935 floor base

[davidpbest]

Some good ideas here, glad I asked.

David, does the 5" gap to accommodate the forks correspond to under the casting, or do you mean you would jack the legs so they go under the steel frame? Anyway, that seems like a very smart way to get in & out on the floor without overhead equipment.

ps - Wow. That is one heck of rigging thread-the-needle job. Now I feel kind of silly worrying about how to roll mine in & out of the double wide garage door
pss - I seem to recall you had an (PM version) RF-45 & were about to commence your patented overclocking & soup-up routine like the lathe. Did you opt for this mill instead or did I miss the build?

I just needed to be able to get under the mill from the side with the pallet forks. The base casting reliefs on the side of the PM935 base are 24" wide and about 2" tall, and I needed a 3.5" gap to get under there. Once I get the floor platforms installed, and the leveling feet adjusted, I will have the necessary space to come under the machine from the side just fine. I have 83" ceiling height, so I can't go too much more since the mill itself is 77" for without the leveling platform (it's the standard pulley drive system, not the variable reeves drive version).

The PM935 replaced my Rong Fu 45 which I've had for 15 years and has served me well. My RF45 was the original from Taiwan, with 2-speed motor and power downfeed, and was purchased by a friend in Hawaii - we got that out of the shop yesterday also, and crated for shipment using the crating materials from the PM935. The forklift was the challenge, because it left only 3mm clearance coming through the door to the basement shaft entrance. We ended up having to hack the forklift, taking off the safety basket at front and turning over the forks. And it was 98 degrees here yesterday. But this wasn't my first rodeo getting heavy equipment into that basement shop: https://flic.kr/s/aHsjH1qkZP

I debated which way to go with the mill upgrade for over a year. I was tempted to get a Tormach 770M, but after using one at John Saunder's shop I wasn't convinced I could do conventional manual milling with it easily, and would thus become a slave to 3D modeling on the computer for every single thing I needed to make. I don't do much metal fab production - maybe 3-4 units of anything I make at the most. I'm really a woodworker who makes specialized accessories for woodworking equipment (like this) - not a conventional machinist shop. So I decided against a CNC mill to replace the RF45. I also have space constraints that would make a CNC machine with full enclosure pretty impractical.

The PM935 takes up almost no additional floor space compared to my RF45 on it's stand. But what it will give me is a real knee (I got so tired of cranking the head on the RF45 up/down), and power feeds on the X, Y and Z. Plus the increase in rigidity, tilt/nod head, increased Y axis travel etc. This far, I'm REALLY impressed with the quality of the PM935.

I do plan a full custom edition of this PM935, maybe not quite as elaborate as the PM1340 lathe, but similar in some respects. A new electronics package with VFD controls, auto-reverse, e-stop, coolant control, tach, ring light is already in the works, and I'm waiting on the Newall 3-axis DP700 DRO with 5um microsyn scales to arrive from the UK. I already have the Align feeders for all three axis, a Mitutoyo scale kit for the quill, and will probably order a Maxi-torque PDB next week. Stay tuned. LOL

 

[Clock work]

I've got about 8" clearance to the ceiling on mine which I intend to use about 7.5" of (no problem with rotation given my joist positioning) but let me say this about leveling screws.. Don't. They extend from the threaded holes near the top surface of the base which is a LONG skinny lever and results in significant instability. Just FYI in case you were thinking of it. I'll do it properly once my welding sucks less. I positioned my light on the ram instead of the base... quite happy. I like my VFD controller on the same arm as the DRO. I made the connections from the VFD electrical box which I mounted on the back of the mill stand to both the motor and to the mains feed extra long so I have the ability to set it on the work bench about 4' to the left of the table if I have to work on it live. Personally, I need to take a couple of hours and clean up the slots in the table as they were not uniform across their lengths. I had a wide, med and narrow slot. It wasn't the metal (mostly).. it was the coating. Good luck.

https://flic.kr/p/21yvvpu

 

[Duker]

I like David’s design and if I had a pallet jack at the time I would have built something similar. I needed mine to be mobile so I welded up a mobile base with Albion casters and leveling feet that I could lock down quickly with an impact gun. The base is very solid, makes moving the mill a breeze and I got the added benefit of a “foot rest” when using a stool for long milling operations. It also raised the height to a much more comfortable level.

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[TerryH]

I like David’s design and if I had a pallet jack at the time I would have built something similar. I needed mine to be mobile so I welded up a mobile base with Albion casters and leveling feet that I could lock down quickly with an impact gun. The base is very solid, makes moving the mill a breeze and I got the added benefit of a “foot rest” when using a stool for long milling operations. It also raised the height to a much more comfortable level.

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Nice work as usual bro. Love that base.

 

[Duker]

I like David’s design and if I had a pallet jack at the time I would have built something similar. I needed mine to be mobile so I welded up a mobile base with Albion casters and leveling feet that I could lock down quickly with an impact gun. The base is very solid, makes moving the mill a breeze and I got the added benefit of a “foot rest” when using a stool for long milling operations. It also raised the height to a much more comfortable level.

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Nice work as usual bro. Love that base.

Thanks Terry!


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[petertha]

I'm looking for the min/max table dimension in the PM manual relative to casting base & don't see it. They show the other top view dimensions with extended table XY & ram (very handy!). Anybody know?

 

[davidpbest]

Floor to top of XY table surface is 30" with the knee fully lowered, 46" with the knee fully raised. And with the knee fully raised, the gap between the spindle nose and the table is 3/4". So a typical working height with a vise is probably 42" above the floor. These assume the machine base is flat to the floor and not up on some kind of stand.

 

[davidpbest]

Brief update on the PM935 leveling feet saga. Added the aluminum riser blocks that transfer the leveling feet load down to the concrete floor below the plywood flooring yesterday, and leveled her up.

And I'll take this as "good enough" for level:

Oh, and I've decided to repaint the mill. They build nice machines in Taiwan, but the paint jobs - not so much.

 

[wrmiller]

I wish my 935 and 1340 were black, like my old Charter Oak. Loved the look, and it didn't show dirt!

 

[ashtrain]

Hi I have been lurking heavily for the past couple years; I have a 935 tv coming in a couple of weeks and am looking at whether I need a base for it.
We have a dry concrete floor basement so I have no problem with sitting it there. However I am getting the vibes that the work envelope is a little low for a 6 footer (me). I like the look of both David's and Dukers solutions. I am thinking, I should work with the machine for a while and see if more height would be desirable then take some action. Duker - do you have any specs or drawings for your moveable base? Sorry for hijacking the thread. Thanks for all the info.
talk soon
Dick w