List of starter tools for a milling machine?

[Thumper68]

I have searched here and elsewhere for a list of tooling as a start when getting a mill with no luck so here we go.

I have all the measuring stuff that I need at the moment so leave that stuff out.
We can assume that anyone starting out knows that they need a mill vise.

Here is the list I have so far please add anything that is a must have to start with.
Here is the updated list including most of the suggestions.

So tonight we went from want to need, I bought a mill thread here.

http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=362219

Updated list from suggestions and marked if I already have item
R8 collet set Have
Boring head
Boring bars Have
Face mill
Drill chuck Have
Collet rack Have
Selection of end mills (I have a good selection from 5/16 up to 1 1/2)
End mill holders (In my case I will need 1", 1 1/4" to cover the end mills I already have.)
Hold down set to match the t-slots
cutting oil Have
Dial test indicator I have 2 in working condition
spindle mount indicator holder Have
parallel set(s) I have this covered, several sets from thin to thick to wavey
edge finder Have
Fly cutter
Good files Have
Clamps of various sizes Have
Angle plate
work light Have just need to rewire
1-2-3 blocks Have
Vise stop both fixed jaw clamp-on and t-slot mounted Have several of the jaw clamp on style
Spring loaded tap guide
brass or lead or copper hammer Have
Bluing(wide chisel point markers work well. I prefer red) Have
Scribe. Have
Spring loaded punch Have
A nice chip brush. Have
A surface magnifier, like a loop, but it sits on your work piece.
Back plunge indicator Have but need to have it serviced
Spill master and acid brushes Have
T-slot cleaner Have, made one today
Table covers


I would consider these advanced tools or job specific and can be added as needed or added as found, ebay, auction or flea market.
Different End mill types ball, t slot for example.
Delrin for practice.
Machinist wax for practice
co-ax indicator
C5 collet holder
C5 collet indexer different types
Rotary table Have 8 inch and 12 inch
Jack screws Have


That is where I'm at right now, I want a good list so that I can include it in the mill set up budget.

 

[larry_g]

In your measuring tools do you have a dial test indicator, DTI, needed

parallel set
edge finder
Face mill is handy but not in the beginning..
Fly cutter, make your own
Good files
mag base indicator holder
spindle mount indicator holder.
MSC catalogue + other catalogues
Clamps of various sizes.


more to come

I would avoid the Pro Tram type tools and many other of the fancy widgets. Learn to tram with your DTI.


lg
no neat sig line

 

[pi_guy]

Depends on what your looking to do.
Angle plate
Different End mill types ball, t slot for example.
C5 collet holder
C5 collet indexer different types
Rotary table

Would have more detail but on vacation so no paperwork/catalogs here.

 

[HanShotFirst]

It all depends on what kind of mill work you plan on doing.
If you don't have a DRO on the machine, then pick up some Mighty Mag's and some indicators; I call that the poor man's DRO.

And if you don't have a DRO, then you want to save your pennies...greatest invention for a Mill ever!!

Most milling is all about work holding, so look seriously into work holding for the type of milling you plan on doing.

If your mill doesn't have one, then buy or make a work light

Here's a photo of my little Rockwell 21-100, there are some things there that are not easy to see.
To the left of the mill vise is a wooden block that I made that holds 3 R8 collets, it fits down into the slot and is VERY convenient when working on things that require a few tool changes. I'm a gunsmith and most of what I do will require 2-3 changes, so the 3 collet holder is just perfect.

Front on the stand is my collet holder. It is still under the table wheel so I don't have to worry about hitting my legs on it.

To the right on the stand (very hard to see) is a magnetic tool holder I mounted that holds all the wrenches that I ever need while using my mill.

My worklight I made from a cheap desk light from Walmart hose clamped to a cheap magnetic base from Harbor Freight.

Thick parallel bars are a must (at least for me); I'd get those before I bought the inexpensive thin parallels. Then the thin parallels and wavy parallels are also very handy.

Depending on what you may be milling; 1x2x3 and larger blocks can be really handy.

