I think much more info about what you want to do would be needed for anyone to try and recommend anything.
I suggest you get a very clear idea on the largest size of the work pieces you want to machine. Then also realize that a protruding end mill or other device takes up some of the vertical room. And if something is being held in the vise, the vise uses up vertical distance. This will determine what the smallest mill might be that would at least be suitable for the work piece size, even if just barely. Also focus on table surface size. Larger is usually better.
Just like with lathes, you can make teeny tiny parts on a large machine, but can't make large parts on a small machine. One thing you probably won't be too concerned with is ability to do heavy fast machining such as you might in a production shop. So something less than huge and powerful will probably work for you.
I suspect a mini-mill (such as Grizzly G8689 and similar ones from many sources) is going to be too small. The M1036 micro mill is smaller yet and is really more suited to somebody like a model railroad hobbyist (as is the small Sherline or Taig mills). You probably need to step up to quite a bit more size.
I couldn't guess which one is barely big enough without having to spend more. Grizzly's lowest priced knee mill is the G0801.. With a knee mill, the entire X-Y table assembly can be moved vertically and you can get a lot more vertical distance. They tend to be where the machines are larger in size, also. They have models similar to Bridgeport milling machines which are sort of a standard benchmark in the industry, but at Grizzly they cost around $10K and up (which actually isn't bad for this size machine which can weigh over 3,000 lbs.)
When perusing Grizzly, you will see a couple of "Combo Lathe/Mill" machines. These can, at first, seem like a good deal because it covers both the lathe and mill bases. However, the compromises tend to be a machine with as not a very good lathe and an even less good mill. But for some doing just occasional light duty work, it probably works OK enough. I just really don't recommend those things even though they usually are nifty looking anyway.
Another thing to remember is that tooling is going to cost you the same no matter which mill you are putting it on. And, over time, tooling can end up costing as much as a machine itself. It's frustrating spend money on tooling to put on a machine you aren't happy with.
So once you have an idea of size, go to the Grizzly milling machine page, sort by price lowest to highest, and see what machine might be the minimum, and how much, if any, you might want to go beyond that. Also study all the features because the details aren't the same in all machines.
Chuck K.
Sent from Mail for Windows 10
From: 'David Schwandt' finsruskw@iowatelecom.net [GrizHFMinimill]
Sent: Monday, March 11, 2019 9:35 PM
To: GrizHFMinimill@yahoogroups.com
Subject: RE: [GrizHFMinimill] Newbie w/questions
Yes, I kind of wondered about that.
Any thoughts on the Grizzly models that are currently available now.
From past experiences at these auctions, I'm thinking this will go rather high.
I think I will stay away and opt for a newer or new one
Thanks for the comeback!
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