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Model Forum / General / Models / May 2008Just got my first milling machine - a Centec 2A
Just collected a Centec 2A with the good vertical head and I am strongly inclined to plug it in, but it has been in store for ages (I am still trying to remove some of the gloop using petrol - must have had Shellac in it). Obviously I will go over it for electrical safety (single phase), but I wonder if anyone has commissioning advice ? Also I don't have an arbor for the horizontal milling arm - though it came with a stub arbor, the sort you would use on a lathe. Is there a source for 2MT full arbors, or should I just use the stub arbor (saves mounting the overarm anyway). Any Centec owners that can offer advice would be appreciated. Thanks Steve > Just collected a Centec 2A with the good vertical head and I am > strongly inclined to plug it in, but it has been in store for ages (I [quoted text clipped - 11 lines] > Thanks > Steve my friend has a centec 2 not easy to get parts for them john ward makes the riser blocks for them contact here http://www.latheparts.co.uk/ there is a yahoo group for them .....the manual is on there the mt2 arbors are on ebay all the time they take mt2 collets ...with 3/8 whit thread ... these are on ebay as well ...best deal done by chester ...no postage mates converted his with a screw type bottle jack .......as the lever at the back of the machine is a pain to use .... other than that they fetch a premium price when sold on ebay ...... thats what i told my friend to do .resell the thing ..and with the money buy a better x2 or x3 with some of the money raised...rather than buy the raiser . best models are the ones with raiser and quil travel ...and upwards of that . all the best..markj > > Just collected a Centec 2A with the good vertical head and I am > > strongly inclined to plug it in, but it has been in store for ages (I [quoted text clipped - 43 lines] > > all the best..markj Hi Mark, thanks for the info I did think about an X2, but then everything else I have is old British gear, and I read the lengthy list of reasons why they have to be stripped and re-assembled from new to sort them out (see Arc Euro trade site). So in the end I opted to keep my classic workshop theme going, I can always upgrade at a later date. Useful to know who makes the raising blocks. Not sure whether I will need them yet. Quill head looks fine, table seems fine, but as you say the micrometer round the back for raising the knee seems hardly ideal. As for the long arbor, first place I looked was eBay and there were none there I could see - lots with Int tapers though. This one came with a collet holder and collets, and it will also take my ER25 collets and holder, so there should be no problems there. Steve > > > Just collected a Centec 2A with the good vertical head and I am > > > strongly inclined to plug it in, but it has been in store for ages (I [quoted text clipped - 65 lines] > > - Show quoted text - dont think the 2a came with a quill so you got a better machine ... there is very little room under the head ...so your ER chuck will take some of that up mt2 arbor ... http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/2-Mt-LONG-MILLING-ARBOR-Myford-Boxford-Warco-Naerok_W0QQit emZ190064902497QQihZ009QQcategoryZ41369QQrdZ1QQssPageNameZWD1VQQcmdZViewItemQQ_t rksidZp1638Q2em118Q2el1247 All the best.markj > mt2 arbor ... > > http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/2-Mt-LONG-MILLING-ARBOR-Myford-Boxford-Warco-Na... btw .its important you ask him the size of the shaft ...what hole size the cutters have ... it may be something like 16mm ..your stuffed then .rare ...leave it alone if its 16mm go for first, a 1 inch size arbor......... all the best.......mark >> mt2 arbor ... >> [quoted text clipped - 10 lines] > > all the best.......mark One day you might actually learn how to write the English language, was even simple punctuation not taught to you at school? :~( > >> mt2 arbor ... > [quoted text clipped - 15 lines] > > - Show quoted text - > >> mt2 arbor ... > [quoted text clipped - 15 lines] > > - Show quoted text - ENGLISH..... good then here's a few choice words Piss Off !! and f.ck OFF !! And stop wearing those tank tops and anoraks. All is not the best..mark On Apr 22, 11:12 am, ":Jerry:" <INVA...@INVALID.INVALID> wrote: > "mark" <aboard_epsi...@yahoo.com> wrote in message <snip> > > all the best.......mark > [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > > - Show quoted text - ENGLISH..... good then here's a few choice words Piss Off !! and f.ck OFF !! </quote> So the answer is no... Steve, >but as you say >the micrometer round the back for raising the knee seems hardly ideal. I've just re-jigged my workshop so that the left side of the Centec 2A is easily reached. That's after living for several years with a cupboard adjacent to the left side of the mill and almost requiring binoculars to read the knee dial :-) Risers for the vertical head are probably the next thing for me to get or make, since the lack of vertical space under the quill head can be a problem, especially when using a Clarkson holder. Jim. > On Mon, 21 Apr 2008 16:38:10 -0700 (PDT), Cheshire Steve > [quoted text clipped - 15 lines] > > Jim. Hi Jim, Just trying to think through the handle placement. With the original design being horizontal milling, I expect that, standing at the left side, the cutting edge should always rotate away from you and the work be fed towards you. The two controls you need are both on that side. I will certainly locate mine for access to two sides, but I expect that apart from slitting, I will be using the vertical head most of the time, and the quill feed will do the work. I wondered about an RSJ for