If the type of milling you do requires movement of the head often, then you'll want to buy or make a Spindle Square Tramming Tool; they really make tramming operations much quicker and easier.

 

[Ign]

1-2-3's
Vise stop both fixed jaw clamp-on and t-slot mounted
Spring loaded tap guide
A co-ax is a luxury but REALLY nice

edit: oh and yeah parallels in 1/32, 1/8 and 1/4

 

[Thumper68]

Thanks for the additions guys, please keep them coming.

I couldn't stand not knowing so I went out to the shop and went through all the end mills in my stash.

I was surprised to find I had 60 good end mills and a dozen or so of okay.

Updated list from suggestions and marked if I already have item
R8 collet set
Boring head
Boring bars Have
Face mill
Drill chuck
Collet rack
Selection of end mills (I have a good selection from 5/16 up to 1 1/2)
End mill holders (In my case I will need 1", 1 1/4" to cover the end mills I already have.)
Hold down set to match the t-slots
cutting oil Have
Dial test indicator Think I have will check tomorrow
spindle mount indicator holder
parallel set(s) I have several will have to dig them out tomorrow and take a look at what sizes they are
edge finder
Fly cutter
Good files Have
Clamps of various sizes Have
Angle plate
work light
1-2-3 blocks Have
Vise stop both fixed jaw clamp-on and t-slot mounted
Spring loaded tap guide
brass or lead or copper hammer Have
Bluing(wide chisel point markers work well. I prefer red) Have
Scribe. Have
Spring loaded punch Have
A nice chip brush. Have
A surface magnifier, like a loop, but it sits on your work piece.


I would consider these advanced tools or job specific and can be added as needed or added as found, ebay, auction or flea market.
Different End mill types ball, t slot for example.
Delrin for practice.
Machinist wax for practice
co-ax indicator
C5 collet holder
C5 collet indexer different types
Rotary table

 

[Thumper68]

I took a few moments and went through the tools and tooling I have and can update the list again.

Updated list from suggestions and marked if I already have item
R8 collet set
Boring head
Boring bars Have
Face mill
Drill chuck
Collet rack
Selection of end mills (I have a good selection from 5/16 up to 1 1/2)
End mill holders (In my case I will need 1", 1 1/4" to cover the end mills I already have.)
Hold down set to match the t-slots
cutting oil Have
Dial test indicator I have 2 in working condition
spindle mount indicator holder
parallel set(s) I have this covered, several sets from thin to thick to wavey
edge finder Have
Fly cutter
Good files Have
Clamps of various sizes Have
Angle plate
work light
1-2-3 blocks Have
Vise stop both fixed jaw clamp-on and t-slot mounted Have several of the jaw clamp on style
Spring loaded tap guide
brass or lead or copper hammer Have
Bluing(wide chisel point markers work well. I prefer red) Have
Scribe. Have
Spring loaded punch Have
A nice chip brush. Have
A surface magnifier, like a loop, but it sits on your work piece.
Back plunge indicator Have but need to have it serviced

I would consider these advanced tools or job specific and can be added as needed or added as found, ebay, auction or flea market.
Different End mill types ball, t slot for example.
Delrin for practice.
Machinist wax for practice
co-ax indicator
C5 collet holder
C5 collet indexer different types
Rotary table

 

[leg17]

Jack screws are needed occasionally.

Make some boards to cover the table each side of the vise. Makes cleanup easier.
Make, (or buy), a T-slot cleaner.

 

[Ign]

Oh yeah speaking of 5C collets get collet blocks (sold in a set of square and hex).

These are THE BOMB for machining square and hex features into small parts.

Get a SpillMaster for cutting oil. And a box of 144 acid brushes (stupid cheap per piece that way).

 

[Thumper68]

Jack screws are needed occasionally.

Make some boards to cover the table each side of the vise. Makes cleanup easier.
Make, (or buy), a T-slot cleaner.

Thanks added to the need now list

Jack screws (machinist jacks) added to the as needed as found list.

Oh yeah speaking of 5C collets get collet blocks (sold in a set of square and hex).

These are THE BOMB for machining square and hex features into small parts.

