Mini mill

That looks pretty sweet. Like you mentioned a larger machine would be better, but that one seems to be acceptable for basic operations. Advertised to be the biggest and most powerful in it's class. For light work it should perform quite well.
 
I have had one for years and it does pretty well and would do what you want just fine. The little machine shop is great to deal with. They are about 45 minutes away from me and I have been to their warehouse. They have EVERYTHING you will ever need for a mini mill.

That new mill you are looking at some nice improvements over the original mini mill.
 
Thanks, that's good feedback.
I could probably pick-up a full size Bridgeport at an auction for the same price, but I'm limited on space. I think this one has plenty of travel...DRO would be nice.
Thanks again guys.
Jason
 
I have a space issue as well and so the mini mill is the only option for me :).

Now as for DRO I years ago I had a nice one that used the scales connected to a read out. I had this set up

Xyz-axis-digital-electronic-readout-display-scale-dro-provided_image.jpg

It worked fine but over time the connections to the scales would become loose and no matter what I did the would always vibrate loose at the worse times. Also moisture and dust take their toll on them.

When I went to replace the scales on the DRO I found out it was cheaper to buy these from Grizzly and they work well. Battery life is not great but other then that they do a good job for a lot less then I bought my original DRO for. You will need to make a mount for them but they are easy to install and work nicely.

They make 2 sizes and can be cut down to fit as needed.

t23012.jpg

http://www.grizzly.com/products/12-Digital-Scale-with-Remote-Readout-Inch-Metric-Fraction/T23012
 
I shopped for a bigger mill and got the harbor freight version. The difference is that one's column doesn't tilt. Which isn't likely to matter or might even be a plus.
I added the belt drive conversion kit to mine. I believe that one comes as a belt drive.
The table has backlash. You will have to account for that every time you use it
I haven't even used mine yet. Just adding a couple things I've learned.
 
I have a pretty similar machine, and have used it for about 2 years. Its ok for the tasks you describe. I tigten the lock screws on the table and spindle as much as possible to avoid chatter and make sure to go slow feeds and use sharp tools. I´d prefer a bigger machine if I could find/afford it, but if you are limited on space, it will work for light tasks.
I would make sure that spare parts are available. On mine, the gears turned out to be made of plastic and broke when I abused the machine a little too much. Surprise; NO SPARE PARTS AVAILABLE. You can imagine how much fun I had turning, cutting and hand filing a double gear wheel:barf: Still works though.

Brian
 
Gody said:
I have a pretty similar machine, and have used it for about 2 years. Its ok for the tasks you describe. I tigten the lock screws on the table and spindle as much as possible to avoid chatter and make sure to go slow feeds and use sharp tools. I´d prefer a bigger machine if I could find/afford it, but if you are limited on space, it will work for light tasks.
I would make sure that spare parts are available. On mine, the gears turned out to be made of plastic and broke when I abused the machine a little too much. Surprise; NO SPARE PARTS AVAILABLE. You can imagine how much fun I had turning, cutting and hand filing a double gear wheel:barf: Still works though.

Brian
Click to expand...

I changed mine to a belt drive long ago and never looked back. It is probably the #1 upgrade needed for the Harbor Freight Mini Mill.

When your gears broke did you contact little machine shop? They sell every single nut and bolt, gear and knick knack for the asian machines.


Here are some of the stuff I make on mine on a regular basis

wokgard15silver.jpg


NewWokbutt03.jpg


TalonPSOWB3.jpg


talontunestrigger004.jpg

StraponWokbutwithrail003.jpg


And they are mostly for this type of high powered air rifle

bluetalon.jpg



The key of using the mini mill is tight tables and slow cuts with sharp cutters. People make some amazing things with these small machines. And a lot of knifemakers do use the mini mill for the kind of work we need done.
 
AVigil said:
I changed mine to a belt drive long ago and never looked back. It is probably the #1 upgrade needed for the Harbor Freight Mini Mill.

