Beginner Hobby Machinist Looking at These 2 Mills. Can anyone tell me about them?

Hi,
I am a beginner hobby machinist looking at 2 mill options.
They seem like they might be good options for me to start with. And I like the price point.
I know I'll have to do some work to whichever I pick and that does not concern me much.
Can anyone tell me about a little about them and if you think the prices are fair?
Thank you!

Bridgeport 9”x32” M Head milling machine for $1,650
Some price flexability.
1/2 hp with universal quick switch spindle.
Has 5ea collets and a repaired Bridgeport vise. 240v 3ph.


1HP Cincinnati Mill Serial# 6J1V52-302 for $1,300 (obo)
It's a Toolmaster but there is no model number.
But I found some manuals with variations of 6J1V52.
Not much tooling.

Driven hard, put away wet.

Not a fan of round rams, big step down from V ram in a couple ways

Dunno bout the other one

At that budget most machines will be dicey, but you might be able to get a decent v ram

Boat anchors and overpriced

Why do you want an elephant?

Take the time to ask around for one in great condition

These iron monsters are everywhere and at junk price

They are only worth what someone will pay, so pay no more than junk price and they can be glad you want to haul them off.

Get them to throw in tools and cutters with a really good vise too

really

Pathogen said:

Boat anchors and overpriced
Take the time to ask around for one in great condition

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I've been trying for the past month on Ebay, Craigslist and FB Marketplace.
The nice ones are 4K and up.
And people are not budging on prices other than $200 here and there.
I can't find anything local to me where I can show up with cash and see what happens.
And I don't want a mini-mill ... especially the China brands.
For what I'm looking for I gotta drive 4 hours or more.
Pretty frustrating.

Good machines are worth money. You don't always get what you pay for, but you seldom get more than you pay for.

If these are your only 2 choices, I'd go for the Cincinnati. 1hp isn't a lot,
but 1/2 is even less. The round ram thing also.

The qwik switch spindle could be nice, but Kwik Switch or Rapid Switch 200
tooling is pretty pricey. If it was a 300, it would be almost free.

I also have a bias against Bridgeports for some reason.. But I would take
one at the right price.

AmericanMaker said:

I've been trying for the past month on Ebay, Craigslist and FB Marketplace.
The nice ones are 4K and up.
And people are not budging on prices other than $200 here and there.
I can't find anything local to me where I can show up with cash and see what happens.
And I don't want a mini-mill ... especially the China brands.
For what I'm looking for I gotta drive 4 hours or more.
Pretty frustrating.

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I see what you are saying. But, you will probably put that much money or more to get them serviceable and fix stupid suff over the life of the machine. You're a hobbyist. Buy once and get going. You will thank yourself later. You want to make stuff, not fix stuff.

Paul

Hard to tell from here. Can you find a millhand (person) to help you look over a machine..even if you paid someone who knows mills it would be worth it.

Each might be a cream puff ..or junk.

If I had to chose between those two, I would go with the Cinci because of the dovetail ram. But I also would try to hold out for a variable speed. You will eventually not like the step pulley setup.

crazygoat said:

If I had to chose between those two, I would go with the Cinci because of the dovetail ram. But I also would try to hold out for a variable speed. You will eventually not like the step pulley setup.

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I'm going to have to get a VFD. I don't have 3 Phase coming into the house. That should solve the variable speed issue.

Thanks for all the replies.
You've convinced me to pass on the Bridgeport.
I may offer $800 for the Cinci and see if he bites. If not, I may hold out a little longer.
I already have it in mind to do some refurb work on whatever I buy, which I don't mind.
It would be a great way for me to get to know whichever mill I buy.

Hmmm... I wonder if I could at some point swap out the Cinci 1hp motor for a 2hp or 3hp?
Could the mill or bearings handle that?

Small needed repairs seem to get a lot bigger looking for part... It can be well worth + $1,000 to get a machine that has no defects.

Ask the questions.
"Did you run this machine to run parts?"
"Is there anything wrong with it?"

I recommend reading Yankee Storekeeper by John Gould. It is available on Abe Books.com

You need to learn to dicker, be honest, be reasonable.

But you can take the quick route and blow good money on crap.

How large a part are you thinking you are going to machine?

Are you willing to travel and load your purchased mill?

Pathogen said:

How large a part are you thinking you are going to machine?
Are you willing to travel and load your purchased mill?

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I have some projects in mind, but nothing definitive yet ... not until I have learned proper techniques.
I am willing to travel and load a mill if it's the right one.

I found the lathe I want with great tooling options.
I live in Nashville, TN and will be heading to North Florida for the lathe.
I love a good road trip.

Something you may not be aware of. The bearings in a Bridgeport it can cost ~$2k, should you need to replace them.

What spindle on the Cincinnati? They used the monoset collet but were also available with 40 taper. Either way it’s a much better mill than the round ram Bridgeport.


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To be honest, any mill is a bottomless tool buying pit. The more complex the part the more that tooling is going to cost.And over some time your going to add as much or more just into that tooling as the mill cost. I've got over twice into what my mills brand new price was and just dropped another $1k into more tooling this week.If I've learned anything at the hobby level of this, it's that the machine's price is almost incidental if your going to spend your lifetime at this as a hobby. So buy the very best you can barely or maybe not even afford at this time and you'll be far happier. Forget about the almost impossibly low priced deals you sometimes hear about and spend what it takes if one of those unicorn deals never turns up. Fwiw and OT to what your asking about. But it still applies to your situation.I spent over 10 years looking for a pristine condition South Bend shaper at a price I was willing to pay and within driving distance. It never happened and I finally said to hell with that. What I did get was a 17 hr round trip, I paid maybe a couple of hundred too much at that time, but they've almost doubled in price since. And that unbelievable deal still hasn't ever turned up. A few mechanical repairs are fine if it results in a low enough price to justify those repairs. That would only be for simple RE/RE parts. Any highly worn X,Y,Z slide surfaces aren't easy or cheap to have reground. At least $2500 or more, and hand scraping while it can be done at home is a whole new skill set most don't have. Don't buy on price alone, buy due to the machines overall condition. Doing a full rebuild on any machine tool and doing it to the factory new accuracy level is another even bigger time and money pit. And it's not really cost effective if what your really wanting to do is just machine parts.

Rickyb said:

Something you may not be aware of. The bearings in a Bridgeport it can cost ~$2k, should you need to replace them.

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YIKES .... yep no Bridgeport for me. Thank you!

Bearings are bearings, at equal quality and precision any mill is going to be comparable in price for spindle bearings. Yes there's larger, better, heavier and more rigid vertical mills than a real Bridgeport. Where the Bridgeport does excel is that parts will be generally easier to find and probably the same or cheaper than another not so common machine.

One thing rarely mentioned that may or may not be important to you. There were many accessory heads designed and built for that BP standard 3 3/8ths spindle diameter that won't fit on many of the smaller off shore crap mills or something with a larger spindle diameter. If it could be done with a vertical mill, it was also made to fit on a machine with the BP dimensions. The accessory head I just bought is an example of that bonus a BP or clone has. And it's one of the reasons I chose the mill I did.