Get a SpillMaster for cutting oil. And a box of 144 acid brushes (stupid cheap per piece that way).

5C collets and collet blocks added to the as needed or found list
Spill master added to the need now list

Updated list from suggestions and marked if I already have item
R8 collet set
Boring head
Boring bars Have
Face mill
Drill chuck
Collet rack
Selection of end mills (I have a good selection from 5/16 up to 1 1/2)
End mill holders (In my case I will need 1", 1 1/4" to cover the end mills I already have.)
Hold down set to match the t-slots
cutting oil Have
Dial test indicator I have 2 in working condition
spindle mount indicator holder
parallel set(s) I have this covered, several sets from thin to thick to wavey
edge finder Have
Fly cutter
Good files Have
Clamps of various sizes Have
Angle plate
work light
1-2-3 blocks Have
Vise stop both fixed jaw clamp-on and t-slot mounted Have several of the jaw clamp on style
Spring loaded tap guide
brass or lead or copper hammer Have
Bluing(wide chisel point markers work well. I prefer red) Have
Scribe. Have
Spring loaded punch Have
A nice chip brush. Have
A surface magnifier, like a loop, but it sits on your work piece.
Back plunge indicator Have but need to have it serviced
Spill master and acid brushes
T-slot cleaner
Table covers


I would consider these advanced tools or job specific and can be added as needed or added as found, ebay, auction or flea market.
Different End mill types ball, t slot for example.
Delrin for practice.
Machinist wax for practice
co-ax indicator
C5 collet holder
C5 collet indexer different types
Rotary table
Jack screws Have

 

[Firebrick43]

I would personally skip the r8 collets and get some common size end mill holders. Then get an er 40 collet holder for the drills and such. Also I would skip the 5c collets and use the er40 collets as well. The spindexer, meh but hex and square collet blocks, a neccessary item in my mind. Again I would do er40 for the collet blocks. The er collets are my more tolerant of size(more range) and the double taper means they are typically more accurate. Also cheaper as even inexpensive imports are normally accurate due to design. 5c typically need to be fitted very closely and the manufacture of them(accurately at least) is more expensive. A set is 2 or 3 times more collets to cover the same range as well.

 

[dr_clyde]

Your priorities should fall into two categories. Cutter holding and workholding.

Bare bones cutter holding:

You want some common R8 collet sizes. 1/8, 1/4, 3/8, 1/2 and 3/4 will do a lot.

A good drill chuck is a must. I use three, but you can get by with 1. I keep an Albrecht 1/2" for most uses. I also use a 1/2" Jacobs superchuck, mostly for tapping. I also use a 3/4" super chuck fairly frequently for larger drills that I don't have a collet for.

The rest of it can wait. With these things you can do a lot of work. Buy stuff as needed.

For workholding:

Obviously a good vise is a must. Kurt or Orange is my choice.

Get a good strap clamp set. I use TECO. You will use this more than any other mill tool save maybe the vise. So get a good one. Get extra tee nuts and flange nuts.

I use angle plates and 123 blocks on almost every setup. I use eight 123 blocks on the regular. They're cheap. Get a bunch.

Any other setup tools you can afford will be useful. This is always the big challenge. Holding the work is what takes the head scratching.

 

[JoeFin]

Look Thumper - Your never finished

Once the metal addiction gets in ya - ya just got to have more.

Sure I know, it seems harmless. You make a few widgets, then you find out you can make tools too. Next thing ya know your the talk of the neighborhood "Oh Lookie what Thumpedr Fixed" - praise and accolades have finally come your way

Then you need some thing to work on them "Round Things, and the next thing ya know there is one of them freaking LATHEs in the rear view mirror and worse yet, its sitting on a trailer attached to your truck.

Fer Gawd sakes Man - get ahold of your self.

Before ya knowed it your need a Tool and Cutter Grinder to keep your End Mills sharp. Then ya might as well just say screw it - ya just going to have to have that Horizontal Mill so you can make some gears for the "Whatcha Ma Call it" you been working on.

Then just when your ready to start pulling your hair out - there's a Gal Dern CNC following ya home just the same way that lathe did - ALL BY IT'S SELF SWEETY - It just up and Jumped on the Trailer - I Swear !!!!

