I bought a mill on ebay that said "local pick up only" from 2000 miles away

[Clark]

I have been using a Rockwell 21-100 mill made in 1963 that got all smashed up in shipment 11 years ago when I bought it on Ebay without insurance.

This new mill I contacted the seller and asked who he shipped with. He put me in contact with a packager that will crate it. The packager found a shipper with insurance. The packager asked how big is it? I sent Bridgeport specs, but those were working area specs not shipping specs. So the box was too big for the local delivery guys. It took an extra week of storage before I straightened that out on the phone.

This is a 1969 mill, but it is almost new condition. I could have lived with the Rockwell, but I only have ~ 18 years left, and I don't want my kids to get anything
I will probably make a couple of scope bases per year as I have done for the last few rifles.

[DCM]

Looks like it was packaged well for this one.
CNC or just some powerfeed?

[oldred]

Getting a new(er) mill is always good!

[pworley1]

How much it will be "used" has no bearing on "needing" a new tool. Nice find.

[w5pv]

Have fun and use it all up near the end.

[dragonrider]

Power feed and readouts? Should give you a lot of service for a long time. Enjoy.

[wv109323]

Leave your kids enough money to give yourself a proper burial. Or they might leave you above ground for the buzzards. Enjoy the mill.

[kfarm]

That's cool. I got a grizzly mini mill, lathe, truck load of accessories and band saw from a friend. Wanted $350 for all. Now it's got me wanting something better but I better learn a bit more before she let's me spend some real money. In the month I've had them I wonder how you can be serious about loading with them. At least you probably don't have to work around the Chinese backlash.

[Clark]

2 days later I have moved it 12 feet, 30 feet to go. It is heavy.

[smokeywolf]

Looks very similar to my 1985 Bridgeport. I didn't even know they were building vari-drive heads in the '60s.

[Clark]

The neighbor came over to use my old mill to work on his R2D2 robot, and together we made quick progress and got the mill in the building.

[smokeywolf]

Watch your head.
Is that beam going to be used to get the mill off the pallet?

Anxious to see a pick after you've placed it and unwrapped it. From what is visible, it looks brand new.

smokeywolf

[mattw]

That is awesome... I learned what I know on a large Bridgeport, but lost access to it. I wish I had one now or even a good mini...

[Clark]

Here is the ebay listing for my Bridgeport:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Bridgeport-M...vip=true&rt=nc

This mill has made parts that are on Mars right now. We have done work for Space-X and N.A.S.A. with this machine. Never touched hard metals, aluminum and brass only, Chrome ways (High precision model) Perfect condition, includes collets, DRO, power feed, Kurt vise You get what you pay for with these machines Tightest one you will ever put your hands on Price is Firm

My old mill, a Rockwell 21-100, came off ebay 11 years ago.
It is 780 pounds and arrived smashed up, requiring lots of MIG welding on the head and replacing of all handles.
This 2200 pound Bridgeport series 1 J2 arrived with only a bent handle.

I don't know how I am going to get it off the pallet yet.
I ordered a Johnson bar that should be here in two days.

I found two big casters and put them under the pallet to push the pallet around the side of the house. My board broke. I replaced it with two better boards. It was a hard 30 foot journey.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0052PP3NC

[smokeywolf]

Looks like it was quite the struggle to move it.
Nice. You'll get spoiled by having Z readout on the knee travel. What brand is the DRO unit?

I'm going to have to hire machinery movers to move my lathe and mill when we move out of Kali.

[W.R.Buchanan]

Once you get the machine onto a cement pad you can bump it around by using a 36" crow bar and sticking the end into the little cutouts in the base and lifting and pushing the mill at the same time. Each bump will usually be around 1" movement. I have moved many this way and it seems like it takes along time but it doesn't take as long as renting a forklift.

As far as getting it off the pallet I'd suggest just hacking away at the pallet until the mill was just sitting on the plywood on top of the pallet. if you can't get the reinforcing from under then build a ramp and then you can bump it around and move it off the plywood that way.

The Johnson Bar might help you get it off the pallet too, and one guy running that along with the crow bar bumping it would work. You'll get longer bumps with the J bar under one end and the crow bar under the other.

Randy

[Clark]

Buchanan,
I ordered a #2 flared rigger's nose bar today.
http://www.easternrigging.com/prybar.htm

If there are 1" notches, I may have to grind off the flares.


The DRO is an xyz "futaba pulscale usa cj" which is ancient.

[smokeywolf]

Once on concrete, I have a 5 foot long railroad spike puller and a set of mice that I use.

[W.R.Buchanan]

Buchanan,
I ordered a #2 flared rigger's nose bar today.
http://www.easternrigging.com/prybar.htm

If there are 1" notches, I may have to grind off the flares.


The DRO is an xyz "futaba pulscale usa cj" which is ancient.

That bar should work just fine,, you stick the toe under the machine and lift until the machine slides off the toe. then repeat.

As far as the DRO goes,,, as long as it works it doesn't matter when it was made. I have one mill that has Trava-Dials on it. I put them on it in 1984. They still work just fine.

The designs of new ones aren't that much different and really all I have seen as improvements are reductions in pricing as time goes on.

The fact that you have a DRO is the good thing. If you need service on it there are usually outfits around that can work on it for you,,, but I have to tell you, I have never had to have mine worked on.

They are pretty reliable things.

Randy

[Clark]

Never heard of Trava-Dials until this month. My brother in MT got one off Ebay for his lathe.
I had a 5 year old DRO fail this year on my lathe, and I replaced it. It failed due to a bad installation by the importer and my giving it rough treatment. I turned the handle on the cross slide until the DRO acted as a stop. I replaced the SINO scale and reader, and mounted them with the DRO travel better centered with the cross slide travel. The cross slide dial can no longer be turned so far as to damage the DRO.

I got an eye bolt today.