How to make best use of your milling machine. Tips and techniques

[aviaamator]

My homemade milling machine, X-table from Proxxon.

[Capt.Bob]

Mark, Ian, OA, Frank, Jerry, & Avia...

 

Gentlemen, thank you.  All great ideas.  I shared Mark's anxiety about spending money on things that seem important, but never get used.  I am going to use the mill primarily for ship modeling, which means mostly hardwood &, brass.  Aviaamator, nice job with your homemade mill.  I'm sure I'll have more questions once I spend some time playing with it.

 

Take care, Bob

[aviaamator]

Hi,Bob! Will gladly answer Your questions! And in the meantime made a small upgrade of the machine.

[aviaamator]

Returned to the life of another lathe....

[WackoWolf]

This is an excellent topic, everything that has been said is of good value. Some stuff you might only use once, but once you fully understand the real use of it you will see that you use it more and more. Like Mark said research what you think you need before you buy it. I have bought stuff that I still haven't use yet, but when the time comes that I need it I at least have it. Get what you need and then see if you can make some of the other stuff. Hold down clamps are the easy things to make and you can make them to what you need them for. Like I said this is a real good topic.

[Capt.Bob]

HI Aviaamator,

How is your new model milling machine coming?  Anything new?

Did you rebuild the lath in the picture?  What is the story?

 

How is life in Petrozavodsk?  I took a tour of your city on Google Earth. There are many photos of the city and the lake.  Lake Onega must be very nice in the summer time, but lots of photos of ice in the winter.   Also, I read some history about Peter The Great and the original iron foundry that started the city in 1703.

 

I have only practiced a few things on my new milling machine.  Milling is easy,  Setup is everything!!

 

Bob 

[texxn5]

Hi guys, this is a good topic. Glad to see people using their tools. Being a Proxxon Dealer, I have access to these tools, however, I found that for the model ship work I've done the milling process that I needed mostly was the x-y function of the Compound Table. I used my Proxxon TBM Drill Press with the X-Y table and MS 4 Machine Vise and controlled the "Z" function manually. This works perfect with the 1,2 or 3 mm Mills. Anyone looking for such a set up PM me and I'll make a special deal for any combinations. I also carry the full line Proxxon Mills and Lathes. The PD 230 Lathe has been discontinued, but is to be replaced with the PD 250 shortly...it's just a little bigger.

John

[aviaamator]

Welcome, Bob! I agree with You, setting up sometimes takes more time than milling. But the quality justifies the cost. Yes, I'm bringing into operation this machine has already produced several critical parts. The result pleased me! Lake Onego is really great, but in Karelia about 40,000 lakes, and they are all very beautiful! ... If the person has a hobby - life is interesting in any point of planet Earth! Now developing a mount for the spindle of a milling machine. I have postponed this task for a while.

[Mahuna]

I've been learning to make my own frames, which require sanding on the inside curve.  I have some sanding drums for my drill press, but they cause a lot of vibrations due to the way the sandpaper is mounted on the drums.

 

I have some 1 inch sanding drums that can be used on a Foredom tool and which take sanding sleeves rather than sandpaper sheets, so I decided to try using these on my milling machine rather than the drill press.  I made a smaller version of the dust-collecting box that I use on the drill press, and set it up so that it would clamp on the x table of the mill using cap screws and t-nuts.  The variable speed on the mill is very useful in getting the right speed.  I suppose it's not quite as good as a real spindle sander, but it cost nothing to make (I already had the required parts and wood) and serves my purposes well.

 

                   

 

                   

[aviaamator]

Trial run. Works!!!

[Roger Pellett]

It seems that my Sherline mill gets used at least as often to build tools/fixtures as it does to make actual model parts. Examples are a fixture for holding propeller blades in the right orientation for soldering and a fixture to hold the very mall blades of my model makers spoke shaves in my honing guide. This means that I use it for materials that do not actually get incorporated into a model- often aluminum.

 

Roger

[Roger Pellett]

It seems that my Sherline mill gets used at least as often to build tools/fixtures as it does to make actual model parts. Examples are a fixture for holding propeller blades in the right orientation for soldering and a fixture to hold the very mall blades of my model makers spoke shaves in my honing guide. This means that I use it for materials that do not actually get incorporated into a model- often aluminum.

 

Roger

[wefalck]

Well, this is the 'tools-to-make-more-tools'-syndrom … I know this all too well 

[aviaamator]

I practiced on a small piece of pear in different mills. The result has very much pleased me and my colleagues!

[aviaamator]

I brought a milling machine at home, weighed it, the weight was 28 kg. Screwed rubber feet for stability. The tachometer and the power supply will finish a bit later...

[aviaamator]

For drilling holes change the caliper, install the pipe with an electric motor inside, and drill is all you need! For example, ship blocks.

[aviaamator]

Big thanks to all for attention to my modest success!

[aviaamator]

This milling machine is made up of nodes of other machines, I just need to connect them correctly...

Edited April 14, 2016 by aviaamator

[aviaamator]

Some more photos of the build process table milling machine...

[aviaamator]

Thank you all for your appreciation of my work! If anyone is interested, they will continue the photo-report about the assembling of a milling machine...

[aviaamator]

Table travel X - axis 230 mm., Y - 107 mm, axis Z - 135 mm.

[WackoWolf]

Don't stop, keep posting.

[aviaamator]

I won't be able to stop, there is a job for this machine...

[aviaamator]

Manufactured housing spindle. To be continued...

[wefalck]

Must be a dangerous animal that you are breeding there - as you keep it in a cage

 

I like the concept of a high-adjustable head and well executed ! What kind of machines are you working on - that parts you are working on are pretty massive (at least for the scale I am working on).

Edited May 20, 2016 by wefalck

[aviaamator]

wefalck! Animals no at this workplace, except me! Thank you very much for appreciation of my work!

[aviaamator]

A little progress. Looking for the best option.

[Mahuna]

Just thought I'd share a little lesson I learned this week.

 

My milling machine and all of the related tools were bought as used equipment - in the neighborhood of 15 years old when I got them.  The end mills all seem to cut metal OK, but cause a lot of tear-out in wood.  I thought this was normal, until I had to buy a new end mill of a size I needed and didn't have.  The difference in cut is amazing, so I think the old end mill must be dulled by years of use.

 

Here's a cut using an old cutter.

 

 

And here's a cut with the new cutter.

 

 

Lesson learned - use a sharp end mill for cutting wood.

[dgbot]

What I never liked is one an endmill dulls out it is not easy to properly sharpen it wihout sending it out.  At work we alway used carbide when we could get it and the guys in charge cried about the cost.  But the stuf we worked with would dull a bit very fast.  They finally gave in when the material started smoking and stinking up the entire shop.  Polyethelene and HSSS steel do not play nice with each other.

David B

[aviaamator]

Will advise You beforehand to make cuts with a knife along the edges of the groove, I am confident that the groove will turn out beautiful.