Opinions on Mill/Drill machine

Fish30114

Fish30114

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Jan 5, 2014
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I have been thinking about learning up on milling--don't know if I need to find a college class around somewhere or what as far as that goes--if I just wanna learn the hard school way, what is ya'll folks who know opinion about this machine to start out on: http://www.travers.com/gear-drive-milldrill-machine/p/87-115-145/
I would start out with some basic operations, like thinning down a part, milling a piece flat, and cutting various pockets in items-i.e. guards.

Any input/feedback is appreciated.
 
Can't speak to that particular mill but I know Travers is on the expensive side. Might shop a bit more like Jason suggested.
 
Precision Mathews is a good place to look. The PM-25 is supposed to be a great small mill for the money and they seem to do a better job with QC and customer service. Call or email the owner and he'll talk with you and answer your questions. Great people to do business with.
 
When you look at overall machine weight, table size, and HP, the price doesn't look bad - in fact it is cheaper than a comparable Grizzly. An 800-pound machine and a 350-pound machine are obviously different. Make sure you are comparing apples to apples.
 
i personally went with the little machine shop hi torque mini mill last year and its been great for what i use it for. ( milling guard slots, surface milling small peices ) i got mine with the power feed and the starter tool kit for about what your looking at spending. i will admit that the mills you get in the starter kit didnt perform very well and i had to buy mills from a local supplier, but the clamps and everything else work great.

https://littlemachineshop.com/3990
 
+ 1 on Precision Mathews / Quality Machine Tool. I bought a PM 932 from them a few years back that I'm happy with. Check out their website and give them a call.
 
just as a note i picked up a used "small" bridgeport (36 inch table) 1600$ dropped of at my shed (ready to run) i still use my mini mill alot and keep th bridgeport for larger projects
the mini mill is a down and dirty tool i keep in my grinding room i used it to fly cut my handles scales flat drill all my pin holes (not pivot holes anymore since i have the BP ) i dont have a drill press so that little mini gets used almost every day.
the slightly bigger mills will be a bit better is you never plan on gettign a bridgeport. now that i have 2 mills in the shop its jsut handy to ahve a quick and dirty mill andn one you can set up for now and then use
 
For 2k, if you look around, you should be able to find a decent used knee mill with a few bells and whistles. Aside the that, precision matthews is a really good option.
 
Thanks folks, I appreciate the feedback, and will definitely call Precision Matthews. I think I may still need to find a class on milling somewhere if possible.:rolleyes:
 
Evan Miner said:
i personally went with the little machine shop hi torque mini mill last year and its been great for what i use it for. ( milling guard slots, surface milling small peices ) i got mine with the power feed and the starter tool kit for about what your looking at spending. i will admit that the mills you get in the starter kit didnt perform very well and i had to buy mills from a local supplier, but the clamps and everything else work great.

https://littlemachineshop.com/3990
Click to expand...

Now that looks interesting. Looking at something like this for the next shop addition... Space is an issue or else I would get a full size used Bridgeport. Can you do ti work with it?
 
Fish30114 said:
Thanks folks, I appreciate the feedback, and will definitely call Precision Matthews. I think I may still need to find a class on milling somewhere if possible.:rolleyes:
Click to expand...

Although geared more towards running a Bridgeport style mill, if you can get copy of the AGI Milling Machine course (Darrel Holland), you'll reduce your learning curve immensely. They've also got one for running a lathe that's quite good as well. Lot's of really good theory and practical techniques laid out in a very easy to follow and understand manner.
 
It all depends on what you'll be doing with your mill, if you'll just be milling guards 95% of the time, and your budget is under $2K, I would recommend something like this:

http://grizzly.com/products/Mill-Drill-with-Stand-and-DRO/G0759?utm_campaign=zPage

(The Travers mill didn't mention what size T-Slots are on the table).

Other considerations:

Get the biggest / most practical mill you can afford for your purposes.

Bear in mind, if you may move, a big ol' heavy machine can cost up to $400+ to move

Smaller machines, especially those on stands (and can be separated) can be moved easily with a cherry picker and placed in the back of a pick up truck or minivan

Used a Sherline mini-mill for many years because I was making knives out of an apartment, but you can't mill stainless steel well with it -only brass and nickel silver.

