[TiagoSantos]

Just bumped into this ad - Milling Machine (new)

Sort of looks like an RF45, but.. Bigger! 12" Y travel, but less X travel than the industrial hobbies machines. Also more gears and higher spindle speeds than a normal 45. Not particularly cheap, but I'm surprised I hadn't seen these, or other versions of it, before..

[Whizbang]

what a perfect sized machine the shorter x but longer y is just what i would like in a manual mill to finish things on. Anyone know where to get one of these in the states( midwest) I would pull the trigger on that immediately if i was closer.
Please if anyone knows where to get one let me know the next closest to that is the MTW ih45.

NICE FIND!

[Flexo!]

These look like awesome machines. I've seen them on some taiwan sites. Look to be made in Taiwan rather than mainland china.

I'd import a couple in a second if I had the cash. Cost about $3000 from taiwan, so $2900 is a pretty good deal (considering import freight, taxes etc). I suspect not much market for them due to being priced too close to turret mills.

The column is supersized (250mm square) to accommodate the large 350mm Y Travel (14")

GEM-500G

[Whizbang]

Come on guys there has to be someone state side importing these gems.
I very serious about getting one. I would just prefer a state side sale.We have all these people in the community, some one has to know where to get one.

WHAT A MACHINE! I hope my wife will put one of these in my christmas stocking

[hoss2006]

why not contact the seller and ask where they got it?
Have you drooled over the Trak bed mills?
http://www.southwesternindustries.co...trak_bed_mills
Hoss

[Whizbang]

AHHH hoss, that was cruel. those are very very nice too. however I can not get that 3200# piece of equipment in to my basement. the sunlike is definitely realistic. I want a solid machine that has a very square travel profile. i dont need 20 some inches in the x but only 8 in the y, however the sunlike 12 " tavel is perfect. I kind of feel bad contacting the seller asking where he got the mill not being interested in buying his.

[TiagoSantos]

I'll try sending him an email.. From the picture, I wonder if he's actually importing them.

[wizard]

what a perfect sized machine the shorter x but longer y is just what i would like in a manual mill to finish things on. Anyone know where to get one of these in the states( midwest) I would pull the trigger on that immediately if i was closer.
Please if anyone knows where to get one let me know the next closest to that is the MTW ih45.

NICE FIND!

Spend a few hours on alibaba or whatever it is called and you will find all sorts of manufactures of machine tools in Asia. There are also companies specializing in handling transactions, shipping and so forth. It is actually fairly amazing what you can find, there are still shapers being made in Asia.

Admittedly handling an international transaction yourself is daunting how ever you can communicate with the companies and ask if they have a relationship with an importer. Even then you will likely have a bit of leg work to do yourself. A surprising number of Chinese companies can handle communications in English (to some extent).

[rwskinner]

I'm mainly tagging the thread, but both links show awesome machines. Anyone want to buy an RF45 ? <grin>

I have imported numerous items and so far, never had an issue. Most of my items have been electronic related and I make the vendor supply a full cost of any shipping, taxes and duties up front. China, Taiwan, Australia, never a problem. Only had 1 warranty issue and it was handled asap and I got a free coffee mug out of it.

Richard

[Whizbang]

Im still looking.... checked out alibaba only found one that meets the form factor. one seems unrealistic. I still think there has to be some one in the state importing these. also on the craigslist ad the machine is 8 years old he claims it was never used it has english dials.

here are some interesting machines.
Drilling&milling Machine Xj9520 - Buy Mini Milling Machine Product on Alibaba.com

Ce Cnc Milling Drilling Machine - Buy Ce Cnc Milling Drilling Machine,Mini Cnc Milling Machine,Low Cost Cnc Milling Machine Product on Alibaba.com <- really interesting

Zxk7035 Mini Drilling And Mini Milling Machine,Mini Cnc Milling Machine - Buy Mini Cnc Milling Machine,Mini Cnc Milling Machine,Mini Cnc Milling Machine Product on Alibaba.com

[hoss2006]

The first one, XJ95, is available here in the states.
Big Dog Metal Master - Big Dog Metal Works
The 2nd one, ZX45, while they claim 12 on the y looks no bigger than my ZX45 with 9 inches y (measured).
RF-45 Clone Mill
Hoss

[Whizbang]

The first one, XJ95, is available here in the states.
Big Dog Metal Master - Big Dog Metal Works
The 2nd one, ZX45, while they claim 12 on the y looks no bigger than my ZX45 with 9 inches y (measured).
RF-45 Clone Mill
Hoss

After looking at the first its really just a g0704 with a bit more travel. the weak point is still the column.
The big RF45 are great but I dont really need the massive X travel. On top of that getting a IH or MTW big 45 would be very difficult to get up and down basement stairs unless each component is about 200#s whis i dont know.
What i would like is a rf45 style mill with a very square work envolope. 12" in the y axis is what i really want ,as long as I have 12-16" in the i will get along fine.

[TiagoSantos]

I can tell you from personal experience that you can easily move an RF45 inside by yourself if you're willing to take it apart. I am a 6ft tall 140lb weakling and the only thing I needed help with to move both my RF40 and my RF45 to the basement was the head!

To do that though, I had the thing almost completely apart - motor (about 50lbs?), head without motor (170lbs), column (not sure.. pretty heavy, but if I can do it, just about anyone can! Maybe a little over 100lbs?), table (probably around 100lbs as well), saddle (not that bad, maybe 30-50lbs) and base (the RF40 wasn't that heavy, the RF45 was a bit of a struggle for me). Then I had a couple of boxes of screws, leadscrews, handles and things like that.

It's not a pleasant job, but most of my friends who wouldn't be horrified of getting their hands dirty live too far to come give me a hand, so yeah!