New Lathe or Mill?

[Wizard69]

I see from the specs that the Big Dog Mini Mill is about 50 pounds less than the Grizzly 0704 and over $400 less. This seems to be a nice step up from the X2 minimill at just a few hundred more. I don't think I've seen any other vendors carry a mill in this size and price range.

Cheers,
Phil

I will have to look into that mill.

I noticed a lot of focus on weight in this thread. One option that can be considered is disassembly of a mill to allow moving it into a shop. Considering the need to clean up these mills it isn't as bad of an idea as some may think. However if one is to do such a disassembly they should have the correct tooling to aid in reassembly. The nice thing about a mill is that the weight is spread ou a bit better than on a lathe. With a lathe you could disassemble it and still have a massive chunk of iron on your hands.

 

[Nerdz]

Or build a new lathe. The reality is a real, functional mill opens up all sorts of possibilities. If you have a variety of interests then a largish mill would make more sense that one targeted at model makers.

Speaking of that, I have all the gingery series books. Love those things! lots of information to be had in them. It has given me the idea of trying to make my own mill using updated technology. At one point I was pricing out all the steel for the frame. Im sure I could make one..if I had the time.

Its funny in a sort of a way, a lathe can make another lathe (or so Ive heard), but a Mill and and a lathe can make More mills and Lathes, and Somehow be more accurate than the machine it was made on.

 

[ShopShoe]

"One thing that really gets me worked up about a mill, is that I can make gears on it! Something about gears in general just fascinate me."

If you really want to make gears, especially larger than micro-sized gears, you will need plenty of Z clearance and table space and motion for the setup. In my opinion, a mini-mill would limit you quite a bit.

Perhaps those who make gears on small mills can chime in here.

--ShopShoe

 

[Wizard69]

Speaking of that, I have all the gingery series books.

Yep I have those books also.

Love those things! lots of information to be had in them. It has given me the idea of trying to make my own mill using updated technology. At one point I was pricing out all the steel for the frame. Im sure I could make one..if I had the time.

Time is a problem! Huge problem if you actually work for a living.

I've actually thought about doing a Gingery Mill like machine due to the unique abilities of the design and the fact that you can't buy anything like that mill these days.

Its funny in a sort of a way, a lathe can make another lathe (or so Ive heard), but a Mill and and a lathe can make More mills and Lathes, and Somehow be more accurate than the machine it was made on.

In many cases accuracy comes down to hand finishing the machine. Scraping the parts in for that perfect fit.

You think about it though this isn't a surprise, machinery in general started out as rather crude machines that got better with time. New machines have always been built upon what came before. It is sort of the same with engines, some of the original steam engines where extremely crude compared to today's steam turbines.

 

[Nerdz]

You think about it though this isn't a surprise, machinery in general started out as rather crude machines that got better with time. New machines have always been built upon what came before. It is sort of the same with engines, some of the original steam engines where extremely crude compared to today's steam turbines.

But they worked, and got the job done. They lead to more [complex] machines being made, and an industrial and social revolution. Its simple yet the heat source is universal. Its one of the things that now fascinates me about steam.

"One thing that really gets me worked up about a mill, is that I can make gears on it! Something about gears in general just fascinate me."

If you really want to make gears, especially larger than micro-sized gears, you will need plenty of Z clearance and table space and motion for the setup. In my opinion, a mini-mill would limit you quite a bit.

Perhaps those who make gears on small mills can chime in here.

--ShopShoe

The G0704 has 13'' of clearance from the spindle to the table. My lathe (at the moment) can handle 3.15'' of stock with the 4 jaw chuck. I dont think I'll be making gears bigger than that. Would leave me with 9-10'' of room for tooling. I got that book on gear making, I cant remember what the title is, but everyone recommended it (Everyone being my research on gear making ).

 

[Philjoe5]

Perhaps those who make gears on small mills can chime in here.

I started making spur gears a few months ago when I started building my first IC engine. I made them on an X3 mill using both a rotary table (mine) and a dividing head (a friends). Both gave good results once I got my act together.

I could have used the G0704 mill to make the gears. There's adequate "z" axis as long as your dividing head or rotary table distance from spindle to table is not more than about 3.5". Above that I can't say.

Now, there are gears and there are gears. The one's I made were Metric Module 1 gears which translate to a diametrical pitch of 25.4. I would say making steel gears in a smaller diametrical pitch on an X3 or G0704 would be a challenge. If anyone has done it I'd like to hear about their experience.

Turns out the gears used on my Grizzly 10 x 22 lathe are module 1. I suspect that's the pitch used on some of the smaller lathes like the 9 x 20.

Cheers,
Phil

 

[goldstar31]

The 920 lathe -or mine which was an Axminster 9180 has No1 module gears because I converted it to a better slow speed arrangement with Module 1 gears. It had a nylon- easily strippable 80 tooth gear.

This strips on Sundays and Bank holidays- as one expects- together with thin drive belts.

Actually, I've done more with the 'classic' 20DP gears as I bought and restored a basket case Myford which had run on mahogany dust in the gear box. However, I have a full set of 20's and a few 24's and 16's. I made set of 20's for the first Stent with a rack.

However moving to smaller gears there is a full explanation which the late Rex Tingey( same age as me) wrote up for the little Unimat which has no gears as bought. For those who want the words and music, they are on the Yahoogroups Unimat group under 'files'. Frankly, this is a little book that is well worth the reading as it contains notes on dividing heads and ball handles-- and a lot more besides.

Somewhere is a strange article on how to make gear cutters in Model Engineer. It was the work and ingenuity of the late Martin Cleeve and he made his own 20 DP gears with a double ended lathe tool which cut the gears in what was obviously two cuts. Again, the years have rolled on, I dumped the articles when the late Jim Early and I were threatened by the new owners of Model Engineer.

It is worth unearthing especially for those who want a rather different slant on machining on a small lathe. With similarly little money, perhaps?

Merry Christmas

Norman