Martin,

Isn't your spindle MT3?

The RDG one is 30 INT, so again not suitable for a 3 MT spindle, even if a location can be found for the outer support.

Edited By Howard Lewis on 05/10/2020 17:35:51

Edited By Howard Lewis on 05/10/2020 17:36:28

Just use your lathe. Much less money would pay for an aror and some fixtures to modify things as needed.

Ineresting attachments though, thanks for bringing it up.

Just for the record, I have a Warco Economy Mill/Drill – just been using it in fact – and for the life of me I cannot see how this attachment from Chronos would fit to anything on the mill or would work. Don't think it is designed for this type of mill at all, as others have posted; avoid wasting your money!

Very expensive item, more than half what I paid for the Economy 9 years ago or so too!

The ones from Gate Tool Services, as said, even more expensive, work on the cantilever beam principal with a short overhang, but they would not fit the Economy mill as it's quill diameter is only 83.80mm and the attachment is to fit quill diameters of 85.725-86mm diameter. And they weigh a ton, 12kg for the smallest one one, do you really want that weight hanging off your quill?

You could get a load of other tooling and/or materials, or a good DRO system (if you haven't already got one for the Economy mill), for that sort of money! Just saying.

Chris

In contrast to Gary I have Universal mills and I use them all the time in differing set-ups. Horizontal and vertical are a 10 minute change over and when in the designated horizontal mode has a 'proper' overarm support. So it can gang mill, spit out gears, helical and spur as well as bevels (needs a change of table to a swivelling 'quartering' table for bevels). I also have an attachment for slotting and a High speed vertical head (10,000 rpm). There is not much it will not do.

As the OP mentioned vernier couplings for magneto drives – is it not easier to drill a plate and use a pin drive to accomplish this? say a 19/20 hole combination? Many years ago I made some Manx Norton OHC verniers by this method and have also made both vernier and 'slip wheels' for motorsport cam drives. Just need a good rotary table for this method. Gears though, even spur gears or hobbed spurs, are better made with an outer support on the cutter arbor.

Martyn instead of paying out for a four slot rotary table why not put a sub plate on the top, a chunk of steel about 16mm thick fixed down into tee nuts in your three slots then you have the choice of peppering the top with tapped holes or cutting the four tee slots that you require, only downside is you loose a bit of height due to sub plate thickness.

There was an article by Ted Hansen, "A Horizontal Milling Attachment" meant for use with the mini-lathe. The article appeared in the Mar/Apr issue of The Home Shop Machinist. It can accept cutters up to 4 inches diameter. It is fabricated primarily from one inch square steel tubing welded up. You can obtain, I believe, individual issues or article reprints. Please note – the usual disclaimer – I have no interest(s) in that organization.

The author mentions that the attachment can be modified to suit the various mini-lathe bed-lengths; I expect – although I have not done it – that the center height could also be modified.

Look on "lathes.co.uk" for "Target Milling & Tool Grinding Attachment". This device was the basis for Mr. Hansen's project.