My Milling Quest - Assembling my Beaver Mill

[Tiggy_dorset]

This is a continuation from my previous thread 'Which mill to buy'
http://mig-welding.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=40211

Disassembling wasn't quite as daunting as expected. It all came apart relatively easy. Definately a 2 person job. Thankfully I brough my nephew with me (AKA The Yetti) for a day trip to Southampton.

Motor came off first.
We took the overarm and head off in one lump.


Next was the saddle and table in one lump.
Then the knee.
Lastly was the column.


It was heavy but managable between 2 people. The heaviest part was the base which required tha palette truck and a bit of rolling. All went into the back of a small transit.

 

[Burdekin]

Looking good. Is the drive motor single phase?

 

[Tiggy_dorset]

It will require a bit of work and some sourcing of parts, but I dont think its anything major to get it running.

It requires:
switches to operate main power, motor and suds pump.
drive belts
fabricated belt guard
modified power feed to integrate into the original system which is half missing
motor maybe (more on that at a later date)
fabricate a new motor tensioning system

So far thats what I have discovered it needs, until I look deeper


half missing power feed system


Some table damage, but nothing serious that can be worked around. The rest of the table looks pretty clean.

 

[Tiggy_dorset]

Looking good. Is the drive motor single phase?

Originally they were 3 phase machines but designed so the motor can easily be changed to a single phase one.

The one with the machine is single phase 1/2 HP
I havnt plugged it in yet to see if it even works


I am unsure whether it will be worth exchanging and modifying a 1 HP motor to fit.

 

[Wallace]

Nice beaver. Once all back together and running it should be a nice machine. I would fit that 1hp motor as you have the opportunity.

 

[stormin]

Only problem with the 1hp motor is its also twice the speed so will need gearing down to give the original design spindle speeds on the mill.

I would stick with the original motor for the time being.

Hope it all goes together and works well, especially seeing as I recommended it
I'll feel slightly responsible if it doesn't work out for you.

 

[Water skier 16]

Only problem with the 1hp motor is its also twice the speed so will need gearing down to give the original design spindle speeds on the mill.

I would stick with the original motor for the time being.

Hope it all goes together and works well, especially seeing as I recommended it
I'll feel slightly responsible if it doesn't work out for you.

i make it out to be 5rpm slower than the original at 1420rpm instead of 1425rpm.

 

[brightspark]

its a 4 pole motor.as said above 5rpm diffrence .its nothing .the half hp motor should be ok unless your going to take big bonus cuts and kane the machine

 

[stormin]

i make it out to be 5rpm slower than the original at 1420rpm instead of 1425rpm.

Guess I should've gone to a well known specs retailer

 

[Tiggy_dorset]

Only problem with the 1hp motor is its also twice the speed so will need gearing down to give the original design spindle speeds on the mill.

I would stick with the original motor for the time being.

Hope it all goes together and works well, especially seeing as I recommended it
I'll feel slightly responsible if it doesn't work out for you.

Your recommendation was perfect. The machine is exactly what I was looking for sizewise and isnt chinese. Nobody can judge the quality of something from ebay without looking at it first. I didnt expect a perfect condition machine without some work needed. I enjoy a project

 

[graffian]

Nice beaver.

What a small beaver you have.

 

[Tiggy_dorset]

its a 4 pole motor.as said above 5rpm diffrence .its nothing .the half hp motor should be ok unless your going to take big bonus cuts and kane the machine

Fair point. I will stick with the original motor for now. No point in making extra work for myself. At least I know I have a spare if needed.

 

[Tiggy_dorset]

What a small beaver you have.

Its a little worn around the edges maybe, oh and size doesnt count

 

[Pete.]

Fair point. I will stick with the original motor for now. No point in making extra work for myself. At least I know I have a spare if needed.

I would actually fit the newer motor, just because it's newer. I have had to change out two motors in the last couple of years which have had the insulation fail.

 

[Tiggy_dorset]

I would actually fit the newer motor, just because it's newer. I have had to change out two motors in the last couple of years which have had the insulation fail.

I will probably assess it when I come to it. It might be a little while before I even get that far if todys small discovery is anything to go by

 

[Tiggy_dorset]

The knee

Ok, I thought to get out into the shed today and start some progress.

When I picked it up, I recall raising and lowering the knee whilst noticing the sound of unlubricated gears.

This is what I found:


As you may see, the bevel gears are not quite aligned and are in contact with each other with absolutely no give or lash. It appears that there may be a shim/washer missing or removed which is basically allowing full weight of the knee to rest upon the pinion gear. I wonder if it was removed in the past as an attempt to reduce backlash. It worked, but at a cost.

The bevel gears are a 2:1 ratio 40/20 teeth.
Inside bore 12.7 or 1/2 inch (for both gears)
Outside Dia 65mm(40 tooth), 34.15mm(20 tooth)

My internet search has brought up several listings from different companies, but none that match close enough.
Does anybody have any contacts or advice?

I may resort to sending the specs to companies for them to try and match, or search for a couple local gear cutters.

It would be nice to fit new gears, but isnt the end of the world. I can put in the washer and still use these gears with a little backlash. Im not so concerned with it being on the z axis.

 

[Tiggy_dorset]

I may be successful with sourcing new bevel gears. Just awaiting a couple prices.

 

[ronan]

It has a very small motor at .5hp , my similarly sized tom senior has a 2hp unit. You might be able to fill the cuts in the table with devcon or some other epoxy. Take the chance to paint it now that you have it dismantled.

 

[Tiggy_dorset]

It has a very small motor at .5hp , my similarly sized tom senior has a 2hp unit. You might be able to fill the cuts in the table with devcon or some other epoxy. Take the chance to paint it now that you have it dismantled.

I thought myself the .5 unit seems a bit weeny after I run it to see if it works. As the motor will likely be one of the last jobs, I may chuck it on to see how it copes before making a new mount for a beefier motor.

Now painting on the other hand...one problem with that, what colour to choose

 

[ronan]

I thought myself the .5 unit seems a bit weeny after I run it to see if it works. As the motor will likely be one of the last jobs, I may chuck it on to see how it copes before making a new mount for a beefier motor.

Now painting on the other hand...one problem with that, what colour to choose

good ol battleship grey , I would think a half horsepower motor would be next to useless on a machine that size, a two or three would be nice and under stressed imho.