Looking for my perfect size hobby mill....

[Mr Mike]

Mike,

Once you have a mill you will find all kinds of cool stuff to make and repair. If you are already talking a starter mill that you can sell later. You should skip the little one and just buy a knee mill now, something like a PM-935TS 3 phase and add a VFD.....

Come on man you know you want one!!!!

Sir... You are a bad influence on me. At one point I we were discussing the 935 baby Bridgeport we called it.

Space is my limitation, My Cabinet saw, Jointer, Vortex dust collector, Mig Welder & gas, Air compressor, Plasma cutter, In coming Lathe, Motor cycle, Rack Shelving. routers, jackhammers, Clamps galore and more share a two car garage... yes I should have bought a bigger garage with smaller house. I'm stuck with what I got for now...

I have one wall I can clear that's 53" W-Max, so max table travel has to fit, and a 120v plug on that wall - lathe, welder, cabinet saw and plasma cutter share the 220v plugs on other side of room.

So, what do you suggest, the quill travel on a mill, is it a big deal from 3" to 4.75" - the M-935TS has 5" of travel.

 

[Aukai]

My original, and the replacement, as said, just skip 1 step.

 

[Mr Mike]

If the only reason to buy now is to make the T-Nut, why not just have one of us make it for you?

I hate asking for favors and I am probably trying to come up with an excuse to get one...

 

[Mr Mike]

My original, and the replacement, as said, just skip 1 step.

That's Hella funny, Man look at that mill she is gorgeous, If you need to store the G0755 at my place that would be great

 

[Aaron_W]

Sir... You are a bad influence on me.

You will find a lot of that here. Most of us are quite happy to help others spend money.

 

[Mr Mike]

Well I think ill visit this thread end of year and get a mill ordered... Note to self - couple things to consider when choosing. 7X27 this is a good hobby size to start with.

Amazon has questionable less expensive model 3/4Hp $1600.00, Good luck on parts - Grizzly has G0759 727 W-stand & DRO 400 Lbs $2854.00 shipped part available 1Hp Quill travel 2".

PM-728VT 1Hp + stand + DRO + Shipping + tax Current price $5600.00, Belt driven 475Lbs W/ base. 75-4000 RPM. Has one shot oiler and is Top of the Line for precision & probable longer life but less low end torque and smaller Quill, it is 100Lbs lighter than the PM-727V.

PM-727V 1.5Hp + stand + DRO + Shipping + tax Current price $4400.00, Gear driven 575Lbs W/base. 40-3000 RPM. says req 20A service but has 9.5 amp motor W/Nema 5-15R plug ask what the Start and FL Amps are..? Has larger quill & more low end torque so more forgiving with steel than PM-728VT same 3" travel. Has a dial on down feed travel handle.

Also ask about an official Z motor - not generic one linked on page.

Pros - PM-728VT Slow and Precise one off machine.
Pros - PM-727V More aggressive production shop machine.

Left off research with above info... Thanks, see me later...

 

[matthewsx]

Time is your friend here. Keep looking, arrange your space, have cash ready and know when you see the right machine.

You‘ll be fine….

John

 

[Ben17484]

I’ve been having the exact same issue in choosing the right hobby mill. My criteria was: has to be able to come apart to a certain extent to fit down the pathway at the side of my house, had to be movable by just me and an engine hoist (I don’t like the idea at the moment of having machinery that needs special equipment to move if I need to) and I wanted something I wouldn’t outgrow too quickly. I don’t have specific projects in mind, I just want to learn, so I don’t really have a size that I need.

I settled on the UK equivalent of a PM30 mill with DRO already fitted. I bought it second hand but it’s practically unused. It’ll be through next week so I’ll add an update once I’ve used it a few times if that’d help you?


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[Mr Mike]

I’ve been having the exact same issue in choosing the right hobby mill. My criteria was: has to be able to come apart to a certain extent to fit down the pathway at the side of my house, had to be movable by just me and an engine hoist (I don’t like the idea at the moment of having machinery that needs special equipment to move if I need to) and I wanted something I wouldn’t outgrow too quickly. I don’t have specific projects in mind, I just want to learn, so I don’t really have a size that I need.

I settled on the UK equivalent of a PM30 mill with DRO already fitted. I bought it second hand but it’s practically unused. It’ll be through next week so I’ll add an update once I’ve used it a few times if that’d help you?


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Good for you... your lucky and bit the bullet, at least now you have one coming.
I'm still mulling this over but I think the PM-728TV may be the one for me..

 

[verbotenwhisky]

Sir... You are a bad influence on me. At one point I we were discussing the 935 baby Bridgeport we called it.

Space is my limitation, My Cabinet saw, Jointer, Vortex dust collector, Mig Welder & gas, Air compressor, Plasma cutter, In coming Lathe, Motor cycle, Rack Shelving. routers, jackhammers, Clamps galore and more share a two car garage... yes I should have bought a bigger garage with smaller house. I'm stuck with what I got for now...

I have one wall I can clear that's 53" W-Max, so max table travel has to fit, and a 120v plug on that wall - lathe, welder, cabinet saw and plasma cutter share the 220v plugs on other side of room.

So, what do you suggest, the quill travel on a mill, is it a big deal from 3" to 4.75" - the M-935TS has 5" of travel.

I have a PM940V-PDF and i like it, Its a good machine.... 5" quill travel, 22" max Clear between deck and Quill when head is all the way up, 26" movement in X-Axis and 12" movement in the Y-Axis.