i am buying a new mill and new lathe, i have been looking at knee, table top, drill press, small ones big ones. what kind is the best? i will be using it for small to big jobs in automotive restoration. i narrowed down the lathe to a 12" or 14" leaning towards a 12" i think the 14" will be too big. the mill i am struck just because i have very limited experiance with them. the question is what is the good and bad on these mills
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what machine should i get
- Thread starter garryp
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- Oct 6, 2010
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Garry,
Here are my experience and thoughts, however you have the right to disagree.
I started with a bench top mill/drill and found it too small and traded up to a Bridgeport type/size knee mill. I have a floor model drill press but often use the knee mill to drill with. Nice long table and a very rigid machine.
I now have a 10" and 14 1/2" lathe and expect to end up with only the 14 1/2", getting rid of the 10". The 14 1/2" requires not that much more floor space and will handle larger parts than the 10". Both can do smaller parts. I just have to get all the repairs to the 14 1/2" lathe done and gather the right tooling. Currently the 14 1/2" has no follower or steady rest and has some busted gears. You can make your own gears using the lathe, mill, and an index head and the correct cutter.
Bigger can be better if you have the space, especially if your are doing automobiles. Look at the Southbend forum sites for a lot of references about using a lathe for some of the auto repairs.
Benny
Here are my experience and thoughts, however you have the right to disagree.
I started with a bench top mill/drill and found it too small and traded up to a Bridgeport type/size knee mill. I have a floor model drill press but often use the knee mill to drill with. Nice long table and a very rigid machine.
I now have a 10" and 14 1/2" lathe and expect to end up with only the 14 1/2", getting rid of the 10". The 14 1/2" requires not that much more floor space and will handle larger parts than the 10". Both can do smaller parts. I just have to get all the repairs to the 14 1/2" lathe done and gather the right tooling. Currently the 14 1/2" has no follower or steady rest and has some busted gears. You can make your own gears using the lathe, mill, and an index head and the correct cutter.
Bigger can be better if you have the space, especially if your are doing automobiles. Look at the Southbend forum sites for a lot of references about using a lathe for some of the auto repairs.
Benny
T
Tom Griffin
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Hi Gary,
I do a lot of auto restoration type work and use a Bridgeport clone made by DoAll. The 9"x49" table is probably larger than I normally need but it does occasionally come in handy. I wouldn't want to try and get by with anything smaller than a Bridgeport type mill for the type of work I do.
I don't know what's available in your area, but obviously the Bridgeport brand would be a good choice along with XLO, Index and Tree. I also don't know if you meant "new" as in factory new or just new to you, but a basic Bridgeport starts at around $15K these days, where used ones start at around $1500. I would recommend staying away from the Chinese machines because of their poor quality. The money you would spend on a new Chinese import would buy an excellent, much better quality used machine. If you do buy a used one, be sure to get as much tooling with it as possible because that can quickly reach cost as much as the machine if you have to buy it separate.
Oh, and definitely go for the 14" lathe if you have the room. You can make smaller parts on a big lathe but it doesn't work very well the other way around.
Tom
I do a lot of auto restoration type work and use a Bridgeport clone made by DoAll. The 9"x49" table is probably larger than I normally need but it does occasionally come in handy. I wouldn't want to try and get by with anything smaller than a Bridgeport type mill for the type of work I do.
I don't know what's available in your area, but obviously the Bridgeport brand would be a good choice along with XLO, Index and Tree. I also don't know if you meant "new" as in factory new or just new to you, but a basic Bridgeport starts at around $15K these days, where used ones start at around $1500. I would recommend staying away from the Chinese machines because of their poor quality. The money you would spend on a new Chinese import would buy an excellent, much better quality used machine. If you do buy a used one, be sure to get as much tooling with it as possible because that can quickly reach cost as much as the machine if you have to buy it separate.
Oh, and definitely go for the 14" lathe if you have the room. You can make smaller parts on a big lathe but it doesn't work very well the other way around.
Tom
thanks for the input. up here its rare to find a used machine, i've been looking for 3 years we are pritty cheap up here. the only machines "canadian made" is KING the others are chinese no US machines, import costs are high. the only limitation is hight the room is only 7ft hi. i did find a knee mill "MET-TECH" that will fit nicely for 5k
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Tom Griffin
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Gary,
Sounds like you need to go on a road trip.
There is a ton of stuff available in Detroit.
Tom
Sounds like you need to go on a road trip.
There is a ton of stuff available in Detroit.
Tom
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Tom Griffin
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I used mine to make custom accessory mounting brackets, to machine the gasket surfaces on an intake manifold, to make sheet metal forming blocks, modifications to a stud girdle, etc....
Tom
Tom
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Remember that floor space is really hard to put a price on...
Unless floor space is not an issue...
Unless floor space is not an issue...
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garryp
7 ft is still enough room to get a full size mill in there. My mill is 7 ft tall, but is the Vari speed head. Most will be shorter than this. Mine @ 7 ft tall includes the power draw bar assembly as well. If your going to purchase a mill, Id go as big and heavy as possible. I was in the race car fabrication biz for over 25 yrs, and with automotive stuff, you would be surprized at what you clamp down on that mill table. If your doing heads, then the bigger the table the better. Ive used mine several times in heads to bore the ID of the bowls , resurfacing, angle milling. So size will matter.
With a low ceiling, if you ever had to remove the draw bar for what ever reason, you can allways tilt the head to do so. But really, how often will that happen? A 9X42 or 9X48 would be better.
Just my thoughts
Paul
7 ft is still enough room to get a full size mill in there. My mill is 7 ft tall, but is the Vari speed head. Most will be shorter than this. Mine @ 7 ft tall includes the power draw bar assembly as well. If your going to purchase a mill, Id go as big and heavy as possible. I was in the race car fabrication biz for over 25 yrs, and with automotive stuff, you would be surprized at what you clamp down on that mill table. If your doing heads, then the bigger the table the better. Ive used mine several times in heads to bore the ID of the bowls , resurfacing, angle milling. So size will matter.
With a low ceiling, if you ever had to remove the draw bar for what ever reason, you can allways tilt the head to do so. But really, how often will that happen? A 9X42 or 9X48 would be better.
Just my thoughts
Paul