Milling Machines Again

T Blade

T Blade

Joined
Aug 25, 2003
Messages
1,466
Hello everyone, hope you all had a very Merry Christmas.

:confused: What a dilemma, the wife said I could get a milling machine for Christmas, and I’m stuck as far as which one to get.
As my budget will only allow for around $500, I’ve been looking at the Central machine model 44991 from Harbor Freight, and the Sherline model 5000.

I’m kind of put off by the Sherline as I weighs about 35 lbs., I think that is because the base is Aluminum, where the Central Machine has a cast iron base, and it weighs in at 150 lbs.

I’ve read that people have a problem with these smaller machines as the riser beam flexes when working. Is this because they are pushing the machine too hard? Are they in too much of a hurry to get the cut? I don’t know.

The machine has to be a tabletop model, and will only be used for knife making purposes; so all work done on it will be small.

Do any of you guys have an opinion of either of these machines?



I’ve just reviewed threads concerning what I’m looking for and J. Higgins mentioned the Hormier machines, I checked out model # 03989, until tomorrow I can get it for $ 179.99, is this machine as good or better than the other 2?



Larry T



Member of NECKA & NCCA
 
Hi Larry! :D

The Harbor Freight, Grizzly, Micro Mark, and Homier mills are all the same, but with subtle differences. The Harbor Freight mill #44991, is the one to get because it has an R8 spindle taper. The R8 taper will allow you easy access to all the nice collets and other accessories the big boys use. I have read reviews on this mill, and its the preferred version over all the others. You can even buy digital readouts, and power feeds for these!

The Homier mill/drill you mentioned: #03989, looks pretty good, but in reality it is really a drill press with a cross-slide on it. It might make a decent drill press for engine-turning or something, but in the end it is merely a boat anchor. Sorry... only my opinion. :footinmou Besides, I think because of the weight, you'd be spending almost as much to ship it...

One more note on the HF mill...

My knifemaker buddy, Jay Boynton, bought the Grizzly mill. He's very happy with it. Pretty much all he does is mill slots for guards. It does not have the R8 spindle, however. Go for the HF, Beave. ;)
 
Have a look at this one.

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/Displayitem.taf?itemnumber=42827


If you'll remember, I started a thread on this subject a few weeks back and have yet to buy one either! Now; what about this one? Would that not be a better choice? aside from price? And for those of you who have ordered from HF; what will shipping cost? I clicked on that info and if I'm reading it right, they only want like, $9.00 to ship this??? Surly that's not right?

regards, mitch

oops! a quick note: I notice that the one in the link above is 700+lbs.!! .... never mind....
 
Beaver: Paul Sabin has the 44991 and he likes it. As you know I have the next one down,. Like Higgy said the one that I have is okay for slotting guards and other small thing. If I had to do it again I would get the 44991. ;)
 
anvilring said:
Have a look at this one.

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/Displayitem.taf?itemnumber=42827


If you'll remember, I started a thread on this subject a few weeks back and have yet to buy one either! Now; what about this one? Would that not be a better choice? aside from price? And for those of you who have ordered from HF; what will shipping cost? I clicked on that info and if I'm reading it right, they only want like, $9.00 to ship this??? Surly that's not right?

regards, mitch

oops! a quick note: I notice that the one in the link above is 700+lbs.!! .... never mind....
Click to expand...

That does look like a beefier machine, Mitch. The price for a mill/drill that size isn't too bad, either. I have one similar to that, and I'm honestly considering getting a better machine. The mill/drills are limited. There is no substitute for a good knee-mill machine, i.e. a Bridgeport. For the price of that mill/drill in HF, you could probably find yourself a dandy older Bridgeport - maybe a candidate for refurbishing, but certainly worthy of anything a knifemaker can throw at it.
 
I have the HF 44991, and it's been a pretty good machine. I love it as my drill press because it is more precise than my other one. This milling machine is pretty much the same as the one Grizzly sells for the same price.

I've been doing a lot of reading about this mill over the last couple of weeks, and it looks like there are things that I can do to get much more out of it. One thing that is suggested is that when you first get it you break it down and clean it good. I never did this, but I'm planning on doing so.

Check out this link for a lot of good info about these machines. It's amazing how some people are modifying these things. Even making them CNC. Anyway, here is the link:
http://www.mini-lathe.com/Mini_mill/Main/mini-mill.htm

Hope this helps. -chris

__________________
Chris Crawford Knives

 
is space! That's an odd problem for a single guy with a huge house, out buildings and 3.5 acres of land out'na middle of nowhere but true none the less. My inside (read 'air conditioned') shop is only maybe... 15x20?? hell I've never measured it but it's FULL of STUFF!! All my grinders, 3 of'em, leather works (seperated by a door'n wall) everything. I've got to have something versatile and small. So would this be about the best for size out there??


regards, mitch
 
anvilring said:
is space! That's an odd problem for a single guy with a huge house, out buildings and 3.5 acres of land out'na middle of nowhere but true none the less. My inside (read 'air conditioned') shop is only maybe... 15x20?? hell I've never measured it but it's FULL of STUFF!! All my grinders, 3 of'em, leather works (seperated by a door'n wall) everything. I've got to have something versatile and small. So would this be about the best for size out there??


regards, mitch
Click to expand...

