[willysnowman]

I am looking for a small mill and lathe for my garage. The space is 36"D X 120"L X 80"H on about 3" thk of old uneven concrete. It is currently below my residence and not well insulated for noise. The service coming in is 100 amp. 220V 30 Amp is readily available.

I will mostly machine one off motorcycle parts. The main material will be aluminum. Some potential projects: camera mounts, rearsets mods, steel and alum tubing, bushings, brackets, sliders, clip-ons, bar ends, lightening holes in discs, maybe even gears. Definitely need to do metric threads on the lathe. Metric dials would be nice but not required.

For work related parts, it is likely be aluminum, steel, and 300 series SS parts. These would also be one off mostly tapped holes. Most tolerances will be +/-.005". There will be the occasional +/-.001" for dowels. Max. drilled holes sizes will be about 1 inch. A machinist used to say "If it is too big to fit in your car, it just got expensive." My saying will be "If it can't fit in my backpack, I can't do it."

For the mill, I would like to get the mill first. I want a path to upgrade to DRO. I also want a path to upgrade to CNC. I can imagine getting very creative with a XYZ CNC! I don't think I will need to CNC the lathe. I would still like to have it as an option.

As for investment, my ballpark is between $5k to $10k for both machines. I don't like to buy disposable tools or try to get lucky on a tool working. I believe quality is made from quality. I don't want to get into a situation where I am spending my free time working on the machinery.

I am a mechanical engineer and have used varies manual mills and lathes. If I have the time, I can do some very nice work. I am familiar with, but have never operated a CNC mill before. I am not familiar at all with how well the bench top models perform. My plan was to buy a Bridgeport, but I just don't have the room.

Can someone recommend a machine which is capable of making these parts? Anybody local around San Francisco that I can check on out? I have a few in mind but I don't want to influence suggestions.

Thanks in advance!

[saltytri]

Since you are obviously willing to pay for quality, here is an option in your backyard:

http://www.mdaprecision.com/

There is an upgrade path for both mill and lathe for both DRO and CNC.''

Very nice stuff.

[willysnowman]

Since you are obviously willing to pay for quality, here is an option in your backyard:

http://www.mdaprecision.com/

There is an upgrade path for both mill and lathe for both DRO and CNC.''

Very nice stuff.

They were not on my list. Nice.

It is hard to get an good idea on size. It looks small for what I want to do, but maybe not. I like that I can go visit them.

[saltytri]

The problem we have today is whether to buy:

1. used American iron, which can require depth of knowledge to find appropriate equipment in serviceable condition and more depth of knowledge to refurbish and/or repair

2. Chinese machines which may require serious work to put into service in the first place

3. relatively expensive new, non-Chinese machines that are highly likely to work right out of the box

Wabeco is an example of the last category, and there aren't many others in the manual machine market if you want something bigger than a Taig or Sherline. Give Markus a call and tell him what you want to do. My experience with him has been good.

It's only fair to say that there are some conscientious importers of Chinese machines. Lathemaster and Precision Matthews come to mind. Also, if a BP is too large, consider a GENUINE Rong-Fu (square column only!) from Enco, which can be a screamin' deal if you wait for free shipping and/or discount offers that come around regularly if you sign up for their email notices.

If you want to make parts with CNC, consider getting a CNC machine now rather than doing a conversion later. Converting a machine is a worthwhile endeavor if that's what you want to do but might be a bother if what you really want to do is make parts. Consider Novakon and Industrial Hobbies.

[willysnowman]

Thanks for all the info.

After looking at all the machines, I am kinda hooked on the IH machine. This seems like it will do the projects I want to do and more. I have yet to see its 3d capabilities.

There may be an issue with the 3600 max. spindle speed for cutters below 5/16" dia on alum. This may only be an issue on paper. I've done decent work on slower mills and alum with small cutters.

I am still working out space/noise control/money/timing. I think I want to start with a full enclosure to save my very expensive tools. I will have to reconfigure to figure out a space for the lathe.

What are you guys using for CAM software? I use Solidworks for my designs. I'll have to figure this into the ever increasing cost.

[saltytri]

IH seems to have lots of supporters here so that preference will surely win nods of approval. I sure wouldn't mind having one.

Your request for recommendations on software, on the other hand, could start a riotous flame war. Better to do a thorough search here, as it has all been said over and over again.

Does IH sell software packages with its machines? Some machine vendors do this and can offer prices that may be better than would otherwise be available for the same software.

[escott76]

Thanks for all the info.

After looking at all the machines, I am kinda hooked on the IH machine. This seems like it will do the projects I want to do and more. I have yet to see its 3d capabilities.

There may be an issue with the 3600 max. spindle speed for cutters below 5/16" dia on alum. This may only be an issue on paper. I've done decent work on slower mills and alum with small cutters.

I am still working out space/noise control/money/timing. I think I want to start with a full enclosure to save my very expensive tools. I will have to reconfigure to figure out a space for the lathe.

What are you guys using for CAM software? I use Solidworks for my designs. I'll have to figure this into the ever increasing cost.

As others have said, there are many widely varying opinions when it comes to CAM software. You'll have to evaluate which software you need to get the jobs you want done the way you want.
If your Solidworks seat is current, there are several programs that will "plug in" to it offering CAM based on that. The advantages are that since it uses the Solidworks engine, it knows more about the part, and can use Solidworks features to more easily figure out what you want to remove. Additionally it's easier to create new geometry to cut from, as you are already familiar with the Solidworks tools to do so. We're a SW shop at work, so we've been contemplating using this type of software for a while, but we already have Gibbs and MasterCAM.
There are a myriad of products from free or very low cost,all the way up to MC or Gibbs which are going to cost a lot. If all you are interested in doing is cutting out simple 2 or 2.5D shapes, it won't be that bad. But 3D contouring costs. There are some very low cost 3D solutions, but they can be very limited on the ways that they can cut a part.
As with everything there's a tradeoff, and we haven't factored learning the software into the equation. The good news is that a lot of these companies offer free trials, to see if you can get along with the software. Wait until you've got a machine, and then try a bunch of them. Depending on the work you do, it can be as important of an investment as your machines themselves.

[kingfisher]

Have you looked at the Emco table models? My company sells them. Let me know if you would like some quotes.