I bought a Mill

[Thumper68]

As some of you know I have been asking a lot of questions about a Index 645 mill that I found for sale.

First off I want to apologize to everyone I purposely mislead you a bit, the Mill was up for online auction in a way north MN town and I didn't want to increase the bidder pool by stating where it was for sale, so I made statements that would lead everyone to believe that it was a private sale, so sorry if I offended anyone with my actions.

Now to the good stuff I got it I know that it isn't hat big of a deal to most but I have been searching for a mill for over 3 years that fit in my budget and I finally got one at a price that I can live with for a hobbist price tag.

$1562.75 with the taxes and auction fees of course it is going to cost me another $150 to go get it and bring it home.

I also got 2 Rotary indexers.
ROTARY INDEXER 8" BY NEWS.
YUASA ROTARY INDEXER 12" ACCU-DEX

and a bunch of other stuff.

I will update this on Thursday when I get everything home.

Pics.
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[Thumper68]

Oh I have to add that there is going to be another auction for the same place in a few weeks and there is a Bridgeport mill that will be in that one if anyone is interested.

 

[Thumper68]

Here is a extra vise I picked up also, thought it might come in handy.

HEAVY DUTY 5" MILLING MACHINE VISE

 

[bczygan]

Welcome to...

THE DARK SIDE!!!

Bill

 

[HanShotFirst]

Isn't it...Welcome to the **** side of the force???

Seriously, a BIG congratulations...that is REALLY exciting!!

 

[HanShotFirst]

... I know that it isn't that big of a deal to most...

Dood, it's TOTALLY a big deal; YOU GOT A MILL!!
I'm unaware of ANYONE who bought their first mill and wasn't excited! When I bought my current mill, it wasn't my first mill, wasn't even my second mill...and I was very excited. Heck, 3 years later, every time I walk into the garage and see my mill sitting there, I still get excited.

And by the way, you STOLE it!! Considering the mill, and the rotary tables/chucks, I'd say you have earned yourself a YOU ****!!!

Again, congratulations!!

 

[crguy]

Congratulations. Index mills are highly thought of.

 

[ez-duzit]

If it's in good shape that is a great machine. Mine is the earlier Index Super 55.

 

[ADSR]

congrats! she looks good!

 

[LXCam]

Major congrats ya dishonest bastage.

 

[Indexmill]

Hi,

I have an Index mill model 745 made in the mid-60s that I bought and restored about 10 years ago. It is a great machine; every bit as good or better than a Bridgeport. You know that they are still in business and still can provide nearly any part. I bought the manual from them and did a complete disassembly of the head with new bearings and new grease. The old grease wax like wax so check that out before you run it too long.

Does yours have the R8 taper or the B&S taper? It probably has a 3-phase motor so you will need a VFD to run it on single phase.

 

[Thumper68]

Welcome to...

THE DARK SIDE!!!

Bill

Bill I have been on the dark side for longer than I would care to admit

Isn't it...Welcome to the **** side of the force???

Seriously, a BIG congratulations...that is REALLY exciting!!

Thanks

Dood, it's TOTALLY a big deal; YOU GOT A MILL!!
I'm unaware of ANYONE who bought their first mill and wasn't excited! When I bought my current mill, it wasn't my first mill, wasn't even my second mill...and I was very excited. Heck, 3 years later, every time I walk into the garage and see my mill sitting there, I still get excited.

And by the way, you STOLE it!! Considering the mill, and the rotary tables/chucks, I'd say you have earned yourself a YOU ****!!!

Again, congratulations!!

Thanks!

The 2 rotary indexers were extra about $350 for the 2 of them, but what is an extra 3 or 4 bills when you are buying tools.

Congratulations. Index mills are highly thought of.

Thanks! I would rather have the Index from all that I have read.

If it's in good shape that is a great machine. Mine is the earlier Index Super 55.

congrats! she looks good!

I still need to find out when this one was built.

Major congrats ya dishonest bastage.

Thanks

Hi,

I have an Index mill model 745 made in the mid-60s that I bought and restored about 10 years ago. It is a great machine; every bit as good or better than a Bridgeport. You know that they are still in business and still can provide nearly any part. I bought the manual from them and did a complete disassembly of the head with new bearings and new grease. The old grease wax like wax so check that out before you run it too long.

Does yours have the R8 taper or the B&S taper? It probably has a 3-phase motor so you will need a VFD to run it on single phase.

That is one of the reasons I was excited when I found this one, that and not paying extra for the name bridgeport

After thinking long and hard and talking to quite a few people I have decided to bite the bullet and buy a American Rotary phase converter, that will run all 3 of my 3ph machines, Mill, Lathe and Bandsaw.

 

[Thumper68]

I just ordered the Rotary Phase converter from American Rotary.

I wanted to give a thumbs up To Jacob there, he was a pleasure to deal with and answered all my questions and made the buying process very nice.

