I've got a little extra money right now and a majority of the parts I need for my project, at least enough to have plenty of work to do.\ I've got plenty of air tools, a nice big air compressor, a miller 180? 185?, a decent 220v HTP plasma cutter, band saw, chop saw, drill press, grinders, a manual hossfeld tube bender...certainly more then many. Stuff I'd like? A tig machine (for fine control on smaller pieces and aluminum, looking at the diversion 165 for about $1300 online. Don't know enough to make a smart buy with a used machine), spool gun for the Miller so I can weld aluminum (though I've never tried it, don't know what it's appropriate for), stomp shear, box/pan brake (though for the sheer and brake I'd like to be able to do at least .120" and it looks like most sheers I'm limited to 16 guage), a mill, powdercoat rig (old electric kitchen oven for baking). I think that's about it. what do you think would be good to have, to compliment what i've got now? what can i build to save a few bucks? maybe an english wheel, planishing hammer, press? Lowbuck's metal machine?
Of what you listed, I'd go with the mill, hands down. I wouldn't spend yout tool bucks on the E wheel or a Planishing hammer, because if you add a mill to what you've mentioned, you can make those on the cheap. I made my e-wheel for less than 400 bucks, and I spent 340 of that buying premade wheels for it.
i'd say a mill or a lathe i kick myself so many times for not buying a mill, kind of limited on room though.
yeah i wouldn't buy a wheel, but would make the frame and buy the actual wheels. what should i look for in a mill? i've got 220 in the shop.
DRO is nice, but not really needed; lots of good, precision work was done without that (let alone NC). Look for a) good condition (especially the ways), b) how much tooling, and c) make damn sure it's in good condition. It's much easier to swap motors, or build a phase convertor (if you get a 3 phase machine) than straighten out a worn-out machine. -Bill
I've got the spool gun for my miller, don't bother, go with the tig for aluminum. You will spend a fortune in tips for the spool gun since the al wire likes to weld itself to the tip
re: powdercoater. I got one from Sears for (I think) around $50. Talk to enough people, and you should be able to get someone to give you an old built-in oven. I got my powder mail-order from Eastwood. The oven I had is big enough to bake a 14" wheel. I've done lots of brackets, etc. and find it real handy. Make a roll-around stand for the oven from some scrap steel and some spare electrical stuff and you're into it pretty cheap.
I tell everyone that has a good chunk of money at one time to invest in a lathe and/or a mill (mill first would be my reference) . Those two items seem to be among the most expensive for most shops and if your like most of us it's not often you have a sizeable chunk of $$$$'s at one time. After you have those two pieces of equipment the sky is the limit, you will wonder how you ever got along without them. Frank
What do DRO and NC stand for? I've found ovens for $100 on craigslist and have a base on heavy duty casters perfect for an oven, so im looking forward to getting a powder coating setup going but i think I'll hold off until I'm ready for final finishing on the car. I've got immediate uses for a tig but who knows if I'll be up for the tasks once i finally get to sit down with one. I'll start looking around at mills and get the word out. Thanks fellas.
DRO is digital readout. You don't have to have one to do good work on a mill. In fact a DRO doesn't make you better on a mill at all. It does make you faster, though. If you get a mill without one, you can always add it in later. My buddy's mill didn't have one when he bought it. He found an old glasses lens grinding machine with one on it and we adapted it to his mill. I think his total outlay was about 90 bucks.
DRO=Digital Read Out. Instead of reading the micrometer dials on the handles of a mill, you can use a dro which will tell you where you are in relation to the X,Y, or Z axis. NC=Numeric Control. You've probably heard it called CNC (Computer Numeric Control). This is were a machine tool is controlled by a computer. I would go with a mill first, a lathe second, and a TIG welder third. I'm a fan of old Bridgeports and Cinncinattis but I wouldn't hesitate to get a good Taiwan mill if it had alot of tooling. Don't buy those cheap HF mills tho. I bought my Bridgeport for $1000 but it didn't come with any tooling. That is where you can get a ton of $ wrapped up into it. If I found a good condition Enco or Jet that had some tooling, I wouldn't be afraid to get it. Some of the import stuff isn't too bad. And this is coming from a guy that hates alot of import stuff.
I would say Lathe, then you can make most anything and everyone will suddenly be your best mate!!! That or if you want to ease your conscience, put the world back in order and bring yet another hotrod close to the road you could simply donate the money to me....... You still there? Hello? Am I on? Anyone............................. Doc.
I'd vote for the mill or lathe. I'd think that in the area you are in you could pick up the tooling for a mill surplus quite easily. All in all, it comes down to the piece of equipment that you wished you had time and time again for the past (fill in the blank). In the past year I've picked up: A Lincoln 175 Mig Torch with bottles and cart what will be a 20 ton hydraulic press 6 inch belt sander with 9 inch disk. All off craigslist and all because I have the need for each one of them. I'm out of room so that's it for a while unless once again something pops up available that I can get a lot of use out of.
Forgot, i have the disc/belt combo too, i use the snot out of that. A torch set would be nice too, definitely one of those things id like to have at times. Found a bridgeport m-head that looks to be in excellent condition a few web searches shows the 2mt collet set included is key. What size shank do you fellows frequently use on your tooling? Thanks for the offer doc but I've got one of my own to get on the road Thanks for all the info guys. I figure a basic, solid mill will be best to learn on, then add the bells and whistles as I start 'needing' them
I appreciate the opinions and info y'all shared. I ended up grabbing a Miller Diversion 165 Friday. I was excited about the mill but couldn't find anything local enough to avoid a nice shipping fee. I priced a few out and transit was at least as much as the machine. That and a lack of space in my shop. I've got it configured pretty well but a wall of cabinets on the back wall eats up a lot, though it's incredible for hiding stuff. Hard to build a small machine shop shed in my backyard in suburban california. A neighbor just upgraded from an old Lagun to an old Bridgeport with DRO (he picked out the floorplan with a 3 car garage), said if his son doesn't take the Lagun he'll let me know a price for it. Needs the table ways to be tightened up (I forget the proper term) but it's solid and runs well otherwise. Would like to know what he did or didn't do with the lathe he just upgraded from as well The Diversion is pretty awesome. I've been practicing all weekend. I can get a bead down alright on flat stock, still trying to get the hang of joints. Without filler I can do alright, just running into difficulty trying to figure out what is causing the trouble...too much power, not enough, poorly ground tip, etc. I actually feel pretty confident with the setup of everything, plenty of info on the Miller site and otherwise. I think I just need to keep the tip closer to the workpiece and figure out the proper movements and when to dip the filler. On the off chance that anyone reads this and has some knowledge of GTAW procedures...is this correct? I heat the base metal and start a puddle, I pulled the torch towards the back of the puddle, dip the filler in the leading edge of the puddle, and then pull the rod out and move the torch back to the leading edge, rinse, and repeat. Not sure if I should catch the filler rod with the arc, or if it's more like soldering and the molten metal will metal the filler. The Diversion itself is great though, AC/DC for aluminum or steels, up to 3/16". Air cooled, torch mounted wheel rather then a foot pedal. Not intimidating to a rookie either. After I figured out I don't have to hold the power button down, just push it on, push it off, I figured out how to hold it properly and adjust the wheel while moving, though that's the next step of the learning process. Figuring out how/why/when to change it. I'm guessing just watch the workpiece and adjust up or down if it starts getting to hot, fine tuning the level? Back out for more practice! Thanks again for the tips and I'll be on the lookout for a good deal on a mill. The more tools the fewer excuses I'm allowed to use for why I don't do something, though it seems like I just come up with more excuses to buy more tools.
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