When your gears broke did you contact little machine shop? They sell every single nut and bolt, gear and knick knack for the asian machines.


Here are some of the stuff I make on mine on a regular basis

wokgard15silver.jpg


NewWokbutt03.jpg


TalonPSOWB3.jpg


talontunestrigger004.jpg

StraponWokbutwithrail003.jpg


And they are mostly for this type of high powered air rifle

bluetalon.jpg



The key of using the mini mill is tight tables and slow cuts with sharp cutters. People make some amazing things with these small machines. And a lot of knifemakers do use the mini mill for the kind of work we need done.
Click to expand...

I wish I´d known about Little machine shop. I searched the net like crazy without finding anything for this particular machine and the retailer I bought it from, had just sold his business and was less than enthusiastic about it (meaning he did´nt bother). Finally I got real pissed of and made my own. The belt drive option is interesting though, I´ll keep that in mind as well as the digital readouts. Those would really come in handy.
You are making some neat stuff btw. Thanks for showing.

Brian
 
Jbs. I'm not familiar with the little machine shop. But I have a smithy bx-288. Its comparable to the one your considering. They don't make that specific model but they make a little better one. (I forget the model #) anyways. For what I use mine for I like it. Your a Machinist so I don't want to insult your intellegence but it needs to be said about the cost of tooling and such. I noticed that tlms has a r8 spindle so that's nice. But if your just brousing the internet you may want to check out smithy! Good luck!
 
Huh. 176 lbs is, coincidentally, the same as I weigh. Are you putting this inside a house or apartment?
 
AVigil said:
I changed mine to a belt drive long ago and never looked back. It is probably the #1 upgrade needed for the Harbor Freight Mini Mill.

When your gears broke did you contact little machine shop? They sell every single nut and bolt, gear and knick knack for the asian machines.


Here are some of the stuff I make on mine on a regular basis

wokgard15silver.jpg


NewWokbutt03.jpg


TalonPSOWB3.jpg


talontunestrigger004.jpg

StraponWokbutwithrail003.jpg


And they are mostly for this type of high powered air rifle

bluetalon.jpg



The key of using the mini mill is tight tables and slow cuts with sharp cutters. People make some amazing things with these small machines. And a lot of knifemakers do use the mini mill for the kind of work we need done.
Click to expand...

I need to come hang out with you!
 
These are interesting little machines. I see they come with a solid and tilting column. The tilting model is cheaper?? Not a good feature or?? I have no mill knowledge.
 
jll346 said:
These are interesting little machines. I see they come with a solid and tilting column. The tilting model is cheaper?? Not a good feature or?? I have no mill knowledge.
Click to expand...

A a mini mill that does not tilt is more rigid.

Rigidity is a big plus.
 
Nathan the Machinist said:
Huh. 176 lbs is, coincidentally, the same as I weigh. Are you putting this inside a house or apartment?
Click to expand...
Yeah, I know :jerkit: it's a far cry from the FADAL 60/30 and HAAS machining centers I use at work, but I just need something on the bench to slot guards, mill fullers, step off holes and ream folders......you know light work.:D
 
JBS TOOLMAKER said:
Yeah, I know :jerkit: it's a far cry from the FADAL 60/30 and HAAS machining centers I use at work, but I just need something on the bench to slot guards, mill fullers, step off holes and ream folders......you know light work.:D
Click to expand...

It has those funny little hand crank things and I don't see a controller anywhere. How do you use one of those? Is there an RS232 port in the back? :D
 
JBS TOOLMAKER said:
I could probably make a holster for it and carry it around..... It might look nice on the vanity.
Click to expand...


I was thinking maybe mount it in a lathe to use as live tooling or perhaps hang it from the head of a bed mill as a right angle attachment. (I'm halfway serious here)

You could drag it inside and cut chips while in bed watching TV. Perhaps use it in the kitchen to beat eggs and mill out the centers of doughnuts too.
 
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