Drill Press or Drill/Mill ?

[jake98]

I could use a heavier duty drill press and am wondering if I should step up to a drill/mill. Or maybe a lathe/mill? Was struggling to drill 1/2" steel yesterday with my little radial drill press, now I'm back in the Grizzley Catalog...:confused2:
With a mill, you can cut holes bigger than you'd drill, right? Plasma out a hole, then mill the inside accurately? I've never operated one.. Seems like if I buy a drill press that does 1 1/4", the next day I'm gonna need 1 1/2".

 

[LD1]

Forgive me for asking but what exactally is a drill mill? What is different from an actual mill?

If it were me though, I would look into getting a used mill. Bridgeport or bridge port knock-off. IMO, a mill can do anything a drill press can, but can also mill things, cut keyways, slots, and as you mentioned, use a boring head and bore a hole as big as you want:thumbsup:

 

[jake98]

They have a few of these combo units:
G1006 2 HP Mill/Drill

 

[LD1]

AH, I see. Like a mini benchtop mill.

Seems kinda pricey though. For $1500 I am sure you can probabally find a decient fullsized knee mill that will do SO much more.

For the price of that thing though, I'd probabally just get a regular drill press. Because I dont see one of those being so good for actual milling. But I have never used one though. But I am used to working with a larger mill.

 

[BobRip]

They have a few of these combo units:
G1006 2 HP Mill/Drill

I have one of these. While it works fine, you cannot put tall items in it. I like the x y table. I do find I use my drill press more. With a drill press you need to get one with a slow speed. These usually have three pulleys.

 

[HCJtractor]

I guess it depends on your budget and frequency of use. On my limited projects, I use my drill press to drill large holes is plate up to 1/2". I like the carbide tipped hole saws. They work great and are fairly fast. Only downside is they are expensive, around $30 for a 1" cut, but they are available in large sizes. THe cheaper bimetal hole saws also work o.k. but are slower. I also think a nice mag drill and annular cutters would be very useful, but again, we are talking $1000 plus. But I am sure a mill would exceed that. So for my occasional use, the drill press and the carbide cutters do all I need. You can buy lots of cutter for way less than $1000.

 

[Scooby074]

For the new price of a mill/drill you can get a used Bridgeport.

A bridgie is a 10x better machine. Personally i think those chicom milldrills are a PITA. Had one at work and hated it, round column and all.

So my advice is to save your $1500 and look for a decent used Bridgeport J for about the same (or a little more). You will need to change the motor or use a phase converter or drive to power it however. A drive would be the best option as it gives speed control too.

 

[LD1]

For the new price of a mill/drill you can get a used Bridgeport.

A bridgie is a 10x better machine. Personally i think those chicom milldrills are a PITA. Had one at work and hated it, round column and all.

So my advice is to save your $1500 and look for a decent used Bridgeport J for about the same (or a little more). You will need a phase converter or drive to power it however.

:thumbsup::thumbsup:

Yep. I see used mills on c-list and the like around me for under 2k every week:thumbsup:

 

[sandman2234]

As Scooby mentioned, the round shaft typically has a lot of problems when it comes to milling, especially with a small table like that. As a drill, it has drawbacks in height, so in reality it is a compromise that doesn't really do either very well.
If you want a mill, buy a mill. If you want a drill press then get a drill press. I typically use my mill for a lot more drilling than the drill press, but mainly because I have tooling larger than what my chuck in the drill will hold, or it is R-8 base, which is what the mill is. If you have a problem investing a lot of money in tooling, then skip the mill and buy a drill press with a couple of those boxes of import drill bits (a couple because you will break them)
Most of the time, a problem drilling a piece of metal has very little to do with the thickness of that metal. Speeds and feeds first, then a good sharpened tool with the right lube.
Stepping up from a drill press to a heavier drill press isn't necessarily via a mill/drill, though most people that need a heavier drill press that go to a mill drill probably step up to a heavier drill press soon after buying the mill drill.
David from jax

 

[jake98]

Thanks for the insights.. I put one of these in the cart: G0705 Drill/Mill with Stand 29 inch x 8 inch Table
but will hold off until I look some more. I don't really need a mill, just don't want to spend half that much on a big drill press, then end up wishing I got one.

 

[Shield Arc]

When I was tooling up my shop, I wanted a really good drill press. It was suggested to me to spend a little more and get a mill. At that time 10 + years ago a Grizzly mill was not all that much more than a good drill press, it's all the tooling that goes with the mill that will floor you!

 

[sandman2234]

When I was tooling up my shop, I wanted a really good drill press. It was suggested to me to spend a little more and get a mill. At that time 10 + years ago a Grizzly mill was not all that much more than a good drill press, it's all the tooling that goes with the mill that will floor you!