 

[22george]

Call Wells Index. They should have the info on your mill

 

[Thumper68]

Call Wells Index. They should have the info on your mill

I was planning on it as soon after I get it home and get the serial number.

 

[OccupantRJ]

There are no friends at an auction.

Last man that bids takes it home.

 

[Thumper68]

There are no friends at an auction.

Last man that bids takes it home.

No truer words have been spoken, even though when I am at an auction with a friend we will not bid against each other on a item.

I have had that happen before me and a buddy were on opposite sides of the crowd and bid each other up on a tool, we were the only 2 bidding. from then on we stand next to each other,

 

[Thumper68]

Well the mill is home, It was a hella day to say the least, for some reason last night was one the the insomnia nights for me and I managed to get around 4 hours of sleep.

We were off to the races at 7:55 (My oldest son and I) to pick up one of my friends who was gracious enough to offer up his body to the machine moving gods.

Everything went very well from there on. We loaded up the mill with a bridge crane (I have to get me one of those, just another thing for the wife to look at me a shaker her head in wonder.) There is another thread I started on moving a mill that discusses the best way to move the mill, anyhow once it was loaded we strapped it down well for the 123 mile trip to my shop, stopping several times to make sure that the straps were all tight. Once here we had no issues unloading, using the toe jack I made last fall (video on my Youtube channel

) we were able to lift the mill one end at a time and slide a pipe under it, using the pipes as rollers we maneuvered it off the drop deck trailer and to its new home, once again we used the toe jack to raise it just enough to remove the remaining pipes and set it on the floor.

Honestly with the use of proper tools this went as slick as snot.

We didn't have time to screw around though, we hustled through unloading the rest of the auction items and had to hurry back to town to drop the trailer off before 5pm when the Sunbelt rental office closed, not to save money or anything good but because I have a electrician coming out tomorrow morning at 8am to give me a bid on wiring up the rotary phase converter and the 3ph machines in the shop.

I know that with the help of the fine people here that I could do the wiring myself but I wanted to make sure that this was done right the first time and done quickly.

American Rotary got my phase converter shipped out today and it will be here on Monday so Tuesday should be the day it is all up and running.

Right now I am going to head out to the shop and spend some quality time with solvent and rags cleaning the beast up and taking some good pictures for you fine folks.

because

 

[ez-duzit]

Well done.

 

[Thumper68]

Okay here are the pics, damn slow connection.
Sorry I forgot to rotate the first few.
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[Thumper68]

In this one you can see the damage from a ***** who milled the table.
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[Thumper68]

Right angle head was inside the column
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[Doug Arthurs]

Congratulations. By the way the name Bridgeport means nothing as far mills go. I have one and would prefer something a little more rigid. Yours looks nice and beefy. Also someone always runs a cutter into the table lol. Yours however looks like a real ******* move. Did they mill almost the entire length of the table?

 

[Thumper68]

Congratulations. By the way the name Bridgeport means nothing as far mills go. I have one and would prefer something a little more rigid. Yours looks nice and beefy. Also someone always runs a cutter into the table lol. Yours however looks like a real ******* move. Did they mill almost the entire length of the table?

Just about, almost looks like it was done on purpose for clearance maybe.

In the grand scheme of things not that big of a deal.

 

[Thumper68]

I just e-mail Wells-Index to see what info they have on this machine.

I have no idea what the mess is on the column, some type of lube mixed with chips, takes a hell of a lot of elbow grease and acetone to cut through it but it is cleaning up, the paint underneath so far is in great shape, so I don't want to use and mechanical cleaning techniques.

The machined surfaces I have cleaned up so far are looking good as well, the scraping marks are well defined.

The electrician should be here soon so I am heading out to do some more clean up and shoot a bit of video.

 

[Thumper68]

Wow, I already heard back from Well-Index here is the info on my mill from them.

Congratulations on your new Milling Machine. The history I have on your 645-12206 is as follows:
Motor
1 H.P. - 3 P.H. – 220Volts – 60 Cycle

12” LTPF Lamp

Shipped to University of Minnesota-Physics Det.
Shipped Oct. 24, 1965

Please let me know if there is anything further I can help you with. So you are aware we also sell manuals and parts for your Milling Machine.

Have a wonderful day,
Audrey Beckman
Wells-Index
(231) 759-0950
701 W. Clay Ave.
Muskegon, MI 49440

The lamp is missing, but I picked up 2 at the auction so should be all good.

I met with the electrician and we worked out a plan for getting all 3 machines wired up to the phase converter on Tuesday morning, he figures that it should only take a few hours. I have my list of parts and supplies so I will be heading into town to get those and start putting stuff together.

 

[HoosierBuddy]

Cool Mill.

One other "issue" with bridgeports in a home shop is they are so freaking big. I don't have room for one.

I had my eye on a couple of index mills, but they were too far away. I finally had to drive several hours to pick up a U.S. Burke Millrite. It's been a good machine for me.

I've added a power feed to the x-axis and a 3 axis DRO. Those are both great upgrades if you get to that point.

