Well i have outgrown my Siegmachine X2 mill and due to the controls causeing issues i have saved some pennies and sold a couple of engines .
I now own a Optimum BF20LV mill
A little bit of a upgrade for me
Sieg X2 BF 20 LV
Table size 390 mm X 92 mm. 700 mm x 180 mm
X axis. 270 mm. 480 mm
Y axis. 100 mm. 175 mm
Weight. 65 kg. 162 kg
Both spindle MT3 and table 12 mm slots so all existing tooling fits
Thinking of getting DRO to make life easier
Hi Dennis,
That looks like a useful size upgrade, always nice to have new/more tools
Ade
nice piece of kit, I'm sure you'll do it proud .
Hi Dennis, This is a great addition to your machine tool inventory...!!!
Nice addition dennis, and i can tell you from experiance , the DRO is an upgrade you will never regret. I wish I had it on my lathes as well!
crazydoug
Good upgrade Dennis, lots more room to setup and get larger things done.
It looks and has specs that are almost identical to my Grizzly G0704, which I consider to be at the transition point between a very large hobby machine and a minimum level shop machine.
Is yours gear driven or belt?
Yes, adding a DRO to mine has made life much easier, and the machining work I do is hopefully now a bit more precise as well.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/MILL-MILLING-LATHE-MACHINE-LINEAR-SCALE-ENCOLDE-AND-3-AXIS-DIGITAL-READOUT-DRO/252023511263?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649I put something like this one on it, and although the install was a bit of a PITA it was well worth it. Been on almost three years now with not a glitch. One thing to pay strict attention to, is be sure you get the correct length for each of the linear scales, and also do realize that spindle movement is not included on the DRO readout. But the mill itself has a digital readout for the spindle already, so that isn't too much of an issue.
My only real complaint against my G0704 mill is the short spindle range of only 2 inches or 50mm. I would have much preferred at least 3 inches, and 4 would have been even better. Other than that little whine ... I love my little mill !!!
You can see the 'upgrade' with the table size.
Good upgrade Dennis, lots more room to setup and get larger things done.
It looks and has specs that are almost identical to my Grizzly G0704, which I consider to be at the transition point between a very large hobby machine and a minimum level shop machine.
Is yours gear driven or belt?
Yes, adding a DRO to mine has made life much easier, and the machining work I do is hopefully now a bit more precise as well.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/MILL-MILLING-LATHE-MACHINE-LINEAR-SCALE-ENCOLDE-AND-3-AXIS-DIGITAL-READOUT-DRO/252023511263?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649
I put something like this one on it, and although the install was a bit of a PITA it was well worth it. Been on almost three years now with not a glitch. One thing to pay strict attention to, is be sure you get the correct length for each of the linear scales, and also do realize that spindle movement is not included on the DRO readout. But the mill itself has a digital readout for the spindle already, so that isn't too much of an issue.
My only real complaint against my G0704 mill is the short spindle range of only 2 inches or 50mm. I would have much preferred at least 3 inches, and 4 would have been even better. Other than that little whine ... I love my little mill !!!
Gear drive 2 speed gear box and vari speed motor
I did look at the next size up which is belt drive But the top speed is a lot slower .
When I get the DRO i will order them from Machinery house and the order will be for all parts needed for my mill so hopefully fitting will be straight forward .
2 inch quill travel is not a lot but I can live with it as there is 280 mm vertical travel In the head .
Cheers
Dennis
What's the overall build quality like compared to the mini mill Dennis? Does it feel like it will easily tackle bigger work?
Are you going to get a better quality machinist vice (if you don't already own one)?
Have the elves had proper training?
What's the overall build quality like compared to the mini mill Dennis? Does it feel like it will easily tackle bigger work?
Are you going to get a better quality machinist vice (if you don't already own one)?
Build quality?/
Well like most things it is made in China But to German specs And feels very superior
Very smooth travel with table and main pillar .
Fine feed locking is a lot easier than the sieg . On the sieg you had to slide the lever wheel across into a castalated nut . On the new one it is just a wheel to screw in .
Sieg like most others has a parallel gib and 4 or 5 gib screws and lock nuts .
The Optimum has a taper gib with one screw at the end to slide it in
I have yet to use it but already made a part for it .
I had to make a new Draw bolt as supplied was 1/2 inch by 12 tpi and my collet chuck is a metric 12 mm
The most surprising thing was the price
A new Sieg X2 is NZ$1115.00 -plus shipping Like i have replaced
A Sieg X3 similar size to Optimum is NZ$2900.00
Optimum was NZ$ 2200.00 plus NZ$110.00 shipping to my front door
My vice for the mill ? Well I sat it on the table and it look lost And I suppose the rotary table will be the same
Cheers
Dennis
Very nice; I'm considering a similar upgrade from my "mini-mill". Almost all of these mills from China are made by one of two companies there with slightly different specs for different retailers. I've used a friend's Grizzly and like it very much, especially the vertical/quill DRO which is built into the machine. Some models now come with extremely quiet brushless DC motors with belt drive. Unfortunately US prices are now a few hundred higher because of new tariffs on machine tools from China.
How are you finding this Dennis, have you had a chance to use it properly yet?
Still waiting for time to use it .
Very frustrating With no shed time .
Cheers
Dennis
Time to start making swarf methinks.