Re: Is a drill press ok to mill with
 

The Taig micro mill ( www.taigtools.com ) and the sherline mill are both highly respected.. I think harbor freight has a deal on their mini-mill right now, though, 260$ or something crazy. Specs are pretty damn good and reports are fair. Not sure if the HF model is CNC-able, I'm sure it could be (you could CNC your chair if you wanted to badly enough) but the amount of work involved could be "considerable"

I personally own a Taig lathe with milling attachment.

Also - a great place to find X,Y tables, sherline mills, bits, bobs, raw material - http://www.use-enco.com no affiliation.

Re: Is a drill press ok to mill with
 

Frag
Something people are not telling you, and they should be.

The forces involved with milling can be very high. You need to get a shield before considering any test milling.

I seen want aluminum can do to the inside of a steel encased CNC machine, when things go wrong, open milling scares the hell out of me now.

Safety first please :D

Re: Is a drill press ok to mill with
 

boy do I agree, like a grenade
I won't stand in front of an open machine

Re: Is a drill press ok to mill with
 

Yes, safety first. However, you can minimize risks quite a bit by proper setup and tools.

1) Work with high quality bits that are sharp and don't go too fast.
2) Secure your metal.
3) Make sure that your piece of metal isn't going to fall apart when you drill into it.
4) Really secure your metal.
5) Use coolant liberally when cutting. When the bit and/or metal gets hot and expands, it grabs and all that motor force goes somewhere. You really want it to not go into you via flying pieces of metal. Stop once in a while to let things cool down.
6) Did I say to secure your metal?
7) Always use safety eyeglasses and gloves.
8) Really make sure that your piece of metal is tightly secured.

That's what I was taught by some machinists. However, I'm sure that people like Jaydee could add more.

Remember, people regularly go to the emergency room after using these things. These machines are more powerful than several burly guys. So, think of them as a 500lb mean and nasty man in prison outfit who pumps iron every day and hasn't had his smokes in 3 days and you in tightly fitting blue jeans.

Re: Is a drill press ok to mill with
 

Id say old frag isnt around now, but the advice is still valid (look at the OP date)

Re: Is a drill press ok to mill with
 

love it, posting to a tombstone