Cheap Drill Press converted to Milling Machine
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- Опубліковано 26 лис 2017
- Converting a cheap drill press to a milling machine. The result is far from perfect but not bad for an investment of about $120 and some time. See the companion video about the cheap milling table for this outfit at • Cheap Milling Table .
Sorry, I have been overwhelmed with the number of comments and could not reply to all of them. My apologies! Just not enough time!
Really great use of an old drillpress. If lateral movement with the spindle/Chuck becomes excessive you can extend an arm from the column with a couple bearings on the end pressed against the chuck to control run-out. As long as the surface of the chuck is smooth. Saw this trick in an old magazine.
I love watching videos of people fixing or repurposing old or broken things for a new life.
It reminds me of a time before consumerism became the norm.
Well done 👏👏👏
Thanks for your kind words! I agree. My kids throw things away when they are broken and they could easily be fixed with a little effort.
I like that down feed mechanism you made.
Very impressive and comprehensive conversion
Thanks!
Nice..! And for the people complaining..it is what it is! The guy just showed us how to make an inexpensive primitive mill, not a high tech several thousands of $$$ equipment.
I think I might take up the idea with the worm and gear.
Thats some good tips there, im converting a drill press to vertical mill myself, i like the worm drive mod.
Dave, I have a 618 and like it very much. I also enjoy your videos! I am now restoring a Hardinge Cataract Lathe from the 20's. ...Newk from Kentucky
Thanks for your comment, Timothy. I'll bet the Hardinge is a real beauty!
Good job and much needed advise instead of having to buy a milling machine to use it twice a year the most. Thanks, mite!
Thanks for your comment. Glad the video was helpful!
Really cool! I consider making something similar soon.
This is brilliant! Perfect for a small home shop. As much as i would love a big mill I just dont have the space or the money to buy a half decent one. This would be better than nothing :)
Yes, this is just barely better than nothing! :-)
Good job.
I would suggest using the very shortest stub end mill you can get by with, and 4 or more flutes. Short will reduce the side forces on the quill, and more flutes will chatter less and work better at low RPMs. Maybe you could lathe-turn a solid end mill holder to replace the chuck.
Regardless of the results, there is merit in doing projects like this. When I was a kid there was no money for new stuff so everything was repurposed and I learned a lot that way.
Thanks for the comment and the great suggestions!
Excellent work.
Nice video/ I've been wanting to transform a drill press into a milling machine for some time. Thanks for showing what it will take.
You are most welcome!
well done I would like to do the same you have some great ideas. to reduce the movement laterally more you could look at the top bearing in the quill
had to comment . very well done. simple, ingenious, effective.
Thanks, Richard!
Great video! Thanks for sharing!
I really enjoyed this video, thank you for sharing. I hope to attempt something like this if I don't purchase an actual mill.
This is just for fun or absolute desperation. If you can afford it, buy the real thing.
Nicely done! I have a HF drill press that I’ve used only a few times. When I lower it to begin drilling, it always shifts slightly to the left. Is there a fix for that? Hey thanks.
A good optimization of a cheap drill press. You just have to remember it still has a very small diameter spindle so keep the loads and feeds VERY light. Fine for cutting keyways and precision hole location. It can handle most projects in a home shop.
Thanks for your comment, Lawrence! Yes, I am with you 100 percent. This was just for fun. Thankfully I have a real milling machine too.
Nice work! Love the Z feed machanism you made
Thanks for your comment, LonLon!
Have you done anymore work on the drill quill since this vid? I saw someone suggest quill slots & gibs to take out the play while moving.
I got a Harbor Freight mini lathe,
and I am seriously eyeing the saddle & cross slides for use with a modified drillpress bolted to the lathe 'over' the slides. Scored some 3/8 thick 3.5" angle iron from a scrapyard, so RIGID framework between lathe bed & drill head should not be a problem. Love to hear if you had any more progress on the quill/chuck flex.
Where did you get your handle to lock your drill arm in place?
Taper roller bearings would be a better option. Drill presses are only designed for vertical loads.
But hey, any mill is better than no mill!
Yes, I agree!
TommyGun Machining dude everyone knows that
Three bearing mounted in a triangle around the chuck (like the steady rest on a lathe) might make the runout very small, but the feed avance may need to come from below like a jackable milling table? Just a thought. But nice job, it still works. I like it.
