Newbie Here - Looking for Mill Advice

Hello, I'm new here. I registered after having read some here and there threads found in Google. And also I figured I might as well sign up and join the community here as well given that I just recently purchased my first mill mid/end of this pass year. I got me a Taig manual mill and as I have yet to open it from the box and build it I just recently discovered the A2Z Monster Mill. Now that I just found that one its made me re-think if I should open my Taig and put it together or if I should look to selling it off to fund an A2Z Monster Mill. Could anyone of you here gimme some advice regarding both machines and thoughts on the Monster Mill compared to a Taig, again am only looking for info on manual setups as I am still very new to the milling scene. However as I do learn more I do plan to wanna look toward upgrade to CNC but for now any and all info regarding the two mentioned mills above would be greatly appreciated.


Thank you and look fwd to my being a new member here.

Very hard to believe that ridiculous thing would not have all the rigidity of a piece of well-cooked spaghetti. Low rigidity makes for a useless machine.

Regards,
Ray L.

Which mill are you referring to, the Taig or Monster Mill ?

I am pretty sure Ray is referring to the Monster. It does look pretty absurd with that tall thin tower. As I understand it Taig mills have a pretty good reputation.

Good luck whatever you choose to do.

I mainly wanted the Monster Mill when seeing it mainly for its "looks" compared to the looks of the Taig. I also recall reading a thread here from a member who stated his broke somethings and he needed replacement parts. Not sure the detail on what his issue or issues was but I originally picked up the Taig after hearing many good things about it but the Monster Mill is something new I just came across a week or so ago. Maybe I should just keep my Taig? I spoke to one of the guys there at A2Z corp and asked about the weight of the machine and I was told its just over a 100lbs which is heavier than the Taig. I guess I'm being too anal on aesthetic appeal given what the Monster Mill looks like compared to the Taig setup.

I take it that means you prefer the look of the Monster Mill over the Taig? I know the Taig is no supermodel, but...
Really, I'd stick with the Taig!

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Truggys_Suck

I mainly wanted the Monster Mill when seeing it mainly for its "looks" compared to the looks of the Taig.

---

You do realize I was laughing body parts off here. You choose a machine for what it will do for you, not its looks.

Quote:

---

I also recall reading a thread here from a member who stated his broke somethings and he needed replacement parts.

---

Anything built by man can be broken by man. Believe me there is truth in that statement as I've spent years working in automation.

Quote:

---

Not sure the detail on what his issue or issues was but I originally picked up the Taig after hearing many good things about it but the Monster Mill is something new I just came across a week or so ago.

---

When Used within its capability the Taig has an excellent reputation.

Quote:

---

Maybe I should just keep my Taig?

---

That would be highly recommended! You have a very long ways to go before you should consider anything else.

Quote:

---

I spoke to one of the guys there at A2Z corp and asked about the weight of the machine and I was told its just over a 100lbs which is heavier than the Taig.

---

There is a lot of talk in the forums about mass and its importance to a machine. However that mass has to be distributed about the machine in the right places. Frankly if you ever get to the point where you really need another mill it will likely be a much larger machine than the Taig.

Quote:

---

I guess I'm being too anal on aesthetic appeal given what the Monster Mill looks like compared to the Taig setup.

---

I've been around machinery literally all my life. Given that background the Taig is a lovely machine!

Function over Form, keep the Taig.

Thanks a ton for the input guys. I guess I will keep the Taig and open it up in the next few days andsee what it can do. Maybe I'll look toward the Monster Mill on down the road for a CNC setup or depending on how I feel the Taig does the job in manual form look to converting my Taig to CNC. I originally purchased the machine for scale radio control parts and a few firearm projects and given that the stuff I'm looking to do is not super large in size I figured the Taig would do quite nicely, also given the fact that I have a setup in a storage unit and will be running it off a Honda 2000EU Inverter Generator being the apartment I live in is tool small.

