[aldebaran07]

As the title goes...
trying to pick one up from the few established brands: Taig, Grizzly, Sherline and LittleMachineShop.
I understand that Sherline is not that general tools friendly; Taig looks ok, but does it use a R8 shank?
All in all, not quite sure what to pick; we'll be working steel and aluminum, brass and bronze.
Hard to decide, they will all fit...
Thanks for suggestions.

[imp22b]

I am also in the market for a mini-mill. I am currently leaning towards the Grizzly G0463 (X3) as it meets what I think all of my needs are.

It looks like the Grizzly G0704 (BF-20) and Grizzly G0619 (SX3) are other popular choices. I am really struggling trying decide on which one between the three.

I don't care for a rotating head which is the main reason I'm leaning torwad the G0463 but the larger work area of the G0704 may but nice (but possibly not needed). I think the main difference in the G0463 and G0619 is that the G0619 had a rotating head and a slower spindle speed, the work area is the same.

Any of the three mills mention above can to steel, aluminum, brass, and bronze.

I hope this helps, and I hope some one else will reply to help me pick too. Which ever one I get I'll be doing a CNC build thread.

[Fastest1]

The Sherline is a great machine but if steel is your desire, look elsewhere. It can do it but it will be slow. \

Also travel is very important. The vise, your part, a drill chuck on a tool holder with bit can get pretty long. Even the G0704 starts looking like more is needed at times. Big mills can do little work, the opposite is not true.

[Fastest1]

Double post

[aldebaran07]

Are the Grizzlyes made in China, or with Chinese parts? Many other machines on the market come from there.

[Fastest1]

Almost all machines at the hobby level are made in China. There are different levels of QC between vendors. Grizzly does a pretty good job.

[awerby]

Just to correct some misperceptions, not all the machines being discussed in this thread are made in China. Sherline tools are made in California, and Taig tools are made in Arizona. Taig mills use a ER-16 spindle and collet system, not R8. I'd recommend them to anyone wanting to make small objects from metals up to and including mild steel or annealed tool steel. Please let me know if you have any more questions about them.

Andrew Werby
www.computersculpture.com

[aldebaran07]

Right.
I am looking at both the Grizzlies and Taig; Taig looks pretty well made, the Grizzly takes a R8 shank; Taig comes as CNC/CNC ready, whereas I can's see that option with Grizzly.
Are there any other brands worth looking at? Sherline is not an option since everything is custom made for it and I don't like the #1 Morse taper..
Thanks.

[aldebaran07]

Just to correct some misperceptions, not all the machines being discussed in this thread are made in China. Sherline tools are made in California, and Taig tools are made in Arizona. Taig mills use a ER-16 spindle and collet system, not R8. I'd recommend them to anyone wanting to make small objects from metals up to and including mild steel or annealed tool steel. Please let me know if you have any more questions about them.

Andrew Werby
ComputerSculpture.com ? Home Page for Discount Hardware & Software

Thanks Andrew.
Taig looks fine to me, but I would need a lower speed and more torque to run face mills as well

[tony978]

My $.02 if you need lower than 1,000 rpm and more torque then you need more than a bench mill for rigidity . I have milled a jaw on my 4th axis chuck with my taig while my head was turned and it didn't strain or make any different sounds . I run a taig semi close-loop servo system at home and full size cnc's at work so I know what I am doing .

I did get my mill from Andrew

tony

[NewHobby]

IF you get one of the CHinese mills X2, SX2, X3, SX3 or BFx variants be sure to measure the table for how level or square it is and assess if you ned to do som,e finish work. If one has expectations that out of the box they are precise one would be incorrect. That said it is not that hard to scrape and lap them to get them pretty good but it requires time and tooling. The ways on my machione looked like a file and contact patches on the ways were minimlal at best.

Do some searches and look at some build threads to get an understanding of what your getting into. Poor way , crooked dovetails, gibs that don't fit properly or anywhere close to correct is super common, tons of column flex etcetc is teh type of stuff you get out of the box, They works quite fine for general stuff but if your interisted in doing something precise the mills require quite a bit of work. Looks a some build threads in this forum, notably some of the BF20 or 0704 threads.

Not trying to discourage anyone but to prevent you for ordering and then wanting to send it back when what arrives that is in your mind, I am just passing on info of what these mills are at this price point. To me they represent a good starting point.

I got the LMS machine, frankly I love it but it takes quite a bit of work like they all do. I enjoy it though so it i smore hobby fun that chore so I like that part. Still sraping mine actually. Dang it is hard work. But when done it will be awesome. That said some buy them and start using them and are fine with a table slope of .01 and it causes no issues for them. Just be aware what your getting into is all.