Space is always a problem. No matter how much you got, you always need more. My shop is 15x24. Its fairly spacious for me, but I'm an anal-retentive clean freak.
 
Thanks for the input guys. Chris thanks for the link to mini-mill, I'm sure I'll be dropping into that site often. IG and Higgy, you guys made up my mind on which machine to get, if anything goes wrong, I'll know who to blame. :grumpy: :D

My new HF milling machine #44991 is on the way. Now all I gotta do is learn how to use it, right IG? :D

Larry T

Member of NECKA & NCCA
 
Hi guys its me ..have posted in a while..here we go..i bought the big harbor freight mill, lost all the friends who helped me unload it..(weighs 600 lbs)..next morning it was leaking oil like crazy..out the sightglass and around the spindle..so i got my brothers(only ones who were still speaking to me) and we took it back,traded it for the 44991, weighs 150 lbs..still have brothers..heres the hard part..good luck finding a vise to fit on the teeny weeny table..i let someone talk me into getting a drill press vice..ha too much slack..now im so frustrated that i want to donate my knifemaking equipment to good will and go into basketweaving..if you find a good 3 in mill machine vise..please let me know where to get one..
 
I have this Homier. Homier 700# Mill My mill is red and I think they all are.
They have a 10% discount till. 31st, Tomorrow. They have local sales in your area and you can save shipping but have to pay sales tax. If you register on homier you can go to your account and see where the sales are and when. They used to email you when sales would be in your area but I haven't got any emails in a couple months. There may have not been any sales though. There was a sale near here last Christmas, that is when I bought mine
Stay away from the $199 mill/drills.
 
swede2207 said:
Hi guys its me ..have posted in a while..here we go..i bought the big harbor freight mill, lost all the friends who helped me unload it..(weighs 600 lbs)..next morning it was leaking oil like crazy..out the sightglass and around the spindle..so i got my brothers(only ones who were still speaking to me) and we took it back,traded it for the 44991, weighs 150 lbs..still have brothers..heres the hard part..good luck finding a vise to fit on the teeny weeny table..i let someone talk me into getting a drill press vice..ha too much slack..now im so frustrated that i want to donate my knifemaking equipment to good will and go into basketweaving..if you find a good 3 in mill machine vise..please let me know where to get one..
Click to expand...

Hey Swede, check into the site that Chris posted. They have some suggestions on which vises are best. There are cheap precision vises out there that do a fantastic job. I think they even sell them on that site. My buddy Jay bought two and gave me one. It's still in the box, but I'm thinking of using it today, actually. :D
 
Swede,
I have the Grizzly G9002 2-5/8" Baby Milling Vise, and I've been quite satisfied with it. The price is $50.
G9002.jpg


T Blade,
Check out the Little Machine Shop's website. They have a lot of accessories and products for these mills. I've just ordered a couple of DVDs from them to learn how to use my mini-mill more effectively. You may also want to pick up a Mini Mill Starter Kit. I don't have this set, but I plan on purchasing it when I come up with some more cash. (I guess I had better get to making knives.)
1262.jpg


Hope this helps. -chris

__________________
Chris Crawford Knives

 
Anyone tried out the shoptask mill/lathe? Shoptask.com

At a 1000 pounds it's overkill for knives, but as soon as I see what i can do with it, I know I will be making a car or something.

The 44991 is a great tool with a stiff column. I would buy one if they sold them up here.

This guy has a neat site on the 3-1 HF tool: http://bambam.gmu.edu/shop/index.html

I think a better way to move a small 600 pound object is with an engine crane or something similar
 
Well, the mini-mill will be at my cellar door when I get home from work tonight :D . I called my Brother yesterday and he will be available to help me muscle the machine into my basement where it will be set up.

I have a table for it, which belonged to my Grand Father, geez, that work bench has got to be at least 50 years old, but it is one sturdy son-of-a-bi**h.
Now I've got to get some tools to go along with it. I do have a machine vise which I think will fit on the bed of the mill, but I certainly will get a smaller version, as my existing vise is rather large and when it was donated to me, my idea for its use would be the drill press (which was also donated).

The drill press is an antique Black & Decker with a matching press stand. The 1/2" drive drill Type B, is mounted to Model 60 bench drill stand, this is a very sturdy setup and fairly accurate for my uses.

http://groups.msn.com/BladeBlacksmithing/shoebox.msnw?action=ShowPhoto&PhotoID=43

In the picture you can also see the machine vise.

Larry T

Member of NECKA & NCCA
 
Beaver: Do not forget I got the 20% discount from MSC, that is on good till 1/28/05 to use and it is a one shot deal. So you and GrassHoppa got to get your acts together so I can send my order in. I will be placing it on 1/27/05. ;)
 
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