Yea, if you can't afford the mill, you durn sure can't afford the tooling!!!(just saying that the tooling is going to be ongoing expense, instead of a single outright purchase.
David from jax

 

[jake98]

I ordered the mill, and one of these to go with it: H5939 18 pc. R-8 Boring Head Set (I think it goes with it..:laughing also a 2 piece vise that looks like junk, and a clamping set. Gotta start somewhere...

 

[sandman2234]

I ordered the mill, and one of these to go with it: H5939 18 pc. R-8 Boring Head Set (I think it goes with it..:laughing also a 2 piece vise that looks like junk, and a clamping set. Gotta start somewhere...

Apparently we were unable to talk you out of it, so I guess the next thing to do is to support you. Might want to order some of those square toolsteel pieces like is pictured in the round bar in your boring head picture. You will need the correct size, and if you really feel rich, order a few with carbide inserts welded on the ends. Carbide makes up for something your mill is also going to be lacking in, (just noticed it) which is speed. (or rather too much of it). While speed is great when you need it, larger diameter tooling like something you might hang out an inch or so outside that boring head, is going to burn up toolsteel bits in a hurry. Carbide inserted ones will take a LOT MORE HEAT, which will build up fast with your mill only having a 150rpm minimum speed.( Bridgeports have 80rpm min speed).
Find a speed and feed chart on the net and start figuring out how to determine how fast to run a drill bit or a bit in the boring head.
David from jax

 

[sandman2234]

got a picture of the two piece vise? (or a link to it?)
David from jax

 

[Artisan]

You can pick up a full size knee mill for $1300 and up on EBAY. There is a company called RELIABLE TOOLS that sells on Ebay, it is a stand up company, they liquidate large companies. They package it up and ship it to you. A knee mill is NOT hard to operate. A little instruction and your off and running.

If you learn how to draw in CAD you simply draw your parts, send the file to a local water jet cutter and get your parts mailed to you. I learned how to draw in CAD and it is a whole new world now. I can make darn near anything, then weld it up! I used ot be one of the guys that kept saying " I don't have the skills to weld" and "I can't draw on a computer" ...

I bought a freakin welder and got some software and learned myself to do it, a pro at it? NOPE, but my welds hold and I can draw almost anything in 2D, THAT is power....

 

[mjncad]

If you go the mill/drill route, get a square column unit. A buddy has a round column Grizzly and if he screws up his Z-axis setup, the round column also twists that part of his setup out of whack too when he corrects the Z-axis foul up.

 

[Doppelgangar]

A Mill is very handy and can do things a lathe can not do.

Here is my Mill with feeds in all directions.

Its old accurate and is both cross and verticle

Here is some rollers that I made on the mill.

 

[LD1]

I ordered the mill, and one of these to go with it: H5939 18 pc. R-8 Boring Head Set (I think it goes with it..:laughing also a 2 piece vise that looks like junk, and a clamping set. Gotta start somewhere...

On a positive note, that is a pretty good price for a boring head with carbide tipped bars:thumbsup:

 

[jake98]

Apparently we were unable to talk you out of it, so I guess the next thing to do is to support you.
got a picture of the two piece vise? (or a link to it?)

yeah, I'm like a donkey, thanks for the advice just the same...
H2992 2 pc. Milling Vise - 6"

You can pick up a full size knee mill for $1300 and up on EBAY. There is a company called RELIABLE TOOLS that sells on Ebay, it is a stand up company, they liquidate large companies. They package it up and ship it to you. A knee mill is NOT hard to operate. A little instruction and your off and running.

If you learn how to draw in CAD you simply draw your parts, send the file to a local water jet cutter and get your parts mailed to you. I learned how to draw in CAD and it is a whole new world now. I can make darn near anything, then weld it up! I used ot be one of the guys that kept saying " I don't have the skills to weld" and "I can't draw on a computer" ...

I bought a freakin welder and got some software and learned myself to do it, a pro at it? NOPE, but my welds hold and I can draw almost anything in 2D, THAT is power....

I used to use Ceneric Cadd for my construction projects until Autodesk bought it and killed it, about 20 yrs. ago. would like to find something like that again. What are you using?

A Mill is very handy and can do things a lathe can not do.

Here is my Mill with feeds in all directions.
Its old accurate and is both cross and verticle
Here is some rollers that I made on the mill.

That's good to hear right about now. Those rollers look great, they for a tube bender?

On a positive note, that is a pretty good price for a boring head with carbide tipped bars:thumbsup:

That's good to hear too, Grizzly seems to be fairly priced from what I can tell, most of my woodworking machines are from them. Never had any disappointments worth mentioning. I bought this mill primarily for the drilling capability but will be reading up on milling now... thanks to all. :thumbsup: