Another boring DNA build

[robski]

Thanks BaDaBooM
Your post is working for me now.
Yes, I was looking at that Clarke and also the larger CMD300 which has a larger motor so I guess would be less stressed. I also looked at the Draper 34023 which looks similar to the Clarke CMD300. I wasn't sure if the CMD10 would have the power to mill billet aluminium without putting too much strain on the motor...
Have you ever worked with any of these?
R

 

[BaDaBooM]

Thanks @BaDaBooM
Your post is working for me now.
Yes, I was looking at that Clarke and also the larger CMD300 which has a larger motor so I guess would be less stressed. I also looked at the Draper 34023 which looks similar to the Clarke CMD300. I wasn't sure if the CMD10 would have the power to mill billet aluminium without putting too much strain on the motor...
Have you ever worked with any of these?
R

They have good range here too Milling Machines - Milling - Metal Working | Axminster.co.uk

ATM I'm just using my pillar drill with compound table until I can justify getting a decent one, can't spend £400-1000 on a mill to make mods only on it

 

[BaDaBooM]

Thanks @BaDaBooM
Your post is working for me now.
Yes, I was looking at that Clarke and also the larger CMD300 which has a larger motor so I guess would be less stressed. I also looked at the Draper 34023 which looks similar to the Clarke CMD300. I wasn't sure if the CMD10 would have the power to mill billet aluminium without putting too much strain on the motor...
Have you ever worked with any of these?
R

No I haven't but yes I have, most of them are the same china made machine with different brands on them (Draper and the Clarke you linked are the same machine). Motor should be fine for Alu, all comes down to what bits you buy, cheap bits will make a £10 000 machine shit. The better the bit the less stress it puts on the machine. Don't buy a cheap set of bits, I did that mistake when I got my first mill it was just a waste of money. See what cutting bits you need to do the job and buy some decent ones, for most jobs you won't need many bits. Drill out as much material a possible so it saves your bits, drills are cheaper than bits to replace.
I would just make sure they have a wide variety of accessories for that machine or if it uses standard sizes for like collet holders etc (you will want to upgrade it after a while, it becomes like a vape gear addiction ).

I found these bits on ebay and they are great for the price 8mm 6mm 5mm 4mm 3mm 2mm 1.5mm 1mm FC3 MILLING CUTTERS FREE UK DELIVERY #C6 | eBay cut 1mm stainless steel like I was cutting plastic.

I'm getting jealous now and miss my mill.


Got my first mill because I crashed my bike and to buy the parts to fix it would have been cheaper to buy a new bike. Got a small mill and machined all the parts out of mostly Alu. Did have a lathe at work I could use for some bits.

Started with this before I crashed it.

Was so depressed I had crashed it and left it outside for 3 years before fixing it.

Went a bit crazy with it.

Did it all on £250 mill, got this over 10 years ago.

 

[robski]

BaDaBooM

Thanks again fella!

Yes, the Chinese 'Sieg Industrial Group' seems to have the small milling machine market all tied up! It seems that many retailers lower the specs of their re-branded Sieg machines as the manufacturer's claims are a little 'optimistic'. Flex in the head is something I'm reading about which does concern me but I think all of these small mills will suffer from this to a certain amount. Milling the material by very small amounts seems to be the only answer. Also some retailers seem to upgrade certain parts which means it's not simply a level playing ground with price being the only variable! Having never owned a mill it's a steep learning curve but it's all quite logical and interesting stuff!
The main thing I've read on a number of forums about these things is that you need quality bits, exactly as you have said. Thanks for the ebay link, it's good to have a supplier of quality bits at a reasonable cost.

The GSXR looks like it was an interesting project and would have kept you away from the pub for....errr....quite a while! With the price of a pint in Sweden that's a good thing!

I'll probably make a trip to the local Machine Mart in a few days to see if they have any milling machines on display. I'll have a closer look and ask a few questions. A vice attachment, like the one in your photo, is definitely one of the extra bits I'll need to buy if I go ahead and bite the bullet!

 

[BaDaBooM]

@BaDaBooM

Thanks again fella!

Yes, the Chinese 'Sieg Industrial Group' seems to have the small milling machine market all tied up! It seems that many retailers lower the specs of their re-branded Sieg machines as the manufacturer's claims are a little 'optimistic'. Flex in the head is something I'm reading about which does concern me but I think all of these small mills will suffer from this to a certain amount. Milling the material by very small amounts seems to be the only answer. Also some retailers seem to upgrade certain parts which means it's not simply a level playing ground with price being the only variable! Having never owned a mill it's a steep learning curve but it's all quite logical and interesting stuff!
The main thing I've read on a number of forums about these things is that you need quality bits, exactly as you have said. Thanks for the ebay link, it's good to have a supplier of quality bits at a reasonable cost.

The GSXR looks like it was an interesting project and would have kept you away from the pub for....errr....quite a while! With the price of a pint in Sweden that's a good thing!

I'll probably make a trip to the local Machine Mart in a few days to see if they have any milling machines on display. I'll have a closer look and ask a few questions. A vice attachment, like the one in your photo, is definitely one of the extra bits I'll need to buy if I go ahead and bite the bullet!

Your first mill job will be to make some vice guards out something like an old plastic chopping board

Get a decent vice if you can, makes life easier and you don't have to worry about if its vice thats out of wack when setting up.

Axminster Tools & Machinery - Power Tools, Hand Tools, Woodworking, Metalworking & more! | Axminster.co.uk have a good return policy and really good service. Its free returns within 30 days. Also they have really fast shipping, If you order in the morning it arrives the next day.

When you get all setup show us some mill porn

 

[BaDaBooM]

robski
Now I can get mills out of my head, gonna order one this week.
Axminster Model Engineer Series SX1 Micro Mill - Micro Drills - Drilling Machines - Metal Working | Axminster.co.uk

 

[robski]

@robski
Now I can get mills out of my head, gonna order one this week.
Axminster Model Engineer Series SX1 Micro Mill - Micro Drills - Drilling Machines - Metal Working | Axminster.co.uk

Hahahaha!
My bad!

Have you looked at this one? Looks like it is what the Axminster SX1 is based on. From the reading I've done ARC seem to have a good reputation.
I'm sure both Axminster and ARC modify the Chinese Sieg to some extent but I have no idea what that includes! I know Axminster have an excellent reputation but it might be worth considering the ARC? More research eh?

I think we need a separate 'Workshop Machinery' forum!

 

[BaDaBooM]

Hahahaha!
My bad!

Have you looked at this one? Looks like it is what the Axminster SX1 is based on. From the reading I've done ARC seem to have a good reputation.
I'm sure both Axminster and ARC modify the Chinese Sieg to some extent but I have no idea what that includes! I know Axminster have an excellent reputation but it might be worth considering the ARC? More research eh?

I think we need a separate 'Workshop Machinery' forum!

Thanks for the link, specs are the same. I want compact machine that will still work as a bench drill so I can sell my bench drill. Omg can't believe I'm doing this, I got so jealous like a little kid. Been looking at freaking lathes too where is this gonna end....

Would have just spent the money on beer & vaping any way. Gonna look for some billet Alu and do some drawings tonight

 

[Doghead]

You guys are killing me. I've been fighting off wanting more tools.
This doesn't help!!!

 

[robski]

You guys are killing me. I've been fighting off wanting more tools.
This doesn't help!!!

Time to visit grizzly.com?
You know you want to!