Opinions on Grizzly G0705 mill

Thanks Butcher. I have always heard that you will spend just as much on tooling as you will on your mill but some how forgot to factor tooling into my budget. So really, thanks a lot for your advice!
 
Hey plas62, that is a sweet mill! Thanks for the heads up. I was trying to keep it under 1500 but ya know how that goes. haha.
 
Allot of good advise so far....I started with a Sherline, then went to a round column mill, then to a square column mill, all these were bench top mills that didn't have a knee so the head had to be moved to get more clearance under the quill....The round column mill was a pain in the tail, as far as raising the head and was not very accurate....the square column was better and more accurate...I went to a 42" knee mill and found heaven....it was so nice having a knee that was easy to move the table up/down, was more accurate and one BIG thing is it was very sturdy which showed up in a better finish in the cuts it made, I now have a 54" knee mill and with the extra weight and even better stability I am making better parts than ever....I know everyone dosent have the space for a true Bridgeport type knee mill but if you do and can find the $$ you will be glad you did....better to have a machine over rated for your work than under rated...
 
I have a mill the same as the G0704 (sometimes called the BF20L) and would recommend it without hesitation. I've had a few other machines (Sieg X3 & X4 equivalents) and the fit and finish on the G0704 (and it's BF20L brothers) is much better. I think it's overall a more capable machine as well.

Last night I was swinging a Tormach flycutter through a large bar of aluminum with no worries. 0.050" depth of cut, 2-1/2" flycutter diameter, 600RPM and about 50-60 IPM feedrate. This is all with a stock machine, and it just sang through it... I could probably push it harder but I don't want to bust tooling for no reason.

I've also had good luck fly-cutting mild steels, but chatter can definitely be a problem there.

I'm mentioning fly-cutting in particular as it's a fairly heavy interrupted cut that tends to be a real workout for all parts of the machine. Many Sieg X3 & even X4 machines have blown parts of their drivetrains when doing interrupted fly-cuts.
 
Willie71: I agree that the square column version is better. King Canada also do a version of that machine (KC20VS) and I believe that would be a better bet, as I think their customer service is a bit better than busy bee. If you're in Toronto give Atlas Machinery a call, they have one of the King machines in their showroom and they stand behind the stuff they sell.
 
Willie71 said:
I am looking at a mill and may pull the trigger next month. Which of these two would work better for knife guards etc, but I also do bicycle frame miters, possible axles etc. Smaller pieces mostly, but a bit bigger than knife only.

http://www.busybeetools.com/products/MILLING-DRILLING-MACHINE-1.5HP-CX-SERIES.html

http://www.busybeetools.com/products/MILLING-MACHINE-WITH-DIGITAL-READOUT.html
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Sorry, just saw you're in Alberta.

It's worth noting too that Grizzly ship to Canada now. Their G0704 is priced so much better that even with freight/duty it will likely come out to a better deal, and they give you a stand which neither King nor Craftex do.
 
Thanks for the info Aaron. So is the main difference between round column and square just the ease of set up?
I found this video for the other guys reading this that want to get a visual of the size of the G0704.
[video=youtube_share;Q7VapBF7d6w]http://youtu.be/Q7VapBF7d6w[/video]
 
It depends what you'll be machining, and where you're living.

I used a Sherline mini-mill for years (working just brass and nickel silver), but when I moved to stainless the little fella had to go. Broke and burned a lot of cutters and end mills. Now I use a full size Jet Bridgeport clone -figured out how to get the bastard to cut D2 almost like aluminum.

Also used to live in an apartment, and one of the bedrooms was my knife shop! Can't fit a fullsize Bridgeport in there ...

I know a lot of guys who started using the mill you listed, but the main concern when making folders is being able to square up the table to the head or vice versa. If you can't drill/ machine a hole at perfect right angles to the material, the blade won't be centered when closed. Just my 2 cents.
 
I have plenty of room so a full size mill would be great. It is more about my budget at the moment as to why I am looking at the 704 and other mills around the same price. My main use will be to make folders. I have never owned or used a mill so ease of use would be a concern.
 
Shipping is in the $300.00 range. I'll look at all the options when it comes time to purchase. The cx601 has a 1.5hp motor and a tilting head. It's closer in spec to the $1800.00 mill from grizzly, but with a bigger motor. After shipping it would be about the same price. I will have to look into the king offerings a bit more closely.
 
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If you guys are shopping for milling machines, but haven't had the chance to use one before, then I highly recommend 2 books before you go ahead and buy a milling machine:

1) Machine Shop Essentials
2) Machine Shop Trade Secrets

Knowing how to properly tram a mill, calculate feedrates, speeds, etc... are a huge advantage in getting good results with any mill. If you know this stuff right from the start I think it will help influence the buying process, and make getting started an easier experience.

As others may have said, make sure you budget between $500-$1000 for starter tooling. LittleMachineShop.com is a great resource for tooling for small milling machines and lathes.
 
aarongough said:
If you guys are shopping for milling machines, but haven't had the chance to use one before, then I highly recommend 2 books before you go ahead and buy a milling machine:

1) Machine Shop Essentials
2) Machine Shop Trade Secrets

Knowing how to properly tram a mill, calculate feedrates, speeds, etc... are a huge advantage in getting good results with any mill. If you know this stuff right from the start I think it will help influence the buying process, and make getting started an easier experience.

As others may have said, make sure you budget between $500-$1000 for starter tooling. LittleMachineShop.com is a great resource for tooling for small milling machines and lathes.
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Plus these videos too

http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/s...and-Video-Link-thread?p=12512254#post12512254

It loooks like those videos have dosapeared from yt

If you search on this, you can find downloads or places to rent or buy



AGI-Milling Machine-Darrell Holland-6DVD
 
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flatblackcapo said:
So is the main difference between round column and square just the ease of set up?
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As it's been stated, tool change is the biggest problem since if you need more room than quill travel you will need to move the head and re-tram everything which believe me you don't want to do. The only time that as been a problem for me is at the beginning when I first tried using the included drill chuck to hold drill bits. I switched to collets to hold everything and haven't moved the head since.
 
flatgrinder said:
It depends what you'll be machining, and where you're living.

I used a Sherline mini-mill for years (working just brass and nickel silver), but when I moved to stainless the little fella had to go. Broke and burned a lot of cutters and end mills. Now I use a full size Jet Bridgeport clone -figured out how to get the bastard to cut D2 almost like aluminum.
Click to expand...
I've been using a Sherline mill since 1998, cutting damascus, tool steel and titanium. The thing is tinny, but I've never had any problems. Never burnt up or broke any cutters. But found solid carbide is the way to go.

The Little Machine Shop mill I have now is a giant compared to the Sherline, but I still use the little one for some stuff.
 
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