ear to the motor and turn the shaft by hand listening for any grinding type noises.  (Don't have it plugged in when doing that)

Stuart


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## John Hasler

DoogieB said:


> Yeah, I took a picture of the motor on my mill:
> 
> View attachment 126519
> 
> 
> The motors look very similar except for the mount.  I was thinking there has to be a fan, so I grabbed the manual for your mill and looked in the exploded diagram and there it was, listed as part 203-2.  You must have one of those motors that gives Grizzly a bad reputation.
> 
> Even with the extra fins, without active cooling those motor windings probably got pretty hot during break-in and it's not your fault.  Grizzly should be sending you a new motor, TIR reading or not.  They obviously screwed-up here.


Looks like TENV.  Does it say that on the nameplate?  TENV stands for Totally Enclosed Non-Ventilated.  Such motors are intended to operate with no fan.


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## Ironken

mksj said:


> If you check the manual, the motor is specified as TEFC on the spec page and on the parts diagram. This is actually a bit unusual, because VFD systems often do not use a TEFC motor because of cooling issues below about 25% of base speed. TENV are designed for passive cooling, often there is a separate fan that cools the motor independent of the VFD speed. Shaft TIR of 0.005 for a Chinese motor is not unexpected, but it could also easily be a motor balance issue, sounds like sheet metal rattling. That it is missing the fan, really makes one wonder who is building these. You can also see the belt fluttering quite a bit, which could also exacerbate things. I would put on a higher quality cogged belt once you get the motor issue squared away.



I agree on the belt flutter, and was of the same mind. I installed a BX27 cogged belt with no apperciable difference. Every time I converse with Grizzly, it's two days until I can get ahold of the "high level" tech and move on to the next set of b.s. checks. I'm done! The tech was supposed to return my call yesterday and no call yet. I tried contacting him but was told he would get to me as he worked through other calls (which I understand). I told the lower level tech that my machine repair days were over, It's time to start shipping parts out and we can play pin the tail on the donkey 'til we hit the problem......


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## Ironken

John Hasler said:


> Looks like TENV.  Does it say that on the nameplate?  TENV stands for Totally Enclosed Non-Ventilated.  Such motors are intended to operate with no fan.



No nameplate on the motor or specific motor reference on the plate on the machine.


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## Ironken

stupoty said:


> If it got properly hot during brake in it might have cooked the bearing grease/oil and made them run less than smothly.  You could press your ear to the motor and turn the shaft by hand listening for any grinding type noises.  (Don't have it plugged in when doing that)
> 
> Stuart



I felt the motor during break in. No excessive temp. Motor turns smooth/freely still after break in.


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## Ironken

Update: the Grizzly tech contacted me! This guy spent over an hour on the phone with me sorting out this issue. Getting to him....not so fun.....but once he was able to call me back, he was extremely patient and sharp. The motor IS a TEFC and is supposed to have a fan. He sounded kinda irritated that a motor went out without a fan. They are shipping out a new motor today. I am pleased that we are making progress.


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## DoogieB

It's good you are making progress.  Hopefully the new motor is assembled a little better and doesn't vibrate so much.


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## Ironken

DoogieB said:


> It's good you are making progress.  Hopefully the new motor is assembled a little better and doesn't vibrate so much.



That's what I'm hoping for. I told him if its the spindle, I'm going to need a headstock. No more machine diagnostics. The tech seemed o.k. with that. Again, thanks for all of the help!


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## Ironken

Update, received the new motor WITH A FAN. Resolved the higher freq. vibration. This thing still has a bit of a rattle to it. At 900rpms, I can see the control panel slightly shaking. Called Grizzly again, two days later got a return phone call. They wanted me to have the spindle pulley balanced somewhere (what??..). I asked for a headstock swap......the tech said that was not going to happen. I can send the machine back for repair/replacement. If no issue is found, I pay shipping both ways, and I have to build a crate and pay help and rent a trailer to haul to the freight dock. Guess I'm SOL. The headstock swap would have been an easy fix and shipping would have been simple.......was that too much to ask? Just looking for someone else's take on this.


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## wrmiller

I would guess that the headstock and bed are fit to each other at time of assembly. To just ship you a 'blank' headstock and assume that everything would assemble and line up properly is a bit of a stretch IMO.


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## Ironken

wrmiller said:


> I would guess that the headstock and bed are fit to each other at time of assembly. To just ship you a 'blank' headstock and assume that everything would assemble and line up properly is a bit of a stretch IMO.



That makes good sense! Back to the drawing board.


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## DoogieB

Too bad you didn't get it completely fixed.  When I bought mine it was during the last few weeks the local Grizzly store was open so I could always take it back if it was a lemon.  Luckily for me this wasn't a problem.