Stepped up to a full size Jet clone of a Bridgeport, it's a good machine, but I kinda wished I went smaller. Moved a few times and had to hire a machinery mover with a gantry system to help. Cost $400-500 each time.

Another thing to consider, I really like my Kurt Vise, personally have a 6" -but wish I went smaller with a D40 4" vise instead.

My machine is large enough for making Integrals, and I made a few, but I really didn't need such a big machine as 98% of the work was for just fitting guards.

I think this would be a fine machine to start with, make a few knives, get better at it, then upgrade the machinery as funds permit. I really like the included DRO for the price, makes precision fitting of guards possible.

Bob Loveless had 3/4 sized machines, he really liked his Jet mill, which is still in use today, it's a 3 phase version of this:

http://www.jettools.com/us/en/p/jvm-836-1-step-pulley-milling-machine-115v-1ph/690036

I'd also recommend you save some funds for:

A D40 4" vise, t-slot nuts and studs for the vise, a 3/8" R8 collet, 1/8", 3/16" and 1/4" end mills

Have fun!
 
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Flatgrinder brings up a good point... make sure you save up for some tooling to get started with. It can VERY quickly exceed what you paid for the mill. That's part of the reason that getting a used machine can be a little more ideal, as often they'll AT LEAST come with powerfeeds and/or a DRO, maybe a vise, etc....

At minimum, you should get started with a vise (might as well get parallels too), a set of collets, a drill chuck, a small assortment of endmills, and a decent dial indicator for setups.
Fortunately, now days, there are MANY affordable options for home shop tooling, that are often more than adequate even for "semi-professional" use. Measuring tools like calipers, micrometers, DTIs, etc.... have gotten much better. Seems like tooling and other accessories are being held to tighter tolerances too. Grizzly, Shars, iGaging, Interstate, Enco, etc... are typically all pretty affordable, and will usually hold tolerances more than adequately for knife making.
 
I have an old version of the geared head mill you are looking at. Its a decent machine with some nice features, however, if you are interested in doing more than blade work, and do some larger milling work, 800lbs is not a heavy machine. For example, milling out 1x1x2" bolt pockets on hammer dies could take you an hour each with a 3/4" end mill because anything deeper than a .01 cut might have your mill ashakin. I finally picked up a Millrite, which is like a baby Bridgeport,
took it apart and put it back together with new seals bearings etc.. Much much much better machine.
My advise is to find a used small knee mill in excellent shape. Hopefully you can find one with a 3 axis DRO already installed as they are worth their weight in gold. Oh yeah, stick with the R8 taper as there are a lot more used tooling options for sale in that taper. Good luck!
I still have my tabletop mill. It makes for a fantastic drill press.
 
Good thread and great timing for myself. I'm tooling up to start making folders again, having grown up alongside my Grandfather doing them as a hobby. Haven't done anything since he passed away and I'm needing an outlet from the workday stress. I've been gathering things I need the past few months with space being my biggest limiting factor so I've been looking hard at the various small mills. As much as I'd like to have a Bridgeport at home it simply isn't possible for right now, so I'm planning on picking up one of the Grizzly G0704's. It appears to be capable of doing what I need it to, just not as quickly as a full-size machine would. Time isn't really an issue when I'm only looking to build a handful of knives a year and the bench-therapy is more important than profit margins.

I can definitely agree with the statements regarding what to expect with tooling costs......even if you buy one of the various "package deals" you'll still run across things you need or might like to have. $30 here, $115 there.....next thing you know you've doubled your investment.
 
I have the LMS mill and the Grizzly G0704... both are pretty good. The grizzly seems to be of much higher build quality both both are close in rigidity. I spent way more on tooling than on the mills.
 
Really appreciate all the input folks, for those who will weigh in, what are some of the tooling you will really need, and is it worth getting a starter kit with some of it from the get go?
 
Tooling often depends on exactly what you're doing, but for general stuff, I already gave my list. Are starter kits worth it? They can be... as with everything, it depends. You might save a little money, or you might be able to find everything in a particular kit on amazon or ebay a little cheaper.

Looking at Precision Matthews' "mill package", which includes a vise, collet set, and hold down set for $199.... that's about a standard price for everything they're likely to include. Hold down sets are typically about $50 to $75, collet sets will run about $50 to $75, and a 4" vise with swivel will run about $100 to $150, so $199 is a reasonable deal.
 
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