Which milling machine model?

Probably bigger, as in the mill would need holders able to handle cutters that size.

Just measured an R8 collet, and the back end is ~ .950 inches on the OD.

The Bridgeports I've used in the past were R8s. Bigger usually meant something like J's Okuma.

It looks vaguely like a non-automated version of this one:

https://growthpower.jp/English/content/9726

Note that this firm does lots of big CNC mills, now.

 

Here's a picture running said Okuma:

 

For 1.25" shanks your looking at An old Cincinnati #3 or #4, or Similar. You're talking a machine that weighs 5000-12000Lbs and is 8-9' tall.
You might be able to do 1.25" shanks in a 40 Taper machine. You can defiantly use them in a 50 Taper machine. The Older machines are going to be 10-20HP machine. With a max Spindle speed of 1200-1600 RPM. Older machines give up speed for power their 15HP motor runs through a Gear box that slows it down but ups the torque.
Modern CNC machines have 40HP because the spindles can hit 20,000-40,000 RPM and most are direct drive or only have a small stepdown in the gear box.

For most of us the Bridgeport is the perfect Home shop size machine. I keep an eye out locally for one cheap, because I don't have a vertical Mill. My mill is a little Clasuing Horizontal mill. I love it. Takes a little out of the box thinking to fixture things. But I got it cheap and found a good bit of tooling for it cheap. I have yet to use it as a horizontal mill with a big slab mill cutter overhead. Before I do that I need to get a couple known good arbors as the one that came with it is questionable. But for a first mill I would buy it again in a heart beat. Best $150 I spent that day!

 

You want big, here is big and I bet I could get it for you for a song! Once you price out getting 3phase at home, you'll be happy with 3hp stuff on an 90buck vfd. Be sure to visit Lakeshorecarbide and price out some end mills. Falling off a cliff without the NEED for monstrous equipment is something to avoid for the garage putzers like us.



Seriously dude, a Bridgeport series one or two is all the machine you'll need. Tooling cost will blow you back when you get into this shit. There is this never ending list of crap you'll need! I just keep buying stuff every month and as I collect, my capabilities keep increasing. Seems to make the pain more tolerable. As they say, how do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time!

 

I have to agree with Jason. You should get the machine that suits you and takes typical tooling, and if the tooling you have fits then, good; if not, it won't spoil. A couple hundred bucks in new tooling would get you working nicely.

Pete

 

Prices are certainly cheap enough.. Chinese? My neighbor gave me a lakeshor 1/2" USED carbide endmill and you should see the abuse I've given that thing. I'm talking redheaded step child, NO Supper stuff.
I saw this bad larry for sale the other day. Cheap as chips! I'd love to have it, but just dont have a need for it. That's a whole lot of monarch awesomeness for little cash.

 

Yeah I'd like to switch to a monarch lathe later on. I want to get the mill figure don't first. Just a month to go and I should have some cash saved for it. Maybe 2 at the most.

So do you think I should sell off the large 1-1/4" bits I have and put the cash from them in the kitty for new tooling? Or try get a machine or collets that fit them?

 

How much 1-1/4" tooling do you have? I personally would go with off-load the tooling and use the cash towards a more sensible machine.

 

Several 1 ft x 8 inch crates.

 

Get a gallon of evaporust, pretty them up with a wire wheel and fleabay the stuff. With that much stuff, you might rake enough cash for your machine!
If you haven't used evaporust, it's time to get familiar with the stuff. I like that it's reusable several times before it peters out.

 

You left out the "wipe the parts, etc. down with Marvel Mystery Oil" step - after the wire wheel part.

This keeps further rust and corrosion at bay for several months at the least. It also removes grime and congealed grease, and finally, helps the prospective customer feel good about his/her purchase.

For long-term storage, find an old crock-pot, and load it up with a mix of motor oil and paraffin wax - with a tin of brown shoe polish for color, if desired. Dip parts in the hot Ersatz Cosmoline mixture. This should keep the rust off for a long time.

 

MMO is a good idea! We recently went through some wild temperature swings and I walked out into the garage one night to find a lot of orange looking machinery staring back at me!
I almost had heart failure. I grabbed the can of corrosionX and a 0000 steel wool pad and went nutz! If I lived back in Florida, there is no way I would screw with machinery. My entire life would be spent trying to stop rust!

 

A well-worn green kitchen "scrubbie" with a wax-and-oil mixture works, also.

Find an old bit of chamois and douse it, then wipe metal stuff down. Oh, and add some lanolin to the M.M.O. It will help with the rust.

(Reminder to self: put anhydrous lanolin on the shopping list. Rust is a bad thing.)

 

Soo I found this interesting little machine for sale about an hour from me. Seems to have a lot of extras with it.

Not a lot of details on the ad for it but I could find out more by calling. What do you think?

Cnc 3 axles milling machine $3,500

 

It looks like a mid 80's vintage machine so the electronics will be fragile even if still working and spare electronics will be close to non-existent. They have tiny lithium batteries that die around the 15 year mark and lose all the CMOS configuration data which can be fun to reprogram. If it sold for $1500 you'd be able to upgrade the electronics to new and use the old motors, then there's the CAD software to buy and get up to speed on.

It doesn't look like the spindle can change angle or if it has a Bridgeport style quill that goes up and down so functionality is less than a cheaper second hand Bridgeport in some aspects.

Edit: it looks like a splined spindle shaft on top but something is missing on the side that mounts on the square hole, like a motor to raise or lower the quill or maybe a drill press style 3 arm handle to lower the quill.

 

Hmm.

How hard would it be to buy a cnc conversion kit and install it on a good quality popular mill model? I saw a nice bp series 1 for sale at a reasonable price. It had a huge table too. This old Tony converted a mill like that but I think he has a lot more technical skill in that area.

 

You can get a turnkey kit (motors, controllers, brackets, etc) for $5-6K
You still need the Bridgeport and a computer.

$3500 for that feels a bit steep. $ 2000 would be my limit on that one. If you had a brand name that you could look and see if someone makes a kit to update the electronics. If there a kit out there it might be worth it (based on the cost of the Kit).