If I was going small it would be the Taig most likley, they appear well engineered and seem to work well without needeing much of the prep that mini mills typically do but envelope is smaller and steel is not it's thing. I wanted the R8 and a bit more beef but wanted to avoind the work that larger mills take. So the LMS which was my pick based on my needs. Most difficult part is being honest with what you need. Bigger is always better seems to be a common theme but honestly for hobby use if you never do anything bigger than 3x6 do you need a bigger mill that requires more work effort and cost that comes with a larger size.

Assess your needs, then buy accordingly. Easier to say then do. Best of luck and give the LMS machine a look. The column is 1/2", plenty of power and the table size if inbetween many of the others.

Good luck!

[awerby]

Hi Tony; it's always nice to meet a customer here! I hope your mill is still working well for you.

It does take some readjustment of expectations to transition from something like a manual Bridgeport with a R8 spindle (which everybody who took shop in high school learned to use) to a small CNC mill. Operations that one is used to doing with a shell mill, for instance, would be best done with a smaller cutter programmed to clear a flat area. It doesn't really take much longer to let the CNC do the work. The Taig can cut steel, but obviously it has to take smaller bites at it than a knee mill would. But I don't see any particular advantage to the R8 spindle over the ER-16 system the Taig mills use.

That's a good point about the Asian-built mills; I've heard them described as a kit that can be used to build a mill, with a certain amount of lapping and scraping required. And that's just step one: then you generally have to retrofit them for CNC, which can be a lot of work on a mill that wasn't designed for that.

Andrew Werby
www.computersculpture.com

[bjones]

Thanks Andrew.
Taig looks fine to me, but I would need a lower speed and more torque to run face mills as well

good point, go read some posts in the taig forum of people taking hours to machine a part that could be done in minutes on a machine with R8. if your time is worth anything to you. plus these r8 machines can enjoy the benefits of power drawbars, boring heads and so on and so on. take the taig salesmans point of view as what it is.

[awerby]

I've got a manual Bridgeport as well as a CNC Taig; there certainly are some occasions, like hogging away waste steel with a large tool, where the former will outperform the latter (although the Taig does better on other things, particularly those involving small tools which need to spin faster). I don't think this has much to do with the R8 spindle, though. The power drawbar isn't of any particular benefit to actual machining; it just makes it easier to change tools, given the need to unscrew the collets from the top and bang on the spindle to break them loose. It isn't needed with the ER-16 system, which just requires a couple of wrenches for changing tools. There is a boring head available for the Taig; it's in the list of standard accessories: Taig Tools - Desktop Milling Machines and Lathes.

Although I do sell Taig machinery, I don't exaggerate its capabilities. Some operations might take a little longer than is possible with a bigger mill, other ones will go quicker on the Taig because of its relatively fast spindle. Yes, there are large machines costing many times the price of a Taig that can remove material faster, but they rarely come with R8 spindles these days; it's an obsolete system only found on older machinery and offshore clones. But you've got me curious - what R8-equipped machine do you think the Original Poster in this thread should get to make the small parts indicated? Is it going to cost less than the Taig, be easier to set up for CNC, be better supported, and outperform it in every way?

Andrew Werby
www.computersculpture.com

[bjones]

you don't seem to be reading what the op wants, seems pretty keen on r8 to me. the power drawbar is of particular benefit to the operator, seems everyone that has one wouldn't go without one now. you seem fixated on comparing to a bridgeport even though the op is looking at small mills from grizzly and little machine shop. both of these sources offer small mills that are very popular here on the forums, much more so than the taig. the tts quick change tools are also a very popular r8 tool and won't work with a taig. people like conveniences.

[aldebaran07]

Thank you to the posters, I will go with the TAIG for now: when I'll need more milling power I will upgrade.
Is the TAIG ready to run out of the box or does is need some tweaking too?

On a sideline: are the TORMACHs US made or imports?
Thanks again.

[SCzEngrgGroup]

Tormachs are made in China. If they were made in the US, they'd cost 2-3X what they do.

Regards,
Ray L.

[tony978]

You can get a taig cnc ready with out motors and controller or with a controller an motors .

The hardest thing about setting up the machine is the motor couplings that can be a little of a pain the first time .

I love my servos I am running and there people that love there stepper motors

Tony


Tony

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[aldebaran07]

Tormachs are made in China. If they were made in the US, they'd cost 2-3X what they do.

Regards,
Ray L.

Good point though... Looks well made.
However, not everything made in China is gunk, they've put a vehicle on the Moon and soon humans on Mars

[aldebaran07]

Thanks Tony.
I think I will go with the DSLS 3000 and be ready to roll.