Is this mill a good deal?

W

Whoever Wherever

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Nov 17, 2006
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I have been looking at mills to replace my drill press and to start machining. This is in my local craigslist and I wanted to get input from someone who knows more about machining. It would probably be overkill till I learn to use it but it seems like alot of machine for the money from what I have seen around. Any input would be appreciated.

http://spokane.craigslist.org/tls/827394207.html
 
If you have none now. buy it.

The bad side that i see - the column is round not square.

When changing setup from one to the next ie short jobber drill to longer reamer-
if the quill travel is too small and you need to move the head up- you loosen screws and you lose any setup you had

a good buy - DRO would be so nice to have

Ask them why they decide to get rid of it with so little time on it ???
 
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That appears to be a round column machine and I don't see if it is R8 spindle or not.

It is more than adequate for most knifemaker's needs, it appears to be in cherry condition and the DRO is a nice thing to have, so it is probably worth the money. That said, I've seen heavier square columns machines and small knee mills in good used condition go for similar.

You do not want a round column machine for serious machining, so it depends on your future expectations. That thing would slots guards very nicely and I think it is probably worth what they are asking.
 
That seems like an excellent price... Although I lucked up and got a very nice old Bridgeport locally for a grand. That doesnt happen too often, but being near Spokane its not impossible. Seems like you would be saving at least $600 on that, and more if you dont have to ship it.
 
That's the same one I have, except mine has the Enco paint job and not the Grizzly green ;)

I agree with what has been said... well maybe not the crooked peeing part ;)

For reference, I paid about 1200 brand new for mine with x-axis power feed but withOUT DRO (about 8 years ago).

I often would like a big knee mill... but for most general knifemaking stuff, this machine will do what you want. Mine has an R8 collet system, so I'm assuming this does too... that's nice to have.

The DRO would be really nice.

While it's not a big, heavy Bridgeport and the round column can be a PITA... it looks to be a really nice machine for the money.
 
I say its a good deal. The DRO is worth most of the $900. It will be really handy in the knife shop but wont replace a knee model.
 
I have that or a very similar Grizzly mill and I love it. If I had it do do over I would get a dovetail column though. It does have R8 taper. I got a set of quick change collets which is way faster than the tool bar. I would love the DRO. It beats having dial indicators suck all over the place. Major pain in the .ss
 
Hey Rocketman, you S*(k
I'm jealous!
I've got that mill's slightly smaller brother without the DROs, paid 900 for it new. It's not hugely rigid, but if you tighten the gibs and use small tools you can do pretty precise work with it once you understand it's limitations (if you can help it do not ever do climbing cuts, work slowly)

-Page
 
Thanks for the input. I need a drill press asap, so I am very tempted. I could wait to find a more heavily used mill of more weight/quality but who knows how long the wait would be. Would it be possible to machine the cuts for a frame lock out of Ti with this machine? That would be the heaviest job I think I would ever need it to do. I am leaning towards picking it up tomorrow but I know if I do buy it I'll see a bridgeport next week. Hehe.
 
I have the same mill from Enco. Had it about 4 years. Once you learn to relocate the quill after raising or lowering it, you can do nearly anything that a knee mill will do, just a little slower. With the DRO, accuracy should be great as long as you don't have to change the height. I use mine for close tolerance gun work as well as knives. Have not had any problems.
Chip Kunkle
 
I baught the same one,more or less for having a rough tough drill press.i could'nt live without it now :thumbup: it'll do everything ya need.
 
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