To pre-load the bearings, glue one in. Counter bore the other with enough room to install an internal snap ring. Put a thin spring washer between the snap ring and the bushing. Use a tube on the shaft cut slightly longer than the distance between the bearing seats to hold the center of the bearings out against the tension'ing outer spring washer. This is a fun project your working on. Probably most of your play is between the spindle housing and the cast iron casing. Boring that out and installing a very close bushing on one end and a tapered sliding bushing on the other end would be very cool. Of course this is outside the simple tools you have used thus far. Also about outside your purpose would have been to turn a new spindle with a larger OD, use larger OD matching ball bearings and bore the spindle for #1 or #2 Morse Taper. Then run a draw bar and collet arrangement. I know, it's way over the top. ;-) Fun video.
Wow, I wish you could come over to my house and do this for me! Seriously though, thanks for a very well considered comment!
- Dave
Just buy a mill by then.
Great job
Not sure how it will last but interesting to see how you went about it.
Cool idea with the little worm gear!
Thanks for your comment!
Had to weld my Chuck on tho, the vibrations kept shaking it off!, mind you i was mill some pretty hard cast steel.
Is this their 8" drill press, or one of the larger ones?
For bearings, you could have gone with Timken tapered roller bearings instead of the double ball angular ones. Tapered rollers are designed for side loading. (I'm a bit biased as I worked for the Timken steel mill that makes steel for their bearing factory)
Thanks for your comment. Someone online recommended these as replacements but I am also aware that Timken makes the very best!
Nice work
Cool, thanks. Cool, do-able-for-me, easy quill lock! Maybe a downfeed later, hehe. I got a larger, 6" capacity, 7" travel cross slide so needed a larger drill press (maybe good in the long run but I'd have bought yours if done over and just used my similar press). I maybe should have bought online, but the $75 one at HF in person (gotta have it now, sight-seen syndrome) at least beats the pants off the $65 wobbly-even-after-mods one at HF. Your cross slide looks nicer, more precise with the better dials but at least the second one I bought moves smoothly after cleaning, stoning, and greasing. My larger press has no depth stop or lock at all (weird esp. the no stop). The Tradesman floor press does have less spindle bearing play but I did notice on my lil' General benchtop press didn't wobble as much as expected once turned on, like the "slack was taken up" by the added tension of the energy or movement (?) a sort of artificial load was generated or something (?)... but the cross slide runs into the support tube of the little press so I'll need to make a quill lock for the big one to work on it.
Everybody who shops at Harbor Freight understands that they are not buying a top quality tool but you cannot beat the value for the money! Many of my HF tools are still around but some have been replaced by more expensive versions. Depends on your usage pattern. Use those coupons!
Put a copper BB behind quill lock screw to keep from gauling quill cylinder.
Thanks for the suggestion!
Excellent project, Dave. It tempts me to rebuild my Harbor Freight 20" drill press to add a milling capability. Tempts. In this case the entire top half of the spindle has to be rebuilt to replace the solid upper spindle with a DOM tube for a 3/8" - 16 tpi draw bar for MT3 tool holders, plus better bearings. Doable? Yes. Cost? After buying a Grizzly 6" x 18" milling table ($220 shipped), much larger radial thrust bearings, DOM tube, material to machine a new step pulley with a much larger bore for the draw bar tube and maybe a worm/wheel the cost is getting close to Harbor Freight's Sieg X.2 milling machine ($581 delivered as of Feb 2, 2019). Certainly $300.00. Oh yes. If you don't already have the 20" drill press add another $500. Now we're at $800.00 Harbor Freight 1-1/2 hp mill/drill for $1000 new anyone? Comes with an 8" x 28" table, real R8 spindle, 750 lbs of vibration dampening cast iron, etc. Or find a used mill on Craigslist for $500?
Alright, so step one: get a lathe
You could also borrow a lathe
He had a lathe
every time lol
And step two, build or buy a milling attachment for your lathe. Dave still made a great project here. But unless you can source most of the parts for free or at low cost second hand, the final price will approach the 20% discounted cost of Harbor Freight's Sieg X7 mini-mill.
I
I LIKE DOING THINGS WITH MY HANDS WOODWORK OR METAL VITOR
Damm good idea..
How do you keep the spindle from falling out when milling?
It is pretty firmly secured in this particular machine. It's not a tapered spindle. Very cheap.
i real like this invention
Thanks, Harold!
Great video, not too complex.
Thanks! Glad you like it!
I find that bronze bearings can be salvaged from a laser printer.
Very cool!! Does the runnout lessen with the lock engaged??
Yes, it's more steady when it's locked.
Ah ha! What to do with with the old HF&T drill press. I can cut to 0.02 on the old DP and finish on a borrowed real mill. Thanks
Thanks for your comment!