Phil

 

[Thumper68]

Cool Mill.

One other "issue" with bridgeports in a home shop is they are so freaking big. I don't have room for one.

I had my eye on a couple of index mills, but they were too far away. I finally had to drive several hours to pick up a U.S. Burke Millrite. It's been a good machine for me.

I've added a power feed to the x-axis and a 3 axis DRO. Those are both great upgrades if you get to that point.

Phil

It has the power feed on the x and quill and a dro is in the future plans.

 

[ez-duzit]

...I have no idea what the mess is on the column, some type of lube mixed with chips, takes a hell of a lot of elbow grease and acetone to cut through it...

S100 motorcycle wheel cleaner is the key to removing the baked on cutting oil and chips.

 

[Thumper68]

S100 motorcycle wheel cleaner is the key to removing the baked on cutting oil and chips.

Thanks for the tip, i will get some and give it a try.

 

[ez-duzit]

Tried all kinds of ways to clean my Index mill before hitting on the S100. And I did not want to ruin the machine by repainting.

Before/after.

Guess photobucket isn't working.

 

[Lassen Forge]

Jeez, Thumper... I'll second the Suckage... you did great! When I saw the school tag on it, I was wondering where the damage was... that table doesn't look totally borked, and I can see that "cut out" actually being useful for clearancing something... tho there are better ways... (College kids... )

 

[larry_g]

I use a lot of Hoppes #9 gun cleaning solvent to clean machines and tools.

lg
no neat sig line

 

[leg17]

Just about, almost looks like it was done on purpose for clearance maybe.
In the grand scheme of things not that big of a deal.

Thumper listen to me.
You have been advised by only a couple of folks on your other thread about needed tooling to get some end mill holders.
If you're sharp, you will do serious milling with them rather than collets.
Under load, end mills can creep out of collets.
If your workpiece is clamped on the table and you are milling close to it, you can be quite disappointed to sweep away the chips and find something like what you see on your table.
Seriously, get at least a 3/4 holder, and also a 1/2 and 1" if you can.

 

[Thumper68]

Thumper listen to me.
You have been advised by only a couple of folks on your other thread about needed tooling to get some end mill holders.
If you're sharp, you will do serious milling with them rather than collets.
Under load, end mills can creep out of collets.
If your workpiece is clamped on the table and you are milling close to it, you can be quite disappointed to sweep away the chips and find something like what you see on your table.
Seriously, get at least a 3/4 holder, and also a 1/2 and 1" if you can.

I have end mill holders on my list of tools needed and have already picked up 1 3/8" since i have so many end mills that are that size, will be adding the rest as I find them.

 

[Farmall450]

Congrats Thumper! It's about time.

 

[Thumper68]

Congrats Thumper! It's about time.

You're telling me! 3 years of searching and turning hand wheels, followed by trying to explain that their clapped out piece of **** was not really made of gold.

In the end I hope/think the wait and effort will be worth it, don't know for sure since I have yet to try this thing out under power but I am excited to find out if I made a good buy or not.

 

[Thumper68]

It's alive, Just got done with all the wiring and flipped the switch and it ran great, in reverse but great, switched 2 of the legs and it now runs the proper direction when in forward.

The motor for the x axis is seized, will have to pull it off and see whats up and if I can not fix it I will have to get another one, not that big of a deal anyhow I can crank a handle until it is working.

So this afternoon will be more cleaning the S100 came yesterday and I will be giving that a shot.

Then I will have to remount the vise and tram it in.

It was well worth the $150 I paid the electrician to come out and give me a hand.

I found all the parts for wiring up the lathe as well and that is now on my to do list, still need to find a motor control for the band saw but it works well on the VFD for now so no hurry on that.

The American Rotary phase converter is quiet you can not even hear it running when the mill is running.

I'm dying to make some chips but I promised myself that I would not do so until I had it all cleaned up.

 

[Thumper68]

The vise is on and trammed, time for a few test cuts.

 

[Thumper68]

I have been slacking on pics in this thread, just a pain to upload from the shop since the internet is so slow. Any how here are some fresh pics after I ran through some test cuts.
Almost all cleaned up, I was tired of being on the floor doing the base, will do more as time and my back permit.

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American Rotary AR05 phase converter, fit perfectly between the band saw and mill and a post, very convenient as well the main switch for the mill is there too.

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Here is the power distribution 3 3ph outlets one for each machine I have now, if I add and more 3ph equipment it will be easy to add more.
You can see the bolts that were supposed to be for my jib crane that I have not yet built, I have been thinking about it and I don't need a huge crane for what I do so I am going to be building a small one to use to load stuff on to the mill and lathe, I have the beam just need to source a nice length of heavy wall round tube or sch, 80 pipe. Since I now have a working mill and lathe I can also build a custom trolley to fit the beam I have.

View media item 71221
The side and base where I did the most cleaning, the S100 that was recommended worked great along with a nylon and brass brush and a bit of scrubbing.

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