Sieg x3

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firebird

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HI

An opportunity has arisen whereby I can purchase a Sieg x3 mill (new) at a very advantageous price. Too good to miss really. While I can manage what I am doing on my x1 mill at the moment I envisage larger projects in the future. I am aware that there is going to be a substantial increase in the price of these machines later this year. Has any one got one of these machines? Are they as good as they look? Any advise will be most welcome.

Cheers
 
firebird:

I have the SX3 from Grizzly. Their model 0619. I think it's a great little machine. Of course I'm a novice at metal working and spend most of my time making copies of all the neat tools that you guys post on the board here.

I have a Smithy 1220 XL lathe with the mill attachment but got the SX3 because it made it easier to do a milling operation without having to setup and break down the milling setup if I want to do something on the lathe.

I would recommend getting the powerfeed with the SX3. It saves a lot of cranking on my old arms. ;D

Cheers

Andy
 
I've had an X3 (Grizzly G0463) for 16 mos. and absolutely love it It's a very capable machine. Mine came without the gas strut on the Z-axis and I fabricated a compound pulley/counterweight system to ease the load from the head when cranking Z up & down. Unlike the stock configuration, the Z can now be run up & down very easily. Here's a pic

counterweightsm.jpg


Hopefully the one you're looking at has as an R8 spindle? R8 tooling is plentiful and cheap.
 
Hi

I am looking at #3 morse taper as I already have a lot of #2 morse taper tooling that could be used with the purchase of a very cheap adapter sleeve. R8 doe's appear to be the way to go but buying the X3 mill is stretching the budget already without having to buy all new tooling. I think it has the gas strut fitted already.

Cheers
 
Firebird
I currently own one of these mills in R-8 configuration. I was also tooled out for 3MT, but I made the switch for less than I figured on. I bought a set of R-8 /ER collets and a R-8 arbor for my boring head on Ebay (see seller 800watt) and I was right back in operation. I've already come to like the R-8 for its ease of use. One gentle tap on the draw bar and it's free of the spindle, unlike the tightly wedged MT3 taper. I had the same concerns as you before making the move, but I'm sold on the R-8 now.

I can certainly say that I've not regretted buying the X3 mill. It is proving to have been an excellent move.

Steve

 
I had a mini mill with a mt #2. You'll kick yourself if you don't change to the R-8.

Wes
 
Hi

Iv'e just looked on a tool suppliers web site and R8/2mt adapters are available so I might take your advice and go for r8.

Cheers
 
Firebird
I thought long and hard about going with the same adapter. It was pointed out to me that although I'd have the ease of the R-8, that bloody MT shank is going to be tough to get out of the sleeve once it's in there....LOL. Make sure the sleeve has a slot so you use a wedge can get the MT back out, once its in there.

I'll probably wind up getting one so I can use my old collet set along with the new one, but for now I'm happy as a clam at high tide with the switch. Since my lathe is an MT set up, the old tooling is not going to waste.

Steve
 
I've had a Grizzly X3 (Model G0463) for 6 months and use it a lot. It was an upgrade from a minimill. I like it very much and it is a capable machine. The only downside to mine is the R8 spindle. It has been reported elsewhere so it is not a rare thing. Their specifications for it are on the tight side, so you may find a lot of R8 tooling will not fit :(. Some say it's the registration pin sticking too far out - just grind it down. There's more to it because I nearly removed mine and I still can't get my face mill (also from Grizzly) or any of a number of R8 collets into that spindle. I took a chance and bought an inexpensive ER-32 collet chuck and luckily it fit. So my collet problem is solved.

Grizzly was kind enough to send me a replacement spindle but it actually is more restrictive so it will need some machining to make it work. It is a minor flaw to an otherwise grand machine in its class.

Cheers,
Phil
 
this is off the question but what do you mean price increase i am going to purchase a sieg lathe will there be an increase in price on them as well?
 
John Stevenson in the U.K. does a lot of consulting/advising and has contacts with Sieg. He has reported on another forum that the price of Chinese castings is going up considerably in the near future and therefore the price of machine tools will go up in kind.
 
Yep - I have one too. I have had it for about 1 year. R8 spindle. I have only started using it alot about 2 months ago. I can't think of anything bad to say about it. Except that it is somewhat addictive and causes me to spend lots of money on more tools that I need to make more tools .... to make more tools to make a simple little thing that I started think about 5 years ago which costs about 200 dollars.
 
Hi

Well Iv'e been and gone and done it. Ordered the x3 and have decided to take the advice of you guys and go for R8. On the subject of the price increase I first heard the rumours last October at the Midland model engineering exhibition in Warwick. Most of the machine suppliers (a lot of them come from the same factory just different colours) were saying then that price increases were inevitable and some would be considerable. I'm sure that everyone is aware that the price of metals has rocketed recently and as these machines are mostly made from metal I suppose it follows that they are going to cost more. I wasn't really looking to buy a new machine at this moment in time, just happened to be in the right place at the right time, but an increase of just 10% on a machine of this cost would have taken it out of my budget. Anyway its ordered now so must get on with building a new bench for it to sit on and start looking through some wishing books to see what gadgets and gizmos that I simply must have. I'm going to the National model engineering exhibition at Harrogate in about 4 weeeks (May 9th 10th & 11th) where I'm sure I will find all sorts of must haves.LOL.

Cheers
 
Firebird
Now you need to purchase a case of beer. Nope...I'm not recommending that you begin drinking when the machine arrives, but you'll need something to attract help to get that heavy beast up on the bench. It's 500 pounds in the crate and 435 pounds out of it.

Seriously, I'm pretty sure you'll not regret the upgrade. I know I surely haven't. Congrats on the new purchase. Now... about that power feed and the new DRO's...LOL

Steve
 
Hi

Got the new mill. Excellent. It took 3 of us to get it up onto its new bench. A case of lift first, beer later. Going to the big Harrogate model engineering show in 2 weeks. Now where did I put that wish list.

Cheers
 
Firebird,
If you are going to Harrogate try to make it Saturday, Friday is heaving and it's terrible trying to get served.

Last year they had 12,000 thru the door just on the Friday alone. [ no not a typo ]

It's that busy no one has time for you, Saturday isn't so bad and Sunday is more laid back but you stand the chance of people being sold out.

I'll be helping out on either the main ArcEuroTrade stand or on the new CNC stand opposite, second hall against the door.

.
 
John,

Managed to get the Saturday off, hope to see you there.

Bogs
 
Hi John

We will be going on Saturday (same as last year). We have been to shows on Sunday before and your right, low stock and packing up by 4o/c.

PS

I got the mill from Arc


Cheers
 

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