Very cool... but how did you get the bronze (brass?) gear wheel on to that shaft? The shaft on my drill press is machined/hobbed out of one piece by the look of it.
I cheated and used a nice South Bend10K lathe to help with this project. :-)
If I remember correctly, I had to cut the shaft and make a splice for it.
Do you need a milling machine to make the parts for the milling machine I don't know how that cost only $120
where did you get the knob from?
No idea. Sorry!
I like it , did a similar project before I got a mill.. I think adding some weight to the head ( like dumbells , sand , whatever ) and bolting the base down to something solid will help with chatter , vibration , and most importantly , save your ears (-;
Thanks for the superb suggestions, Rob!
Nice mann .. I wish I had the stuff to do that. I’m trying to convert my drill press
It's a fun little project as long as you don't expect to get a really good machine out of the deal. If you want a good machine, save up your pennies and buy one.
I was really interested n the worm drive for the z axis .. I was wondering if u would mind n filling me n a lil bit on how u did that... that’s a very good idea .. rkwiatkowski82@yahoo.com is my email Cuz I got a lot of questions haha.. awesome video mann
Hey how did you prevent the MT from falling out of the drill press did u use some kind of wedge or threaded draw bar? Excellent build by the way!
Thanks, Dylan! There is no taper here. Everything is screwed on.
Nice thanks
How much does the quill lock deflect the quill when engaged? Is the end mill parallel to the work then? sounds like the end mill is trying to climb the work. Good video.
Thanks for your comment, Terry! This is not a high precision machine. There is a bit of deflection as you might expect and the degree of parallelism is probably not great.
How would a preload work on Wheel bearings?
No idea!
Since they are conical maybe they can handle preload and flex better? The question is tolerance. Just a guess from my side.
I've been contemplating a complete overhaul of one of these little drill presses . . .
for starters, the 'column' tube is way too flimsy to be rigid, same with the table & base ! I plan on casting a cement base, with studs embedded to hold the new square tube column, which is way more stable ! The head will be bolted to the column from it's back face, with added supports on the side of the head - ( a sketch would be simpler than describing in words ! ) The column will also be filled with cement, with a bit of rebar for insurance ;)
One of the issues with these presses is the high speed, which means either changing to a DC controllable speed motor, OR, to add a countershaft with more pulleys to achieve better speed control. * Lower speeds would have much more TORQUE , much like a back geared lathe . Rigidity is the downfall of these little machines , as they lack it !
Annular contact bearings are just the ticket for these, since space is limited, BUT, a 3/4 inch spindle could be made to suit. . . with tapered rollers / and a take up thread for 'preload'.
The quill could be 'slotted' in a few places to accept GIBS, which would allow taking out practically ALL of the slop ! This would necessitate setscrew adjusters, which is no big deal. It's a shame that U.S. built machine tools have 'forgotten' the home craftsmen - corporate greed has gone to overseas production , with the result being cheaply made goods of questionable quality ! * Try putting an indicator on the chuck, then pushing on the top of the head ! FLEXIBLE means SLOP ! ! ! Slop means chatter. . . the end result means inaccuracy :( ** I would suggest to anyone considering turning one of these presses into a mill , to buy 2 of them - and use the 'spare parts' ( motor & pulleys) to make a countershaft arrangement to be able to harness the power at a lower rpm . . . TORQUE is a necessity ! * Good work with the spindle repair ! ! !
Oh, I forgot to mention that attaching the head to a square column instantly turns the machine into a 10"er . . . * BUT, this same unit could be mounted like a RADIAL drill press, with the head mounted on a horizontal , movable column that is mounted on TOP of the vertical one ! HAPPY BUILDING !
last words : " If you can't make it ACCURATE, make it ADJUSTABLE ! "
You are the real deal, George. You will build an Aircraft Carrier before you are done! :-)
Nice video. Neat project. I've got a similar Craftsman bench drill, and have been looking for a way to do some really light milling with it- The tapered spindle was obviously not going to work. Your approach seems simple enough! I just added an Atlas lathe to my shop, So I think I am going to give this a shot.
Thanks for your comment, Andrew! Good luck with your project. It's a great way to exercise your newly acquired Atlas lathe. You could also get a milling attachment for your lathe. You may want to check that out. Have fun, Andrew!
SMM,
Just a thought on changing the bearings...(I don't have a lathe, yet.)
