Lets talk Milling Machines

Vertical mills seem to be more popular, but I find Horizontal mill cheaper (aka older).

Is there anything a vertical mill does special over a horizontal? I don't have room for a bridgeport (nor the power).

Adaptors and accessories are the same, the only difference I can think of is the set up. Lets say you're working on a SBC head and want to shave .003 off one side to remove a slight warp.

Vertical Mill: Stone and clean the table, clean the part, it's flat on the valve cover side, so just bolt it down with two Juergans'.

Horizontal Mill: Lay the head on its side. Indicate the section to be milled to ensure it's square to the cutter. Try bolting it down, but the head doesn't have big enough flats on any of the sides to feel comfortable clamping off of.

Get a big 90' knee and bolt the head to that. Indicat it in both the X and Y directions to ensure it's square to the cutter.

More time and twice as many straps involved.

Maybe that's why they are cheaper.

Dan

Ok, I read that as Milking Machines. I was SIGNIFICANTLY interested as to why one of those would come up on here.

Young & Single. don't ask.

I thought so, too. I been unable to un-see some things that have been presented to me on the internet.

Manual....strictly hobby use.

If I ever buy machining equipment, it will be a lathe with a milling attachment. If you don't need to do a lot of complex milling, I think this is a decent setup.

Wonkothesane wrote: Horizontal machines should not be notably cheaper or older, both have been around about the same time.

Not true. The "Bridgeport" style vertical mill came out in the late 1930s and though there may have been vertical mills before then (I am not aware of any), pretty much anything you find that is older than the '40s and not one of the first Bridgeports, is going to be a horizontal mill. And those go back to about the 1830s.

Best of both worlds might be a horizontal mill with an accessory vertical head.

Taiden wrote: If I ever buy machining equipment, it will be a lathe with a milling attachment. If you don't need to do a lot of complex milling, I think this is a decent setup.

can you show me an example?

I have a 9x49 Bridgeport clone, and as someone who suffered a 3-in-1 machine for 8 years due to space constraints, I'm incredibly, ecstatically happy.

There's just no substitute for weight and power and work envelope.

The ticket for Bridgeports, or the Taiwan clones is to commit to following auctions w/ dovebid or bidspotter 'til a manufacturing facility asset auction is happening close enough to actually go inspect the machinery. They typically sell it the $2k-$3k range. Basic tooling - a 6" vise, collets, endmill holders, parallels, set up stuff, clamping kit, indicator for tramming in - can double the cost.

BTW - I've done desperation milling on a lathe. For tiny parts with only 1 or 2 operations it ~works~. But the work envelope in microscopic, and the "machine" is not heavy or rigid, so it's a crappy mill at very best.

Remember that a new Bridgeport when they were last available - and I mean I real US machine for industry, not like the Grizzly "South Bend" lathes from China - were upwards of $20k. They're real machine designed to work 3 shifts a day for decades. Find one that's not work out and you've got a friend for life.

It's just for basic stuff. You'd probably never want to do anything crazy with it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZNaqSRYER0

JamesMcD wrote:

Wonkothesane wrote: Horizontal machines should not be notably cheaper or older, both have been around about the same time.

Not true. The "Bridgeport" style vertical mill came out in the late 1930s and though there may have been vertical mills before then (I am not aware of any),

1870 Jones & Lanson (now called J&L) flat belt drive vertical. Later today when the museum opens I'll try to get some photos for you. We've been milling, turning and rifling gun barrels since 1813.

Dan

In reply to 914Driver:

Tell the truth--that came out of a Gingery book, didn't it?

Where do these New Bridgeports come from?

Back in 1978-1980 I attended a vocational school and fell in love with the Bridgeport's.

http://www.kneemills.com/index.asp?html=prods&prodID=160&page=

914Driver wrote:

JamesMcD wrote:

Wonkothesane wrote: Horizontal machines should not be notably cheaper or older, both have been around about the same time.

Not true. The "Bridgeport" style vertical mill came out in the late 1930s and though there may have been vertical mills before then (I am not aware of any),

1870 Jones & Lanson (now called J&L) flat belt drive vertical. Later today when the museum opens I'll try to get some photos for you. We've been milling, turning and rifling gun barrels since 1813. Dan

I'd love to have something like that. It's damn near art.

Beautiful.