a riser. Milling flats top and bottom and bolting on dovetails. It could always be stiffened by bracing between the webs, but I suspect it would be stiff enough. It wouldn't look very elegant though, but cheap as chips ! Steve I've had a 2B for several years and although I look at other mills don't think that there are any of the same size that are any better. I use EP 80/90 oil in the quill and the gearbox, don't use grease i the quill. Keep an eye on the oil level in the quill if it leaks lik mine does. (Has anyone stripped and replaced the oil seals in a vertica head as I would like to hear the pitfalls before I do mine.) I was given the gearbox and quill oil information by a Tim Collis wh at one time had a very nice 2A and was fount of information abou Centecs. I've lost touch with him in recent times so if he reads thi group maybe he will get in touch. One way of raising the head is to mill a dovetail into the top of th overarm. That way gives a (small) increase in clearance between the be and the quill and allows a quick switch to horizontal milling. The onl reason I haven't done this is I would have to knock a hole through wall into the kitchen to get clearance behind the mill and I don't thin that would be appreciated! Joh -- jlh4 jlh45 Wrote: > (Has anyone stripped and replaced the oil seals in a vertical head as > would like to hear the pitfalls before I do mine.) > John Hi John, my first post here... I have just stripped the quill assembl from my vertical head, its fairly straightforward, remove the aluminu guard from the top of the spindle (3 cap heads) and undo the top nut, used an angle grinder spanner to fit the holes whilst holding th spindle still with a spanner at the bottom. remove the spring and nut Then to get the large castalated nut off I used a 5" 4 jaw chuck an tightened gently it into the grooves, be warned this is a LEFT HAN THREAD!!!!! now remove the 3 further cap heads on the top housing revealed by removal of the previous spindle top guard and remove th housing complete with bevel gear. Then remove the small hex he grubscrew that goes into the slot on the quill just below the quil clamp. The quill then comes out the bottom of the head. as to undoin the bearing tention nuts, i had to make up a couple of castalate "sockets" out of steel tube to undo them. then the spindle knocks ou with a hide mallet. I havent obtained new oil seals yet, but here look a good bet... http://simplybearings.co.uk/shop/index.php?cPath=19_21 Angu -- littlekicke Hi Angus Thanks for the info - just what I needed and the link to the web sit looks really useful. Joh -- jlh4 In article <3da21645-fb0b-4e2e-92aa-f00b3949166e@s50g2000hsb.googlegroups.com>, Cheshire Steve <oldnoccer@btinternet.com> writes >Just collected a Centec 2A with the good vertical head and I am >strongly inclined to plug it in, but it has been in store for ages (I >am still trying to remove some of the gloop using petrol - must have >had Shellac in it). Obviously I will go over it for electrical safety >(single phase), but I wonder if anyone has commissioning advice ? Not sure how soluble shellac is in hydrocarbon solvents (petrol, paraffin etc.). The usual solvent in french polish is ethanol. If you are still having trouble getting it cleaned off, try methylated spirit, or (better, but dearer) surgical spirit. That's always assuming it was in fact shellac, of course. David  SignatureDavid Littlewood Steve, Mark is correct that the manual is in the files section o http://groups.yahoo.com/group/centec_milling_machines/ Unfortunately the site is not very busy but there is someone els there who has had raising blocks made. I think they have all sold but h may do another run. They were MUCH cheaper than the ones on the othe site mentioned. I have had my 2A for about five years but have yet to power it up a I still have not finished building my workshop. Somebody else wants th house finished first! The 1" horizontal arbour was actually made by the PO. He did no include a key as he thought it better the cutter spun on the arbou rather than damage the gears if the cutter were to jam. It looks to be straightforward turning job apart from milling the flats for th spanner. Roy 2A CB98 -- elj221 > Steve, > Mark is correct that the manual is in the files section ofhttp://groups.yahoo.com/group/centec_milling_machines/ [quoted text clipped - 19 lines] > elj221c's Profile:http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/member.php?u=37570 > View this thread:http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=853083 John Ward has the bare castings for the riser ...if you fancy doing the machining yourself ... for about £50 This info was given to me by himself ... He does batches ... When they run out ... it may be months before he decides to do any more anyway ...just before Christmas or there abouts , when i visited him, he had several . BTW .he isn't very email savvy .....he does not have a computer at home ......so phone is best. all the best.markj > Steve, > Mark is correct that the manual is in the files section ofhttp://groups.yahoo.com/group/centec_milling_machines/ [quoted text clipped - 19 lines] > elj221c's Profile:http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/member.php?u=37570 > View this thread:http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=853083 Five years ! I have only had mine a day and want to get it going. That is true patience :-) I have applied to the Yahoo group - though it took me four attempts to enter a correct decoding of the distorted wording that is the anti- spammer protection. Hopefully that will answer my questions. I thought 8 inches between the quill and the table would be good enough to start, but I can see how that gets rapidly eaten up. Two inches for