Sherlines are nicely made,relatively light, and they are easy to make into cnc machines. They are not as rigid and solidly built as the common harbor freight/grizzly/others mini mill and mini lathe. I'd go with the harbor freight style myself because they're a bit cheaper and seem a bit better for larger workpieces, but the sherlines ain't bad.<br>
<br>If you buy any of these be sure to budget a bit more money for a decent vise, end mills, parallels and such. The cost of the small-but -important accessories can add up.<br><br>A separate mill is much nicer than a milling attachment for a lathe.<br>
<br><div class="gmail_quote">On Thu, Mar 26, 2009 at 9:25 PM, Shannon Lee <span dir="ltr"><<a href="mailto:shannon@scatter.com">shannon@scatter.com</a>></span> wrote:<br><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="border-left: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); margin: 0pt 0pt 0pt 0.8ex; padding-left: 1ex;">
Wow, Ian, it sounds like you know a lot more about this than I do.<br><br>I agree with all your points that I'm qualified to have an opinion on. I'm certainly not wedded to this particular tool, but it's always easier to get everybody's attention with a specific action suggestion, rather than an abstract question :) But maybe, in this case, establishing a fund and then letting it accumulate is the right way to go.<br>
<br>Actually, having a "Noisebridge Tool Fund" is not a bad idea; it means that tools are not competing with rent for resources.<br><br>In addition to the Grizzly machine that you and Bill pointed out, I've also looked at similar machines from Busy Bee (<a href="http://busybeetools.ca/" target="_blank">http://busybeetools.ca/</a>); they all seem about the same to me, but the one we're looking at here on CL retailed for a lot more new...?<br>
<br>Also, I've been looking at the Sherline desktop lathes and milling machines; they don't have a combo (although the lathe can do double duty somewhat, aparently), but the machines are compact table-top models that are pretty cheap (in the $600 range). <a href="http://www.sherline.com/" target="_blank">http://www.sherline.com/</a><br>
<br>Ian, would you by chance be free to come along on Monday and see the device? I certainly wouldn't know how to check for excessive wear.<br><font color="#888888"><br>--S</font><div><div></div><div class="h5"><br>
<br><div class="gmail_quote">On Thu, Mar 26, 2009 at 3:02 PM, ian <span dir="ltr"><<a href="mailto:ian@sonic.net" target="_blank">ian@sonic.net</a>></span> wrote:<br>
<blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="border-left: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); margin: 0pt 0pt 0pt 0.8ex; padding-left: 1ex;">That looks like an okay machine, but it does also seem a little<br>
physically large for NB. Also, I'd be a little wary of a<br>
high-precision machine that's been used at a high school. When I've<br>
been in the market for used machine tools, I've tried to buy them from<br>
machinists. Students are hard on things, and high school students<br>
doubly so.<br>
<br>
Machines like this come up used on craigslist pretty often, and<br>
sometimes include a bunch of tooling as well (this one has a vise,<br>
centers, and collets, but no tooling). If people want a lathe/mill,<br>
it might make sense to establish a fund for it, and keep an eye out<br>
for something that would better suit Noisebridge.<br>
<br>
Along those lines, Grizzly sells some really decent machines new, for<br>
a similar price, that take up considerably less space:<br>
<br>
<a href="http://www.grizzly.com/products/category.aspx?key=465000" target="_blank">http://www.grizzly.com/products/category.aspx?key=465000</a><br>
<br>
It all depends on how large the things are that people intend to make...<br>
<br>
There are also some things you'll miss with a combo machine:<br>
<br>
- They lack a quick-change gearbox for driving the leadscrew, which<br>
makes them a pain in the ass if you want to cut a lot of threads.<br>
Only matters if you care about thread-cutting, though.<br>
<br>
- They don't have a knee for the mill, which means you only get about<br>
3-4" of vertical travel. After that, you have to reposition the head<br>
and you lose alignment with the workpiece.<br>
<br>
These are the main compromises with an all-in-one tool as opposed to a<br>
separate lathe and mill. Like I said, it all depends on what you want<br>
to make.<br>
<font color="#888888"><br>
-Ian<br>
</font><div><br>
On Wed, Mar 25, 2009 at 9:00 PM, Shannon Lee <<a href="mailto:shannon@scatter.com" target="_blank">shannon@scatter.com</a>> wrote:<br>
</div><div><div></div><div>> Hi Noisebridge,<br>
><br>
> There's been discussion on and off about getting a mill and a lathe for the<br>
> shop. Today on Craigslist I saw this:<br>
><br>
> <a href="http://sfbay.craigslist.org/sfc/tls/1088127089.html" target="_blank">http://sfbay.craigslist.org/sfc/tls/1088127089.html</a><br>
><br>
> ...which is both a lathe and a mill, and nice and compact. It's at a local<br>
> private high school.<br>
><br>
> I'd like to get it, but I'm not, at the moment, able to shell out $1000 for<br>
> it. I'd be willing to pitch in a couple of hundred, if others also think<br>
> this is a good enough investment to kick in...?<br>
><br>
> --S<br>
><br>
> --<br>
> Shannon Lee<br>
> (503) 539-3700<br>
><br>
> "Any sufficiently analyzed magic is indistinguishable from science."<br>
><br>
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<br>
</div></div></blockquote></div><br><br clear="all"><br></div></div>-- <br><div><div></div><div class="h5">Shannon Lee<br>(503) 539-3700<br><br>"Any sufficiently analyzed magic is indistinguishable from science."<br>
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