Get Ready its comin I tell ya

 

[Ign]

As always Dr Clyde is dead-on. I was also going to suggest angle plates. Get more sizes than you think you'll ever need - you'll use them all dependent on setup.

And x1000000 on the QUALITY toe clamp set. I'm all for import angle plates, 1-2-3's, collet blocks, collets, etc but bottom dollar toe clamp sets ****, often don't employ quality shouldered nuts and don't use heavy hex, so if you mix cheap and quality you find yourself needing two wrenches - soooo annoying.

Oh and get an M12 ratchet w hex bit socket for pulling vise jaws in a jiffy. No ****. HUGE time saver and no air hoses to knock things like 1-2-3's or screw jacks off your table.

 

[nine4gmc]

Good info guys, thanks for posting!

 

[leg17]

Thumper
You are talking about a vertical aren't you? Like a Bridgeport?

 

[MushCreek]

So much of it depends upon the kind of work you plan to do. I tend to make a lot of things out of solid chunks of steel, so the face mill gets used a lot. I hate flycutters, and cheap face mills that use typical triangle lathe bits. I have a 3" Sandvik with a wild looking rake angle and square cutters. Instead of rattling and banging, it cuts smooth as silk.

I also use and indicator and holder constantly. Get one with a fine adjustment, and a mirror is handy for reading it when turned away from you.

I don't see it mentioned, but you'll eventually need every size drill bit known to man. A set of center drills will help you drill accurate holes on location. A set of countersinks is very useful for nice finished work. I prefer the single flute ones. Buy a good keyless chuck (Albrecht, if you can swing it) and take good care of it. Don't use step shank drills in it- chuck them up in a collet. I cringe when I see people put a 1" diameter drill in a chuck. I often use so-called blacksmith or Silver & Deming large drills with a 1/2" shank, and quality hole saws will even work if you're patient and keep the revs way down.

 

[Johnny_V]

I know it's already been mentioned, but a DRO is one thing you'll really enjoy using. Also, if and when you can afford it, a good dividing head and super spacer. You may not use them all the time, but when you do, they are worth their weight in gold.

 

[B.S.A. (ret.)]

I would advise against ER-40 toolholder set-up that someone mentioned above. Way too much overhang in an R8 spindle. Had a set-up like that once and it really limits your capabilities.

 

[Ign]

x2 on the Albrecht. Keyless chucks are another area cheap doesn't pay. You can rebuild EVERY aspect of an Albrecht and like Campy they sell every little piece. Get an Albrecht and take care of it and your great great grandkids can still use it (except they'll be 3D printing everything).

 

[larry_g]

Lots of good information here but some probably does not apply. You have to define your work envelope and the work that you are doing. Then get equipment to support that process. Some of the professional people are recommending that you get the equivalent of all Snap-on tools, some are recommending things that are very specialized, and others gadgets and gizmos aimed at the hobbyist.

What is your reason for having a lathe and mill? Answer that and you will have a basis for tooling up the equipment. If it is your livelihood then top line is called for. If you just want to play with old machines, then another level is called for. A car guy who just needs to make or fix some parts then that is another level again. If your a tool collector then ........

As a hobbyist I got caught up in acquiring tooling just for bragging rights. Tooling I don't use, some I don't know how to use, and some I don't even know what it is. Some of the odd things came to me as box lots at an auction.

What ever you do, don't buy assortments of cutters that come from Asia. Not worth the time.

lg
no neat sig line

 

[Thumper68]

Lots of good information here but some probably does not apply. You have to define your work envelope and the work that you are doing. Then get equipment to support that process. Some of the professional people are recommending that you get the equivalent of all Snap-on tools, some are recommending things that are very specialized, and others gadgets and gizmos aimed at the hobbyist.

What is your reason for having a lathe and mill? Answer that and you will have a basis for tooling up the equipment. If it is your livelihood then top line is called for. If you just want to play with old machines, then another level is called for. A car guy who just needs to make or fix some parts then that is another level again. If your a tool collector then ........