Currently I've looking for a nice quality vise with at least a 4" openeing. I have viewed a few of the Kurt vises but would like to know of some other high quality vises other than the Kurt. Maybe something that doesn't have that not so "fashion-able" casted base, maybe something that is full milled from top to buttom?

The Taig and the A2ZCNC Monster are both great machines for what they are.

Ok, lets ask a few more questions.

What do you plan to machine? Plastics, foam, wood, metals?

How big are the parts you anticipate making?

Are these parts 1 offs or do you need to produce many with the same specs?

Do you have any experience machining, fixturing or designing?

Finally, you are looking for a 4" Kurt or similar for your Taig?

Personally I would suggest you pull the Taig out of the box, assemble it according to the directions, become familiar with it and its parts, learn to use it manually and experience the frustrations of machining on the cheap. Not that this is bad, it will just be a cheaper learning experience than having an easily capable machine that will destroy, parts, tools and fixtures faster than you can reach the E stop.

Skip the vise for now. There are plenty of vises that work well and have a much lower profile than a Kurt or clone and you can build one. Check out Tryally on YouTube and make a similar vise. The experience of building the vise alone will give you insight on how to improve your technique. If Luiz can build the things he does on a Sherline, you can build the world with what you have.

It doesnt matter what you start with, get started. Chances are you will want something more specific for the job at hand later regardless.

I'll most likely be milling aluminum only, 6061, etc etc. I would say the most thickest piece I'd have to mill would be an 1-1/2" thick so quite thick. I'm not doing any kind of production things so everything is just small here and there stuff for my own personal desires, so speed is not so much a factor though I do know for certain the continuous hand cranking for such simple things would get tiring fast so I can definitely see CNC down the line after a few learning curves of the mill being in its manual operating state. I know also that some of the things that I plan to make may have large full circle radius's to them and I can only see accomploshing these areas with the mill being CNC. And no, I have no experience in machining, fixturing or designing.

The Taig that I got is Taigs most current model with the largest table they offer and the upgraded motor. My first try outs will be some shallow pockets. I also see myself making really long I-Beam like frames for some builds that would be maybe a full 1" thick but I nothing with really intricate detail.

There will be so much to learn and there are always other methods to get the job done. Asking 2 machinists to solve a problem or build a part will always get 2 different techniques, both are acceptable.

Keep safety the priority, buy 2-3 times the amount of cutters you think you will use in the beginning, not sure why I said that :-) Though manually you do feel it more than CNC. .125-.250" end mills arent as strong as you think.

Watch YouTube for tutorials, Mr.Pete a.k.a. Tubalcain, Ken Fenner, Tryally, NYCCNC and many others have absolutely spectacular videos.

Good luck and have fun.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Truggys_Suck

Thanks a ton for the input guys. I guess I will keep the Taig and open it up in the next few days andsee what it can do. Maybe I'll look toward the Monster Mill on down the road for a CNC setup or depending on how I feel the Taig does the job in manual form look to converting my Taig to CNC. I originally purchased the machine for scale radio control parts and a few firearm projects and given that the stuff I'm looking to do is not super large in size I figured the Taig would do quite nicely, also given the fact that I have a setup in a storage unit and will be running it off a Honda 2000EU Inverter Generator being the apartment I live in is tool small.

---

Given the above I'm pretty much convinced you have the right machine to start out with. I would tend to suggest that you not think about CNC until you can establish a better shop. When you do that you will also want to look at the much larger mills on the market.

Quote:

---

Currently I've looking for a nice quality vise with at least a 4" openeing. I have viewed a few of the Kurt vises but would like to know of some other high quality vises other than the Kurt.

---

Honestly a Kurt style vise would be a bit on the large side for such a mill. Consider the so called screw less toolmakers vises and other options.

Quote:

---

Maybe something that doesn't have that not so "fashion-able" casted base, maybe something that is full milled from top to buttom?

---

There are a lot of options out there but you need a vise robust enough to do the job.