First mill/drill help

[verbotenwhisky]

Me LIKE...

That's an absolute beauty.

I looked at the smaller PM 739V? but I did not have a lathe at that time, so saved some money and settled for the very basic HF. "Bondo and all" and believe me they were not shy about using it to cover casting flaws.
Been a bit but I did watch Blondihacks vid on her Mill upgrade. Her "what lathe to buy" video was also very helpful and helped me pick a good used unit.

OP last post
"i get that but how is that better than a square column bench mill where you just crank up the head?"

Looking back, the site says Yesterday at 9:53 AM

Hope we did not chase him off either, but he asked questions directly comparing a knee style versus a movable head style square column.

All I wanted to point out is that the HF model knee is actually LIMITED in z axis travel having had it limit certain operations for me. The square columns seem to be more flexible with more range of distance available in a given size.

Can be had in bench type models or larger floor bench sizes. Knee models generally are not able to be used on a standard height work bench.

trying to answer the OP's question ... " I am not sure it is."

I don't think anyone was in a pissing match, I just thought we got machines model numbers mixed up and wanted to clear up what type of machine that can Mill and drill was being referenced for the description.

I did not mean to be confrontational and don't think Verbotenwiskey did either.
Apparently You see it as a waste of bandwith.

The OP has questions concerning differences.
The posters here have and use the machines they relayed experience or tips on including you. Imo no harm No foul

Agreed...

 

[dabear3428]

Me LIKE...

That's an absolute beauty.

I looked at the smaller PM 739V? but I did not have a lathe at that time, so saved some money and settled for the very basic HF. "Bondo and all" and believe me they were not shy about using it to cover casting flaws.
Been a bit but I did watch Blondihacks vid on her Mill upgrade. Her "what lathe to buy" video was also very helpful and helped me pick a good used unit.

OP last post
"i get that but how is that better than a square column bench mill where you just crank up the head?"

Looking back, the site says Yesterday at 9:53 AM

Hope we did not chase him off either, but he asked questions directly comparing a knee style versus a movable head style square column.

All I wanted to point out is that the HF model knee is actually LIMITED in z axis travel having had it limit certain operations for me. The square columns seem to be more flexible with more range of distance available in a given size.

Can be had in bench type models or larger floor bench sizes. Knee models generally are not able to be used on a standard height work bench.

trying to answer the OP's question ... " I am not sure it is."

I don't think anyone was in a pissing match, I just thought we got machines model numbers mixed up and wanted to clear up what type of machine that can Mill and drill was being referenced for the description.

I did not mean to be confrontational and don't think Verbotenwhisky did either.
Apparently You see it as a waste of bandwidth.

The OP has questions concerning differences.
The posters here have and use the machines they relayed experience or tips on including you. Imo no harm No foul

that was me but i'm not the OP and i think the information is spot on the pissing and moaning not withstanding.

 

[drcrea]

Thanks for the input everyone. Great information for a beginner like myself. Like drinking from a fire hose
I'm starting to lean towards the PM 728VT. It's a little bit bigger/heavier than what I was originally considering, but I think I can move some stuff around and just make it fit. I've been watching a lot of youtube's on it's capabilities and its drawbacks. I know it's not perfect but it seems like it maybe a good fit for my needs. Price is a bit higher than my original thinking so I'll have to wait a bit while I save up.

What started me leaning towards this machine is the overwhelming positive comments about the PM machines. One comment I recall reading was "you buy the company not the machine" in reference to the good customer service provided by PM. I think this comment was from a few years ago so I hope that still holds true today.

 

[dabear3428]

Thanks for the input everyone. Great information for a beginner like myself. Like drinking from a fire hose
I'm starting to lean towards the PM 728VT. It's a little bit bigger/heavier than what I was originally considering, but I think I can move some stuff around and just make it fit. I've been watching a lot of youtube's on it's capabilities and its drawbacks. I know it's not perfect but it seems like it maybe a good fit for my needs. Price is a bit higher than my original thinking so I'll have to wait a bit while I save up.

What started me leaning towards this machine is the overwhelming positive comments about the PM machines. One comment I recall reading was "you buy the company not the machine" in reference to the good customer service provided by PM. I think this comment was from a few years ago so I hope that still holds true today.

hard to go wrong with PM, good luck

 

[matthewsx]

Thanks for the input everyone. Great information for a beginner like myself. Like drinking from a fire hose
I'm starting to lean towards the PM 728VT. It's a little bit bigger/heavier than what I was originally considering, but I think I can move some stuff around and just make it fit. I've been watching a lot of youtube's on it's capabilities and its drawbacks. I know it's not perfect but it seems like it maybe a good fit for my needs. Price is a bit higher than my original thinking so I'll have to wait a bit while I save up.

