Quill DRO fitted to a Millrite MVI
Well, this has been in progress forever, but I finished installing a Jenix DRO
on the quill of my Millrite MVI vertical mill (resembles a Bridgeport, but about 2/3 the size) today. I now have X, Y, and Z axes covered. What a help a DRO is, especially with older machines with wear. Now, only the knee lacks a scale. I have the necessary scale, but don't know when I'll get around to installing it. The quill was far more important, and the knee is the most difficult case - odd shape, nothing flat or perpendicular. The big issue with putting a DRO on the Millrite (made in June 1965) is that it was never designed for any such thing, so usually there is no convenient machined surface to use. Having a lathe helped a lot, allowing lots of custom little adapters and spacers to be made. I'll take some pictures and post them to the dropbox when I have some time. Joe Gwinn |
Quill DRO fitted to a Millrite MVI
Joseph Gwinn wrote:
Well, this has been in progress forever, but I finished installing a Jenix DRO on the quill of my Millrite MVI vertical mill (resembles a Bridgeport, but about 2/3 the size) today. I now have X, Y, and Z axes covered. I started a gatling project over two hears ago. Buying and repairing a lathe and a mill extended the start date a bunch. What a help a DRO is, especially with older machines with wear. If your Z (column) ways are a bit whupped, the quill dialed in is all you can really trust. I have a bit of wear in my Z column on my bridgeport but when it matters enough, I can work around it. Thankfully X and Y were rescraped at one point and hard chromed. Table surface a bit ugly. Now, only the knee lacks a scale. I have the necessary scale, but don't know when I'll get around to installing it. The quill was far more important, and the knee is the most difficult case - odd shape, nothing flat or perpendicular. The big issue with putting a DRO on the Millrite (made in June 1965) is that it was never designed for any such thing, so usually there is no convenient machined surface to use. Having a lathe helped a lot, allowing lots of custom little adapters and spacers to be made. I'll take some pictures and post them to the dropbox when I have some time. I would like to see them. Someday my ancient Sony scales are going to die and going 3 axis will on my agenda. Wes |
Quill DRO fitted to a Millrite MVI
In article ,
Wes wrote: Joseph Gwinn wrote: Well, this has been in progress forever, but I finished installing a Jenix DRO on the quill of my Millrite MVI vertical mill (resembles a Bridgeport, but about 2/3 the size) today. I now have X, Y, and Z axes covered. I started a gatling project over two hears ago. Buying and repairing a lathe and a mill extended the start date a bunch. What a help a DRO is, especially with older machines with wear. If your Z (column) ways are a bit whupped, the quill dialed in is all you can really trust. I have a bit of wear in my Z column on my bridgeport but when it matters enough, I can work around it. Thankfully X and Y were rescraped at one point and hard chromed. Table surface [is] a bit ugly. I don't really know if the Z-axis ways are whupped or not, although one assumes that they have had their fair share of wear over the last 45 years. Now, only the knee lacks a scale. I have the necessary scale, but don't know when I'll get around to installing it. The quill was far more important, and the knee is the most difficult case - odd shape, nothing flat or perpendicular. The big issue with putting a DRO on the Millrite (made in June 1965) is that it was never designed for any such thing, so usually there is no convenient machined surface to use. Having a lathe helped a lot, allowing lots of custom little adapters and spacers to be made. I'll take some pictures and post them to the dropbox when I have some time. I would like to see them. Someday my ancient Sony scales are going to die and going 3 axis will on my agenda. If you already have scales on the mill, it will be pretty easy to replace those scales, compared to adding scales to a pre-DRO machine for the first time. Joe Gwinn |
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