As a hobbyist I got caught up in acquiring tooling just for bragging rights. Tooling I don't use, some I don't know how to use, and some I don't even know what it is. Some of the odd things came to me as box lots at an auction.

What ever you do, don't buy assortments of cutters that come from Asia. Not worth the time.

lg
no neat sig line

Larry has hit this right on the head, as a beginning/hobbyist I have no ideas what jobs I will want to do, I know I have some ideas that I have been putting off until I have a mill.

I started this thread to make a good list of tools and tooling that you should have to start with so that when you flip the switch you can make some chips and learn what you really need to do the projects that you want or need to do.

I think with all your help we have come up with a list that should get anyone started, at the bottom of the list I added a section for what I feel is more advanced stuff that can be added as needed or picked up as you find it at sales, auctions, ebay, or flea markets.

Thanks to everyone for their thoughts and insights on what is needed and please add more as you think of them.

I am going to redo the OP with the list where it stands now so it is easy for everyone in the future to access.

 

[Moosefire66]

Definitely not a requirement, but a height guage can save you some time with layout

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G890A using Tapatalk

 

[leg17]

Jack screws are needed occasionally.

Make some boards to cover the table each side of the vise. Makes cleanup easier.
Make, (or buy), a T-slot cleaner.

Should have also added a wiggler set.
They can be used where a normal edge finder won't work.
And the pointed centering tip is great for picking up centerlines or punch marks.

 

[holt2ton]

7/8 - 3/4 box end wrench is a MUST! The 3/4 end handles all the nuts for tipping the head on an angle and the draw-bar. The 7/8 end handles the standard nuts of a clamp set. This is for a standard Bridgeport style machine.

 

[Thumper68]

Well I started ordering some of the tools from the list, I have a good Rohm Chuck so I ordered the Jacobs 33 to r8 arbor and will switch it over. I also ordered a holder for the dial test indicator, a set of r8 collects and a 3/8ths end mill holder. I am holding off on ordering anything else until it is up and running.

 

[no704]

Sine bar and gauge blocks.

 

[racingtadpole]

Buy a vise, then make your own T nuts and finger clamps for practice projects. They are simple projects that don't require much tooling, but require you to learn how to do a task with both repetition and accuracy. After you have mad a small set of those, you will have a much better idea of where you are headed with the machine and what you need to get there.

 

[leg17]

Sine bar and gauge blocks.

On a mill?

 

[larry_g]

On a mill?

Yes. How would you set up for a PRECISION angle cut?

lg
no neat sig line

 

[dr_clyde]

A sine bar and gage blocks are the best way to set up angles, but they're not in my list of starter tools.

 

[Thumper68]

A sine bar and gage blocks are the best way to set up angles, but they're not in my list of starter tools.

mine either those would be in the advanced tool category for sure, that being said I have them in my stash for when needed.

Got a few things in, R8 collet set, 3/8ths endmill holder (has not arrived yet), Noga holder for the dial test indicator and the Jacobs 33 to R8 arbor so I can change my Rohm keyless chuck over to use in the mill.

Gonna hold right there for a week or so, setting up the mill cost me a bit more than expected.

The x axis motor is having an issue so I might need to buy a new motor for that will know later tonight.

I did get the mill cleaned up and got the vise reinstalled and trammed going to go make a test cut or 2 here in a bit.

 

[nine4gmc]

Congrats on getting it set up, hope your x axis is good.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Thumper68]

Congrats on getting it set up, hope your x axis is good.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Thanks congrats on getting yours going as well.

I'm fairly certain that the motor for the x axis is shot, if it wasn't completly there before I should be now, I was setting up to do some test cuts and my knee must have hit the drum switch and I didn't notice until there was smoke coming out of the motor.

I'm going to go pull it off as soon as I finish dinner.

New update pics in other thread.

 

[leg17]

Yes. How would you set up for a PRECISION angle cut?

Way overkill.

 

[larry_g]

Way overkill.

Do tell, How do you do it if not with a sine bar? We're not talking protractor precision here, but +/- seconds tolerance?

lg
no neat sig line