New lathe/mill

[fradish]

Have you looked at the dropros.com site? They carry a few Weiss lathes and milling machines.
I would think Dro Pros would be a more reputable way to buy than some place which asks you
to wire money to a foreign country...

http://www.dropros.com/DRO_PROS_Weiss_Lathes.htm
http://www.dropros.com/DRO_PROS_Weiss_Mills.htm

For what it is worth, I have a PM727 mill and a PM1228 lathe and
am happy with both of them. However one of the deciding factors
for me was that PM is ~1/2 hour drive away from me and I was
able to pick them up myself. Matt seems like a really good guy
to work with and he has always gotten back to me quickly, though
I try not to pester him.

I also recently bought a set of 1/2" shank carbide insert tools from him
and was again very happy with what I got.

 

[fradish]

One thing I noticed about the Dro Pros lathes is that they are cheaper mainly
(I think) because they do more of an ala cart thing where the base package
doesn't include as much as a PM1030v (for example). If you wanted to get
a 4 jaw and a faceplate and a steady rest and a follower rest those would all
be extra on the Dro Pros site. This could be a good thing if you really don't
need all of those or it might be more expensive than buying the PM1030v if
you wanted it all.

I should also point out that the WBL290F on the DroPros site (11x29) has
a D1-4 spindle. This may not be that important to you, but I really like the
flexibility it gives you. It is much easier to buy a 3rd party D1-4 chuck or
attachment than it is to have to machine a back plate each time for a non-standard
chuck. That being said, I just looked and one of the options listed as an accessory
for all 3 lathes are backing plates, so maybe that wouldn't be that much of a hassle
after all. You would still probably need to machine the boss that the chuck
mounts up to as well as drill and counter bore the holes for mounting a plain back chuck.

 

[gregc]

Hi Guys
I have been busy so progress on the objective has been slow.

My parent live in Springfield and I thought I'd go to the Grizzly showroom and see. Thought is would be much nicer to see and touch in person as it seemed all the 10x22 lathes were almost the same except for the accessories that are included. I placed an order for an G0752. However afterward I looked again and noticed that it wasn't exactly american/imperial. Looks like the lead screws were 4 turns/cm not 10 TPI with dials that were calibrated in inches. Close except it would have been very annoying to for 0.100" to be one full turn plus ~0.005". I would have preferred the whole machine be built for metric rather than the hermaphrodite it was. I canceled the order before I left the store.

I also looked at a couple used SB machines but around here they seem to be too high wrt to buying new IMHO. I did not want to have to drive to Ohio from Texas on a hunch that the lathe was worth the drive (It would have had to be a great deal to justify the long drive).

So after these experiences and some thought I am going to buy a PM machine in a couple days. Debating between PM1127 and PM1228. I am currently leaning toward PM1127 but would appreciate any information that may help decide. PM explicitly stated that their machines were in true inches. I guess that was the final selling point for me. Had a nice chat with Mat and appreciated his candor. One feature that many of the UK lathes have is the lead screw cover. None of the machines here seem to have this. This would seem to be a worthwhile expenditure to keep the lathe in good condition. I am thinking that this will probably be a enhancement shortly after delivery.

Thanks everyone for the feedback. Now on for a mill decision.
I was wondering what you guys thought of the mini knee mills.

The only mills I have used were bridgeport's so I was thinking it would be more comfortable with my experience.

Otherwise it is between the PM30 and PM932 leaning toward the PM30 mostly for the VFD feature.

 

[Dave Paine]

Thanks everyone for the feedback. Now on for a mill decision.
I was wondering what you guys thought of the mini knee mills.

I have a Grizzly G1008 made in 1999 which looks very similar to the one in the picture. I purchased this from the original owner a few months ago.



I make tools and jigs for wood work and wood turning, so not critical dimensions. This is serving my needs.

I will eventually replace the motor with a 3 phase motor and VFD. Changing the belt is a hassle due to insufficient movement on the motor bracket so the belt is not slack enough to remove from the pulley and put on another pulley without a lot of effort, and sometimes skinned knuckles. The original owner added a bare bones DRO which makes using the mill so much easier.

No nod function, so relying on the factor to have made the spindle 90 deg to the table in the Y axis. Tramming the head is nudge and fudge, no screws or bolts to tweak the tramm adjustment. Just takes more time.

 

[fradish]

The main advantages of the PM1228 are the D1-4 spindle and the 2HP motor. I think the PM1127 comes with a 1HP motor and
much more tooling (like a 4 jaw chuck, faceplate, live center, drill chuck & Wedge QCTP & holders).

I went with the PM1228 because of the D1-4 spindle. I figured it would be simpler for me to buy D1-4 chucks
in the future than buying plain back chucks and having to machine backplates to fit the PM1127's non-standard
spindle. I would have to say though, I think the PM1127 is probably a better value, especially if you are just starting
out and don't have the extra tooling that comes with the PM1127 that you don't get with the PM1228.

Update: According to gregc and the new PM website (see his post below) the PM1127 now also has a D1-4 spindle.
The only reasons I could see choosing the PM1228 over the PM1127 would be if you really
wanted the 2HP motor or needed the very small increases in bed length and swing. For those
minor increases, you are missing out on a fair amount of tooling that the PM1127 comes with.
If I had to do it over again I would have chosen the PM1127. Not that there is anything
wrong with my PM1228, I like it a lot, I just think the PM1127 comes with enough extra tooling that I think it would have been a better value to me.

Also, possibly to make up for the additional cost of the D1-4 spindle, it looks like the
live center and drill chuck are no longer included in the PM1127 package and the price
is $100 more than it was on the "machine tools online" website, but I still think this is
a great deal.

 

[gregc]

One thing that seems odd is that the PM1228 has a slightly larger swing, longer bed, slightly larger motor but slightly less weight than the PM1127.
Now they both have the D1-4 spindles.

The PM1127 has the QCTP and the 1228 does not. I have a QCTP and asked if I could get a refund on that or store credit for other accessories. No was the answer.
The other added tooling on the PM1127 would be helpful.

 

[fradish]

Are you sure the PM1127 has a D1-4 spindle? The webpage on machine tools online
still says direct mount. If the PM1127 had a D1-4 when I was looking, I would have
bought that instead.

 

[gregc]

Are you sure the PM1127 has a D1-4 spindle? The webpage on machine tools online
still says direct mount. If the PM1127 had a D1-4 when I was looking, I would have
bought that instead.

Did you look at the new site?

http://www.precisionmatthews.com/shop/pm-1127vf-lb/

Matt must have been upgrading the site as it was down when I almost bought the grizzly thinking he closed shop for some reason




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[fradish]

No, I was still looking at the machine tools online site. In that case I think the PM1127
is definitely the way to go. Thanks for the link to the new site!

 

[fradish]

Gregc, when you mentioned that the PM1228 weighs less than the PM1127, I think some of that is the extra tooling. If you look
at the PM1127 manual, they describe the machine weight as 210 kgs (462 lbs). If you look in the PM1228 manual, they list the machine
weight as 215 kgs. The PM1228 without accessories is a little heavier, but probably not enough to matter. The overall shipping weight is more for
the PM1127 because you get more tooling.

I don't think you need me to sell you on the PM1127 any more than I already have, but
another plus is that the forward/reverse feed selector is next to the QCGB levers. On the
PM1228 you need to open up the cover, loosen a bolt and move a lever (sort of how my old SouthBend 9C does it).