Anyone have suggestions on a lathe/mill combo? something along the lines of the smithy brand lathe/mill/drill machines. good, bad, ok, what's available, who has em? thanks.
Anyone have suggestions on a lathe/mill combo? something along the lines of the smithy brand lathe/mill/drill machines. good, bad, ok, what's available, who has em? thanks.
Well if you absolutely have to split the difference the Smithy is probably one of the better ones. IMO, much better to get separate distinct lathe and a knee mill.
I agree having separate machines is definately the best option. that may be possible down the road a piece, but for now the problem is, my workshop would be completely overtaken by two separate units. i figured this would save space.Originally Posted by Schuetzenman
what other brands/companies are out there that have quality products?
for now however, i just found a local guy who will let me do some small projects in his race shop. scratch his back, he'll scratch mine. thank goodness for friends of friends!
Last edited by Goodman; 08-06-2011 at 04:05 PM.
CHOOT UM!
Those are the two I've beenn drooling over. I can't justify two pieces either... I'd have to build another shop...
thanks for the tip Goodman!
no matter how big you build it's never BIG enough.
i've been trying to sell one of my classics to buy one of these set ups. no luck yet.
Go MAZAK
Here's to pussy and gunpowder. One to live for, the other to die by.....Goddamn though, I do love the smell of 'em both !!!
little too rich for my blood. but we can all dream........Go MAZAK
Sorry man, I was just tryin to be funny. They are my dream job at my shop
Here's to pussy and gunpowder. One to live for, the other to die by.....Goddamn though, I do love the smell of 'em both !!!
it was funny. kind of like getting hit in the you-know-whats. hurts now... funny later.Sorry man, I was just tryin to be funny. They are my dream job at my shop
you run those fancy little gizmos?
I wish....right now I run Thread Roller machines, and I am an alternate for the heat treat furnace's.....my dream is to end up in the Toolroom and operate all the different MAZAKS we have.it was funny. kind of like getting hit in the you-know-whats. hurts now... funny later.
you run those fancy little gizmos?
Here's to pussy and gunpowder. One to live for, the other to die by.....Goddamn though, I do love the smell of 'em both !!!
cool! good luck to ya!
i'm livin the dream here. it's 1:15 am on a saturday and i just finished an overall paint job on a '67 t-bird.
what a land yact! i'm ready for a nap.
Well if we are talking "REAL" dreams.....I would love to be a cameraman for girls gone wild.........or a pornstar, either or (both would be even better)cool! good luck to ya!
i'm livin the dream here. it's 1:15 am on a saturday and i just finished an overall paint job on a '67 t-bird.
what a land yact! i'm ready for a nap.
Here's to pussy and gunpowder. One to live for, the other to die by.....Goddamn though, I do love the smell of 'em both !!!
A 12x20 will be decent for handgun work, and close to useless for long gun work.
The spindle bore is too narrow to pass all but the skinniest rifle barrels, meaning you can only work on what you can chuck fully between centers, and it will have far more flex than even the most basic of gap bed lathes or knee/bench mills.
IIRC, about $3500 can get you into a new 12x36 gap bed lathe and a new R8 angle-head bench mill, which isn't much more than you're proposing to spend on a grizzly or smithy.
This is the one I want, Smithy 1340
◦Timken Bearing Upgrade
◦220 V, 2 HP Variable Drive
◦Industrial Tool Pak
◦40" Between Centers
Sale $4,479.00
Estimated Shipping Cost: $329.00
BUT, it comes with $1,400+ in tooling and accessories. I don't have tooling for one so if you look at Grizzly or others it turns into a good deal. The Grizzly is $2,995.00 +$225.00 shipping but then buy $1,450.00 in tooling for a lessor machine.
You need to look at the details of the machines. What is the head stock through hole size? What is the max turning length and swing over bed? What is the cross slide travel? Does it have a screw / thread cuting feature? Metric, Inch, how small and how big? For the Mil part; what is the work height limit, how big can something be and fit under the spindle with an end mill in it? What's the cross slide and traverse travels? What is the quill depth, how deep of a plunge cut can you make?
Most of these combo machines are going to be good for pistol barrels and very small rifle barrels. Milling of dovetail slots on slides, etc. They will take a long time to do a job compared to dedicated machines of each type.
Here are the specs on the Smithy, see what you think.
http://www.smithy.com/index_inside.php?id=961
The Grizzly.
http://cdn0.grizzly.com/specsheets/g4791_ds.pdf
All I can tell you, sir, is that the 1340 looks like a toy compared to either of my two discrete tools, and combined, they cost less than it does.
Having gone to look at machinery prices at enco, I see that things have come up a bit, and the combo I described is closer to $5000 than $3500 now - $3k for a 13x40 gap bed and $2k for a 21" bench mill/drill.
Invest in the heavier equipment - you will not be sorry that you did.
Even if the lighter equipment serves carefully and dutifully, under your supervision, it can't make up for its basic lack in weight, stiffness and power, over the long run. It may "do", but it'll never be enough.
If you stay in the machining game, you'll be investing here and there in tooling over a lifetime. But the first "aw shit" realization that you want to fit a toy to your machine that it's flat-out not big enough to handle will wipe away any joy you had from your earlier savings. I started with a 9x19 combo machine, and hit my limits on what it could do in six months. Then I had to save up for a year or so to get the (still limited) but much more capable machines I now have.
For a $500 difference in cost, get the more capable machines.
Posting Permissions
Reply With Quote
Bookmarks