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## Ironken

I got them to send all bearings, the pulley and splined sleeve for the headstock. Virtually everything that rotates except the spindle. Parts are back ordered for 60 days. Customer service is still good in my book, just kinda sour about the machine q.c. Anybody have an idea where to get a 60mm spanner socket? I'll be needing one to tear down my machine. Thanks for all of the help.


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## tmarks11

Ironken said:


> Anybody have an idea where to get a 60mm spanner socket?


Apparently on eBay:

Ebay search for 60mm socket

With the motor on the mill, but no belt installed, do you get any vibration with the motor at full speed?

Have you tried removing the belt, putting a dial test indicator on the edge of the pulley groove (where the v-belt runs), and turning the spindle by hand to see if the pulley is wobbling?


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## Ironken

tmarks11 said:


> Apparently on eBay:
> 
> Ebay search for 60mm socket
> 
> With the motor on the mill, but no belt installed, do you get any vibration with the motor at full speed?
> 
> Have you tried removing the belt, putting a dial test indicator on the edge of the pulley groove (where the v-belt runs), and turning the spindle by hand to see if the pulley is wobbling?



A 60mm socket won't work. I need a 4 pin 60mm spanner.

The motor without belt connected gets a bit of a buzz but not like the one I replaced (which was missing parts). I do not have a dial test indicator yet. As I said, my focus is on the welding side of things and this machine was the first purchase toward the machining side. I have a load of goodies coming from LMS this week. I will live with the rattle until the parts get to me.


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## tmarks11

ahh, missed that you were looking for a pin wrench.  Do you need the kind that has the pins on the face, or a hook on the end of the wrench?

Neither is cheap, although Enco has a 20% off sale with free shipping special right now which would help (codes: APRDS and APRFF):
http://www.use-enco.com/1/1/66001-jc483-proto-adjustable-face-black-oxide-spanner-wrenches-sets.html
http://www.use-enco.com/1/1/65999-jc497-proto-adjustable-pin-black-oxide-spanner-wrenches-sets.html


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## mksj

I would also try to adjust the belt tension to see how that effects the vibration. I recall in your previous video on your machine the belt was fluttering quite a bit. It could be a balance problem on the spindle pulley, or it wobbles, should be able to see the latter when it is running. After the belt, I would replace the pulley before tearing the head apart.


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## Ironken

tmarks11 said:


> ahh, missed that you were looking for a pin wrench.  Do you need the kind that has the pins on the face, or a hook on the end of the wrench?
> 
> Neither is cheap, although Enco has a 20% off sale with free shipping special right now which would help (codes: APRDS and APRFF):
> http://www.use-enco.com/1/1/66001-jc483-proto-adjustable-face-black-oxide-spanner-wrenches-sets.html
> http://www.use-enco.com/1/1/65999-jc497-proto-adjustable-pin-black-oxide-spanner-wrenches-sets.html



I need the socket style. The spanner nut sits too deep in the pulley for the wrench style.


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## Ironken

mksj said:


> I would also try to adjust the belt tension to see how that effects the vibration. I recall in your previous video on your machine the belt was fluttering quite a bit. It could be a balance problem on the spindle pulley, or it wobbles, should be able to see the latter when it is running. After the belt, I would replace the pulley before tearing the head apart.



I tried gorilla tight to loose and all points between on belt tension. Zero difference. I even tried an American made Gates BX (cogged) belt. I think your advice is solid. I plan on changing the pulley first, then the splined drive sleeve, and so on. That will allow me to see exactly which part is to blame. Grizzly told me 60 days back order. Four days later, all parts shipped......not too shabby. Grizzly CS has done well. Can't complain. Just ready to put a done stamp on this and move on. Thanks for hangin' in here with me guys!


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## tmarks11

Ironken said:


> Four days later, all parts shipped......not too shabby. Grizzly CS has done well. Can't complain. Just ready to put a done stamp on this and move on. Thanks for hangin' in here with me guys!


My bet is some tech went and stripped it off a machine in the warehouse, and they will install the parts on that machine when they arrive on the slow boat from china.  Heard that story before.  Good news for you!

Supervisor probably decided making you wait 60 days would put a crimp in their plans to sell you a lathe next month....


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## Ironken

tmarks11 said:


> My bet is some tech went and stripped it off a machine in the warehouse, and they will install the parts on that machine when they arrive on the slow boat from china.  Heard that story before.  Good news for you!
> 
> Supervisor probably decided making you wait 60 days would put a crimp in their plans to sell you a lathe next month....



I imagine thats exactly what they did. I'm pleased with that. And I did mention that I will be in the market for a lathe (which is true) and I'm not feeling so confidnt in Grizzly (also true).


