[used] machine tool dealers in the north east?

[ttrikalin]

I will be looking for a knee mill; not a huge thing mind you. Not immediately, sometime in the next year perhaps...

I know only of Brother's Machinery Exchange in MA... Been there once, almost a year ago, nice place. Have heard very good words.

Yet I would like to know if there are other like places in the MA area and in nearby states. A google search leaves me uncertain... I do get some places that specialize on huge and very expensive machinery... But they would not carry smaller machines... and I would hate to annoy them in vain...

Any pointers or thoughts welcome...

take care,
tom in MA

 

[Entropy455]

Most dealers charge dealer prices – if you know what I mean.

I would check Craigslist, and also the State Auctions. You will find more reasonable prices.

The main issue is transportation and rigging. I’ve seen some pretty good deals out there, however often times it’s “you load – and you transport”.

Smaller mills can be moved with an engine crane, and transported via pickup truck. However a pickup truck’s bed is pretty high and engine cranes only go so high. An equipment trailer is better suited.

Things get pretty expensive when you rent forklifts, and/or pay for equipment moving services. A 2000 pound mill is not an easy move with an engine crane and a pickup truck. . . .

 

[Tin Falcon]

Dealers buy and sell what they find. they haul it to there warehouse and sell it at a profit. Brothers has a good rep check them out.
I have seen all size stuff at my local dealer in NJ . While they do not have yard sale or widow has no clue of value pricing I think most dealers try to price failry . They have to eat and they have overhead to cover.
tin

 

[ttrikalin]

all these comments appreciated -- not trying to rip anyone off... including meself...

 

[Entropy455]

You know how this works. If you purchase at a dealer, you’re going to pay top-dollar. If you purchase where the dealers purchase, you’re going to pay a lot less.

Example: a few weeks ago I saw a Cincinnati Milacron milling machine sell at the DRMO (Government Surplus Auction, at Joint Base Lewis McCord).

It’s a vertical mill, weighing about 15,500 pounds. It was purchased new by the US Navy for $109,000 dollars back in 1978. The machine is fully functional. It was being sold because a new CNC Mill replaced it.

The final auction sale price was 4,200 dollars. This milling machine will typically fetch about 25,000 dollars at a machinery dealer. It is highly likely that the machine was purchased with the intention of reselling for profit – which is pretty common at the DRMO. I was tempted to purchase it myself, but the 20 horsepower, 440-volt, 3-phase spindle motor would’ve been cost prohibitive for me to replace. (My shop equipment is only powered by a 10 horsepower 240-volt, 3-phase rotary phase converter). Rigging services and delivery to my shop would’ve been quite expensive also, as this machine is well beyond the capacity of both my forklift, and my equipment trailer.

I did purchase my 13” Clausing Lathe at the gov-auction for 600 dollars. The same machine in similar condition normally fetches between 4,000 and 5,000 dollars at the dealers.

I also purchased my large mill at the gov-auction for 1300 dollars, which was a VERY good deal for rugged 7000 pound machine in good condition.

The hard part about purchasing at auctions is getting the machine home. They will load it onto a truck and/or trailer. After that, it’s your responsibility to provide all transportation services.

 

[stevehuckss396]

Dealers buy and sell what they find. they haul it to there warehouse and sell it at a profit.
While they do not have yard sale or widow has no clue of value pricing I think most dealers try to price failry . They have to eat and they have overhead to cover.

I think thats fair. Where I got mine they had everything from barn fresh to like new. Mine was completely taken apart, painted, scraped and aligned, table was ground, head was completely rebuilt, and ball screws were installed in X and Y. Depends on what you are looking for. If you want barn fresh, craigs list is a good start.

 

[Bourne Bill]

wood Machine in Brentwood NH, has treated me good in the past, as well as Brothers , in Andover MA

 

[Bourne Bill]

Thats Brentwood machine.

 

[RonGinger]

A couple of my friends recently visited Brothers Machinery in search of a lathe and found very slim pickings. In discussion with Peter it seems they are now having a hard time finding machinery. They figure all the small shops that were going out of business are now gone. All the schools that were cleaning out machinery are clean.

The only machines in the market now seem to be the individual sales by guys that bought the stuff from a few years back and now dieing off or giving up machinery.

The South Bend lathes, Clausing mills, Bridgeports, etc that the hobby guys want have not been built in 30-40 years or more. What is being built today is big commercial CNC stuff, and the Chinese imports we get from Grizzley, Harbor Freight, etc

The world of used machinery is changing. Sure happy I have what I need from years past.

 

[ttrikalin]

A couple of my friends recently visited Brothers Machinery in search of a lathe and found very slim pickings. In discussion with Peter it seems they are now having a hard time finding machinery. They figure all the small shops that were going out of business are now gone. All the schools that were cleaning out machinery are clean.

A year ago i could not find a single small lathe at Brother's... they did mention they had a tough time getting small machines...

t

 

[Entropy455]

Ronginger is spot-on, in that manual machines are out, and CNC machines are in. In my area, most quality used machines are going to be purchased from business and industry – from the folks who are upgrading to CNC versions.

Another significant factor that’s hurting our hobby is the price of scrap metal.

A few months ago, heavy iron was fetching 400 dollars per ton. I was amazed at some of the things that were getting scrapped at our local recycler. Like fully functional bulldozers, forklifts, milling machines, metal lathes, etc. A lot of these items were literally driven into the scrap yard under their own power. One would think that this stuff would be worth more on a private sale. The problem is that no one has extra money in a down economy - and a lot of good machinery is now gone forever.

Thankfully the steel bubble has burst, and the price of scrap is back below 160 dollars per ton (which is still very high in my opinion).

Used CNC machines are starting to go up for sale. The biggest problem I’ve seen with these, is obsolete software, and obsolete computer controls. Most of the time the machines are in excellent condition, but the electronic side will have serious issues.