What started me leaning towards this machine is the overwhelming positive comments about the PM machines. One comment I recall reading was "you buy the company not the machine" in reference to the good customer service provided by PM. I think this comment was from a few years ago so I hope that still holds true today.

Saving up and making room for what you really want is a smart move.

Also, keep your eye out for potential used machines. I know it can seem intimidating for your first purchase but we’re here to help if something comes up and you have questions.

John

 

[dabear3428]

Saving up and making room for what you really want is a smart move.

Also, keep your eye out for potential used machines. I know it can seem intimidating for your first purchase but we’re here to help if something comes up and you have questions.

John

In my experience if a good used deal comes up they do not last long enough to get a lot of response here at least for small to mid size Asian mills

 

[matthewsx]

In my experience if a good used deal comes up they do not last long enough to get a lot of response here at least for small to mid size Asian mills

Depends, we have members all over the world. Responses can come very quickly but best bet is to have cash stashed away ready to go, and have some ideal of how to evaluate the machine in question. There are many sources both here and on YouTube that can help folks learn what to look for. If you have to buy new, Precision Matthews is a forum sponsor and by all reports stands by their products.

Simple truth though is, there's always the one that got away.

Don't worry about it, many times fairly priced machine tools will wait until the right buyer comes along. My RF30 was posted several weeks before I called the guy and he told me that nobody else serious had called. I had seen the Samson knee mill I own now listed when the previous owner bought it but I couldn't justify the price. They used the machine for a year or so and listed it again on Craigslist. I thought it was too expensive so didn't call for several weeks, finally I decided to call on it and went to take a look. Turns out he didn't get any interest at a hundred more than he paid so I offered ~$500 less than asking and he accepted.

Moral of the story is patience is your friend here.

Sure, you'll see plenty of stories on here about great deals people got, stick around long enough and you're sure to qualify for the coveted
emoji. But, if you know what you're looking for and buy at a fair price used equipment can often be a bargain especially if tooling is thrown in with the deal.

John

 

[verbotenwhisky]

In my experience if a good used deal comes up they do not last long enough to get a lot of response here at least for small to mid size Asian mills

After rehabbing 2 machines 1 in particular I, personally, would not counsel a person with zero experience to buy a used machine.

 

[matthewsx]

After rehabbing 2 machines 1 in particular I, personally, would not counsel a person with zero experience to buy a used machine.

All of us come to the hobby with our own experience. Some are master journeyman machinists, some are rank beginners. I believe most have some mechanical background and can probably take on some degree of challenge if desired.

Used does not necessarily mean used up. I've bought several machines that were pretty much ready to go, and a few that took more effort than they were worth. If one can see and hear the machine run, and if the owner can demonstrate it's function a used machine could be even better than a new one that needs the bugs worked out.

All depends on the machine.

John

 

[verbotenwhisky]

All of us come to the hobby with our own experience. Some are master journeyman machinists, some are rank beginners. I believe most have some mechanical background and can probably take on some degree of challenge if desired.

Used does not necessarily mean used up. I've bought several machines that were pretty much ready to go, and a few that took more effort than they were worth. If one can see and hear the machine run, and if the owner can demonstrate it's function a used machine could be even better than a new one that needs the bugs worked out.

All depends on the machine.

John

I made a statement that I feel very comfortable with, this isn't a rant, but rather an airing of my thoughts because this continues to come up and be argued about.

All does not depend upon the machine, I have seen people who might have enjoyed a particular hobby brought on by the shear effort required to rehab junk before they could even start enjoying the hobby; because they were not prepared nor interested in the can of worms they had opened to save a little money. In my life I have rebuilt tractors, tinkered with engines to the point of mixing parts and custom machining, built custom cars from the ground up and rebuilt an old large mill which looked great when I bought it and turned into a train wreck in short order and that is my short list. It depends upon the Person first then it depended upon that person's desires and patients and based upon those the right machine can make or break their interest in the hobby. I had access to and used mills on many occasions before buying my first, I do not assume others have had the same opportunities, I assume they are new to the hobby and have a lot of basic stuff they need to and want to learn before tackling a machine rehab at any level; I assume they are buying a machine to learn machining, not to learn how to work on the machine.....