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## tmarks11

Well, Grizzly's CS is good... but so is Matt's at PM.


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## Ironken

tmarks11 said:


> Well, Grizzly's CS is good... but so is Matt's at PM.



You raise a great point. I did consider P.M. but, did not know how good his support was and the quality of his equipment. You get a lot of bang for the buck with P.M. too. My parts came in yesterday, as soon as I get back home (I work on the railroad) I'm going to swap the pulley out and go from there.


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## tmarks11

Ironken said:


> I did consider P.M. but, did not know how good his support was and the quality of his equipment. You get a lot of bang for the buck with P.M. too.


Go to the PM forum and roam around.  Everyone has great things to say about Matt and his products.


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## Ironken

I swapped the pulley....still vibrated the same. Tore the whole thing down to get to the internal splined collar that the pulley drives which drives the spindle. I'm getting close to getting called for work so I will knock it out when I get home in a few days. On the bright side, this gives me a chance to properly lube and clean everything. I had to press the bearings off of the collar. The old bearings feel more smooth than the new ones. Does anybody see any problem with re-using after they have been knocked outta the headstock and pressed off of the collar. They appear to be of better quality than the new ones.


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## Ironken

Thanks for the help gentlemen. All re-assembled and runs pretty good. The splined shaft collar was not true.


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## DoogieB

Wow, glad you finally found the problem!  That was definitely a perseverance job to find the solution as the splined collar wouldn't have been the first thing I would have considered.

If I ever need to dissemble the head on my mill I know who to message.


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## mksj

Great you finally got to the offending part, a bit of a disappointment that there were two major defects (no fan in the motor and the vibration/collar) so one wonders if the machines are even tested or the level of QC. That being said, I have seen pretty major issues like this in other "new" mills at this price level. At least you had some level of service from Grizzly, but to go through all that effort and time to  get it working properly, my hat is off to you. If I where in your shoes, I would have probably had them take it back. I do think it would be helpful to send them a letter outlining these major defects, and hopefully something might change in the future.  I do think it points out that the buyer be aware, that the cheapest price is not always the best deal; service, support, parts and warranty are also major factors to consider in a purchase of this type of machinery.


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## Ironken

DoogieB said:


> Wow, glad you finally found the problem!  That was definitely a perseverance job to find the solution as the splined collar wouldn't have been the first thing I would have considered.
> 
> If I ever need to dissemble the head on my mill I know who to message.



You may message me anytime! How I ended up isolating the issue was to remove the quill and run it as is. Vibration still was present. I swapped out the pulley and the vibration persisted leaving only the sleeve or bearings which I swapped the sleeve and presto! The first motor was a P.O.S. though and brought its own problems to the mix. Thanks for the help my friend.


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## Ironken

mksj said:


> Great you finally got to the offending part, a bit of a disappointment that there were two major defects (no fan in the motor and the vibration/collar) so one wonders if the machines are even tested or the level of QC. That being said, I have seen pretty major issues like this in other "new" mills at this price level. At least you had some level of service from Grizzly, but to go through all that effort and time to  get it working properly, my hat is off to you. If I where in your shoes, I would have probably had them take it back. I do think it would be helpful to send them a letter outlining these major defects, and hopefully something might change in the future.  I do think it points out that the buyer be aware, that the cheapest price is not always the best deal; service, support, parts and warranty are also major factors to consider in a purchase of this type of machinery.



You are spot on with your cheaper isn't always better observation. I chose this mill for the size. That's the biggest machine that I could fit and move. They did offer to take it back if I crated it up, if Griz did not find an issue, I would have to pay shipping both ways. A $500 dice roll there. I think I will fire off an email to Grizzly CS outlining these issues. By the way, the new motor came with a packing slip that stated "inspect and test before shipping" when I powered it up, it made a horrible scraping sound. The cause, the fan was too low on the shaft and was scraping the sheet metal cone that goes between the fan and motor and the fan was bent. I sorted that out. My fear was if the same people that inspected the replacement motor inspected my returned mill and found no issue, I would be dropping $500 on shipping. Lesson learned......I'm going to take a breather before I buy a lathe. I am trolling Craigslist for some used iron this time.


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## DoogieB

Around here, small used lathes are much easier to find than small used mills.  When I refer to small I'm talking about ~1000 pounds.  You just need to make a shopping list of wanted features, do your research beforehand and be ready to buy when they opportunity arises.

You want a full-featured lathe with power cross-feed and a QCGB and as much tooling as you can get.  Condition is everything, if the bed is worn and the bearings are shot it's pretty much scrap.  Watch out for the $500 lathe than needs $1500 worth of parts as most times it's better to pay a bit more upfront. 

I've seen good deals go away in a few hours on CL, so you have to know what you want and be ready-to-go.


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