I know the bearings on a drill press are "designed" for vertical pressure , and not lateral/ horizontal pressures that may dislodge the chuck...ejecting it across the room, giving a whole new meaning to "fly cutter"....but,
I'm considering drilling an +/- 1/8" hole perpendicular all the way through the entire quill, spindle and the chuck taper shaft out the other side....then inserting a "spring pin" (aka roll pin) that is recessed within the quill, but connecting the spindle to the chuck arbor...that would suffice in securing it, but also making it easily removable for future chuck changes...kind of like a shear pin...but for light duty.
....Your thoughts.
Sorry but I cannot advise you on this. Good luck!
Thanks SMM,
I did some more research with exploded views of various machines...
It seems it would depend on the design...and only work with presses using MT2 / JT3 Arbors...
Some machines have the chuck directly connected to a threaded spindle. But with a little finagling it might be possible as well.
I really like your ingenuity! Also I agree with with Crafted I think a lot of that slop is between the quill and the housing casting. And machining that chinesium cast is kinda like machining old dried out cheese I would consider doing what someone else here on UA-cam did and cut a slot in the front of the casting with a stop hole at the top so it won't crack and a pinch bolt with a nylock running horizontally so you can fine tune the play with a DI. Crude but should get rid of a lot of wiggle. Good luck!
Thanks for a very useful suggestion! Much appreciated!
Check popular mechanics1940s...and mid 1960s have articles on this...adding a brace to spindle using bearings...carrera to made and use
Interesting! Thanks for your comment!
Will the chuck on the drill press fall out? Did it ever fall out for you?
I don't remember having that problem but you make a good point. This was just a fun little exercise. If you want a true milling machine go out and buy one....
thank you
@@smallmetalworkingmachines1378
What is the typ of the cross table?
See my other video about the Cheap Milling Table
I have looked on different eBay sites for that same worm gear set up but can't find it. Could you point me in the right direction?
Sorry, Mark, that may have been a "one-of-a-kind" sale I stumbled onto. It's easy to make this up from a couple of Boston Gears but buying them new would be very pricey! (and not worth it for this project). Keep looking around and maybe you will find something suitable for a reasonable price.
@@smallmetalworkingmachines1378 Thank you sir.
As much as I cringe every time I see an end mill in a drill chuck, I like the creative solutions you came up with for the rework of this drill press. Good Job. Stop by my channel for a look. I may have some machining content you may like.
Thanks for your comment! I feel the same way about end mills in a drill chuck but there were no better (easy) options available. This machine is a far cry from a decent milling machine.
- Dave
Yes it's true about the safety involved but for people can't afford a meal this should work okay for small project when in a pinch I'd like to change this upgrade to my drill press
How about putting a ER11 Collet Chuck on?
Great idea! I even considered such a thing but thought I would be beating a dead horse. You can keep going with improvements to this thing but, as many folks have pointed out, you eventually reach the cost of buying a very nice brand new shaper!
I wish I had a lathe in the basement.
Tapered roller bearings would have been better. Maybe the higher end machines do use them.
Thanks for your comment, Noel!
Looks pretty dangerous ....some of that play could come from the cheap chuck...nice work.
Nothing can come off easily. The drill chuck is threaded on.
I enjoyed the build, but would have like to see even just a few seconds of a demo of it in action as a mill to finish the story. "...and here is how it works."
I have a short demo in the video. Sorry it may not be enough to satisfy all viewers.
The short demo is at 5:13 into the video. I think I got called away from my desk and missed it in the middle. I was expecting the demo at the end to finish the build story. I apologize and thanks for posting the build.
That morse taper is going to cause you trouble with milling
Watch again. It is not a Morse Taper. But, you are right. This is not a Bridgeport!
I applaud your ingenuity but seriously, don't do any milling without a draw bar. Morse taper shanks have a nasty habit of twisting themselves loose without something to hold them in place.
I had a crack at doing the same but it ended badly because I didn't add one.
No taper involved as I remade the spindle with 1/2-20 threads.
To simple , just buy a small mill
Sure there will be some slop. But if you not building engines who cares. .005 ain't that bad
Yes, this machine is only suitable for pretty crude work. But sometimes, that's all you need.
Only good for plunge cuts, that drill chuck isn’t designed for a side load
Ok. Why? ...just get a milling machine. All that work to end up with something that will limit you so much. The sound by it self scares me.
Big deal. I did this 30 years ago and I'm sure I' not the only one.
Yes, I'll bet you are not. Thanks for your comment!
You didnt put it on you tube dummy
Oh Ron, you must be so smart.
Awesome what you did 30 years ago...but what have you done lately?