Drill Presses

[Jason28]

My biggest concern with going with a 40+ year old machine is getting parts if something DOES go wrong (same concern I have for myself). I honestly wouldn't mind a PM 1150 or 1200 (1200 in particular), but I don't have the knowledge, time, or desire for a restoration project (clean-up I can do), so I'd need to find one in good working order, or just needing minor tweaks. Then there's the issue of even finding one of these. Beyond Craigslist, I have no idea where to even start looking for such. I see a few on Ebay right now, but they're usually $2k and up. I've never actually made a serious search for old machines, so any other ideas where to look?

[iclark]

My biggest concern with going with a 40+ year old machine is getting parts if something DOES go wrong (same concern I have for myself). I honestly wouldn't mind a PM 1150 or 1200 (1200 in particular), but I don't have the knowledge, time, or desire for a restoration project (clean-up I can do), so I'd need to find one in good working order, or just needing minor tweaks. Then there's the issue of even finding one of these. Beyond Craigslist, I have no idea where to even start looking for such. I see a few on Ebay right now, but they're usually $2k and up. I've never actually made a serious search for old machines, so any other ideas where to look?

I have had very good luck getting machines from fellow WNers. The condition of the machines hav been very accurate.

If the offer above doe not suit you, then I would suggest posing a WTB here in SnS or over on OWWM/Vintage_Machinery. If you get  drill press that has already been fully restored by a fellow WNer, you should be good for life.

One heads up, though, figuring out how to secure a full-sized bench top DP in a minivan can be a challenge. It is well worth the effort, but it requires more planning than the little C'man benchtops.

[EvilTwin]

I would post a WTB ad over on OWWM in the BOYD forum (Bring out your dead).  Tell em what you are looking for, but be open to suggestions.  For that matter, you can post a question on the OWWM forum and ask what some good candidate machines would be.  I've sold a few presses in my day, mostly Delta Rockwells as that is what a lot of school districts used and those show up the most often.   PM's come up less frequently, but the do pop up occasionally, mostly the 1150's.  

My personal machine is a Clausing that I got off Ebay maybe 7 or 8 years ago, and paid a princely sum of about 280 bucks IIRC.  I traveled 3 hours up to Charlottesville VA to get it.   Was in good shape, all it needed was a new belt.  I've since replaced the original chuck with a high end Jacobs that for some strange reason Amazon was selling for around 30 bucks, go figure.  But this machine only has a 5" stroke...

[cvillewood]

Try opening up your search radius on CL. They pop up pretty often around these parts in various condition. As said above, a PM1200 is a very big DP. The head probably weighs 300 pounds I'd guess. My 1150 was a lot to handle.

There's a PM1200 on eBay for $700 in Oxford PA that looks to be in good shape. Would need a VFD though since it's 3 phase.

EvilTwin - I hope you stayed for a bit in C'ville. I went to school at UVA and lived there for 12 years (no, it did not take me that long to get my BS!). Beautiful place!

[CARYinWA]

As said above, a PM1200 is a very big DP. The head probably weighs 300 pounds I'd guess. My 1150 was a lot to handle.

Try 600 pounds.  I got one off of Bidaboo auctions through Ebay.  Drove up to Seattle to get it.  They loaded it with a fudge lift.  I had to unload it in 100 pound chunks.  I totally restored it. Table, base, and column are probably 100+ pounds a piece.  I can post pictures later if anybody is interested.

[Jason28]

So having opened myself up to the vintage market, can someone direct me to a good resource for information on VFDs? If I end up with a 3ph machine it looks like I'll need to add one and I know virtually nothing about them.

[EvilTwin]

There are a few online vendors, FactoryMation is one.  In general, you size the VFD to the HP of the motor, so if its a 1hp motor, you get one rated for 1hp or better.  For motors 1hp or less, you will see drives that take 110v as input and will output the 220v 3phase to the motor.  For over 1hp, they generally require 220v single phase as input and 220 3phase as output.  You hard wire the VFD to the motor on the 3 phase side and the input can be controlled by a switch.  I generally use the existing switch on the tool if available and appropriate to power the VFD.  

Most VFD's have a knob on the front to vary the output frequency.  At 60hz, the motor will run at rated speed.  Less than that and its slower, higher and it's faster.   They have other functions as well, like a soft start that ramps up speed at startup over a couple of seconds, and some can brake the motor which is handy on tools that can take a while to spin down like bandsaws.  Currently I'm using 3, one on a 20" bandsaw, one on a RAS and one on a small mill.  


Here is a link to factorymation, but I'm sure others will chime in with different sites to check:  http://www.factorymation.com/acdrives

[Jason28]

So I've delved into the rabbit hole that is vintage machines and man, is it deep. I've got my eye on a couple of 20" Clausings in the area, though one is in pieces and the other is a lot more money. I also found a PM1150 I'm considering which has a VFD and is ready to go. 

Trouble is, enough people have encouraged me to look at mills that the rabbit hole has gotten a lot wider, if not deeper. So what do I look for in a mill, which I know next to nothing about? I've looked at the mill linked to in a previous reply, and it looks decent, but I don't know. I also have to consider freight and how I'm going to wrestle such an animal into my basement. A DP I can disassemble and reassemble with confidence, but a mill? I just don't know. And didn't Grizzly make a wood mill a few years back (not that I'm likely to find one)?

[EvilTwin]

There are lots of different types of mills out there, both vintage arn and more contemporary machines.  On the lighter duty end, you will find different flavors of the chiwanese "mill drill".  These are round column machines that are essentially heavy duty presses with a R8 spindle that allows you to use different types of tooling as well as mounting a chuck for standard drilling operations.  They should  have fairly tight tolerances and an xy table to mount the work.  The downside is that the round column on the cheaper variants does not allow you to absolutely orient the spindle in the exact same position every time its move.

One type of machine you may be interested in is a clausing 8520 or the Rockwell variant (griz makes one also).  They are fairly small for mills, and lots of folks like them for home use.  They may or may not have an R8 taper which might limit its use for some jobs but they are still popular.  The Griz version being current, may have the R8 taper.

Just keep in mind that what you get in one hand, you give up in another.  You said you wanted a 6 inch quill stroke on a press and you would be hard pressed (har har) to get close to that on a mill.   Also, on an older mill, you may run into one with just a little bit of slop in the gibs of the table.  Old machines, are not always perfect performers.

As it so happens, I also have a small mill that is a bit of an oddball. Its a Swedish machine made by Arboga.  It uses a geared head rather than belts that is similar / identical to what they use on gear head presses.  This particular machine uses a MT3 taper which is not that common and finding collets that work for end mills is a challenge.  But it is small and for the few jobs Ive done with it, its been ok.  Its also a 3 phase and weighs about 800 lbs.

[handi]

As you may know, I currently have the Voyager in my shop and recently posted my review of it in this thread.

If you have specific questions about this press, I will be happy to answer them.