Long time reader newly registered poster,I am seeking guidance on an old question that doesn't seem to have been asked in a few years. I'm only asking again because things change over the years.
I am an apprentice gunsmith currently taking my machining classes and intend to purchase a manual vertical mill in the next 4-6 months and I have no idea what brands are good and what aren't etc.
In the shop I'm training in we use a very old Enco pulley speed Bridgeport clone (I believe that's a J-machine?) which is very reliable and very accurate (much to my surprise after everything I've read here) and a series 1, 2 speed Bridgeport. The surprising thing is that the enco is the main workhorse.
While of course everyone says buy a Bridgeport and I'd love to I am not sure I can afford to for my first machine. I am looking for input on other viable machines that are a good reliable accurate product for the money. I'm after what works and works well not necessarily paying for a name.
I am not a hobbyist gunsmith I will be doing this as my full time job and therefore is very little work I can do without needing a mill. Plus I'll need to be buying a lot of tooling, a lathe and surface grinder eventually so anything saved without sacrificing accuracy is obviously a good thing.
Thanks in advance,
Brett
I am an apprentice gunsmith currently taking my machining classes and intend to purchase a manual vertical mill in the next 4-6 months and I have no idea what brands are good and what aren't etc.
In the shop I'm training in we use a very old Enco pulley speed Bridgeport clone (I believe that's a J-machine?) which is very reliable and very accurate (much to my surprise after everything I've read here) and a series 1, 2 speed Bridgeport. The surprising thing is that the enco is the main workhorse.
While of course everyone says buy a Bridgeport and I'd love to I am not sure I can afford to for my first machine. I am looking for input on other viable machines that are a good reliable accurate product for the money. I'm after what works and works well not necessarily paying for a name.
I am not a hobbyist gunsmith I will be doing this as my full time job and therefore is very little work I can do without needing a mill. Plus I'll need to be buying a lot of tooling, a lathe and surface grinder eventually so anything saved without sacrificing accuracy is obviously a good thing.
Thanks in advance,
Brett