milling machines

[jason61c]

Hi all

Currently looking at a Marlow 3a and a warco VMC(the warco has a DRO fitted).

I'm after some general thoughts, over what are the pro's and con's of each? The marlow is a model 3 phase but its not such an issue to convert and I do like the idea of variable speed if I used an inverter.

Whats a sensible price to pay for each if they have the same about of bits, clamping kit/vice/etc, any other advise appreciated.

Regards

[scottS3]

I cant help you but would also be interested to hear about this as I'm currently looking for a mill.

[robseagul]

Hello there.i have a bridgeport milling machine and would allways recommend one.they are easy to use,cheap to buy and plentifull in supply.just a though.rob

[robseagul]

Further to that I paid 2600 for the mill.checked and refurbed fitted a 3 axis dro and a vice.this is a variable speed machine 3 phase.i hope this helps.rob

[robseagul]

Further to that I paid 2600 for the mill.checked and refurbed fitted With a 3 axis dro and a vice.this is a variable speed machine 3 phase.i hope this helps.rob

[B19GRR]

I used to have a Marlow, something like the TM10 shown here:
http://www.lathes.co.uk/marlowmiller/
Paid £250 for it from Ebay, think I sold it for £500 after I'd cleaned up up and got the head motor rewound to run with a 240V 3 phase inverter - infinite speed adjustment is good!

Pros, it's a ruddy great chunk of decent cast iron. Cons, it's a ruddy great chunk of decent cast iron Seriously though, they're a bit crude, and being old will most likely have wear on the gibs and lead screws, if you're happy fettling them then you can probably make a reasonable machine out of it. Has a large table too with a very decent range of movement. As the 3A doesn't have the quill feed on the head though you'll probably struggle with accuracy on the z axis. I'd thought about fitting a DRO but due to table design it would've been awkward to attach them.

No experience of the Warco VMC. I did have a Warco combi lathe-mill. The mill was utterly useless, the lathe part was OK though, not ultimate precision but good enough for my needs. Warco are just rebadged Chinese imports but do have a reasonable after sales reputation, or at least they did when I was messing with making swarf.

Cheers,
Rob