the ER25 and then at least another inch for the cutter, but that still leaves 5 inches. If I need a really big gap then I can mill in the lathe. Just so long as I don't need a big traverse and a large gap at the same time. Only 6 5/8 inches for the horizontal spindle may be a bit more of a problem, but then I am making small items right now. It will do for now. Steve >>Steve, >>Mark is correct that the manual is in the files section ofhttp://groups.yahoo.com/group/centec_milling_machines/ [quoted text clipped - 39 lines] > > Steve I have a 2A that gets a little use. It came with the "good" vertical head, and power feed (re-motored to run on our 110 volts) as well as a single phase motor. It has the metal stand, and I still have the switches and contactors for 3 phase use, buried in the base. I thought I paid too much for it, but, for now, would not consider replacing it, unless something much nicer came down the pipe. The headspace goes fast! You start looking at all the tooling with an eye to picking the shortest one. It pretty much has the same envelope, as a Sherline mill, but it was made in a time when iron was fairly inexpensive, and these mills were built to an indstrial standard, more than a hobby one. I have made a few end mill holders from drawbar thread equipped drill shank adapters and blank end MT2 arbors. Usefull enough a tool to keep in the basement, where a larger machine would not fit very well. I figure a riser block is in the future for the 2A, though. A couple extra inches of headspace will allow us of a proper vise, rather than the low profile drill press vise that lives there now. So far the inability to come up with a vise I like, that is an appropriate size, has been my biggest beef with it. Small worries indeed! Cheers Trevor Jones > >>Steve, > >>Mark is correct that the manual is in the files section ofhttp://groups.yahoo.com/group/centec_milling_machines/ [quoted text clipped - 70 lines] > Cheers > Trevor Jones Thanks Trevor, It seems a slightly odd combination of industrial strength castings and modest table size, but no complaints there. I think of it more like a hobby sized machine made to industrial standards. What oil do you use in the box and vertical head ? Steve > It seems a slightly odd combination of industrial strength castings > and modest table size, but no complaints there. I think of it more [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > > Steve Dunno. The stuf that was in it when I got it, has not leaked out enough to motivate me to search out a refill product. When the time comes, I'll use what I can get that comes close to matching the specs demanded, I suppose. Cheers Trevor Jones I looked into getting a 2A with a quill feed but they proved very expensive for such a small mill, (the last two went on ebay for £650+ ) and so I went for an complete Elliott 00 although I will have to engineer a micrometer feed for the quill. I got what I thought was a reasonable deal. Even so another Elliott 00 in now on ebay with the horizontal support , arbor , quill stop assembly, and top cover missing is already passing the £310 mark with 4 days to go. Some Old metal commands a vast premium (the smaller it is the much more costly per Kg) yet others equally or even more capable do not. Derek (A Barker not a Myford owner) > >>Steve, > >>Mark is correct that the manual is in the files section ofhttp://groups.yahoo.com/group/centec_milling_machines/ [quoted text clipped - 70 lines] > Cheers > Trevor Jones >>> Steve, >>> Mark is correct that the manual is in the files section [quoted text clipped - 65 lines] > Cheers > Trevor Jones Steve I would try to get a full arbour. I have used a stub on mine but having the support of the overarm makes a big difference to rigidity. The stub can handle slitting saws but I had a half-inch wide side and face running last night. Not something I'd want to do with a stub arbour. Clamping the job to directly to the table helps with the lack of elbow room. Having said that I got one of the raiser blocks talked about in an earlier reply and it has made a big difference to the machine. Just changing to horizontal milling without having to take the vertical head off speeds things up no end. Now with the extra room I am on the same hunt as Trevor for as decent vice - top of the list for Harrogate. Mine came with a huge three phase motor that the previous owner was running on a straight forward single phase supply. He was on fuses, as soon as I turned it on my trips fell about laughing. I had a spare 2800rpm three phase which went in without any hassle so the Centec now shares a variable drive with the lathe, the 2800rpm giving a useful speed range. I have turned mine 90deg. so I operate it from the LH. side as it were; works well for me. I could be tempted to get rid of it but only if a later, larger Centec came up at the right price. Hope you enjoy using it once it's clean. Cheers John Blakeley > Hope you enjoy using it once it's clean. > > Cheers > John Blakeley Oh I will enjoy it John .. I have been waiting for this. I have a queue of jobs. I am very happy to have it. And being 2MT I have a lot of tooling ready to go. Just need to make some t-nuts, and sort out the oiling and wiring and bingo..off we go. Steve Gentlemen, I bought a Centec 2 last year for a princely sum of £60 its in Horizontal mode which to me is not a problem as I have a milldrill to do vertical work. It also came with sales literature and a 20000 rpm grinding head attachment which I have not tried yet. Martin P > Just collected a Centec 2A with the good vertical head and I am > strongly inclined to plug it in, but it has been in store for ages (I [quoted text clipped - 11 lines] > Thanks > Steve |
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