Mill Quil play before lock down

[Chris MateParticipant @chrismate31303]

Martin Connely: I found what you did very interesting…….After all my thinking and experimenting previously, and I understand the conical spring washers are stiff(Relative), Is there s change, and I am not sure if you lock down it fully(100%) or keep it semin locked down say 70% meaning the fine feed can still adjust with constant move as you decribe.

My question is, if you keep it at say 70% locked with washers, will some cutters be able to pull the quil down while you taking a somewhat heavy cut to remove material-? This is a problem I saw coming playing with lighter restrictions-?

[Martin ConnellyParticipant @martinconnelly55370]

I have my spring set up so that the quill always rests downwards on the mechanism so it is already down. I got the thinnest springs and stacked them to get the force I wanted. I can still put on full lock when needed.

Martin C

Edited By Martin Connelly on 15/03/2022 07:59:27

[Chris MateParticipant @chrismate31303]

A-So this week I made a holder vthat fits slipfit over the quil spring cup.
-I bored it out to fit, then drill and tap 8x 8mm holes evenly spaced, made a gap on the inside to accommodate the end of the spring that protrudes the cup. I bought a knob with 8mm tread on it some time ago from 2nd hand shop, and it fit like a glove for this purpose to adjust the spring not to damage yiour fingers/hand as it gets stiffer.
1-You remove the quil lock handle(Easy, quick).
2-If spring in unwinded, you wind it up till it may slip out of hand and you has to do it all over.
3-Now you fit this tool over and screw the 8mm gear lever handle in one of the treads to have leverage tightning direction. Then you tighten the other 7 bolts. Now the spring cup is gripped and you can upwind it a notch or two.
4-This worked great.

B-I discovered another problem.

THis mill has the spring cup hold in place that it not fall out and unwind by a known + washer that screw in. The problem is when you tighten it, the washer pushes against the cup and that causes the quil to have a spongy feeling(Not the grease) just before it reaches the home position, lets say the 3-5mm. For me this is a problem.

To solve this I inserted a smaller washer below the large washer to prevent the larger washer to push against the cup firmly. Now the quil return firmly back that last 5 mm. If you dont tighten this knob. My drillpress has similar spring cup design, but does not have this problem.

I did read up on other mills, and the various opinions on quil spring tention, neutral even in bridgeport case with tool weight taken into account.

Now with this all fixed, I will try to mill using the dial indicator, then measure it to see if I mill as accurate as I think I am by using the quil lock & fine adjustment in certain order. As soon as the quil is locked, the fine adjustment must not be touched at all. If milling cycle is complete, the quil lock is unlocked, the dial indicator stain same spot, the fine adjustment handwheel is adjusted in correct direction, the dial indicatr indicate next cut depth, you lock the quil, dial indicator do not move, you mill & repeat…..This is now my understanding of how I can use this mill in this way Z2 Axis. (Z1=The head up or down)

Note-1: I will think about the fine adjustment handle holding its position, or at least if you touch it, not mess up your depth by unlocking the quil. I found that putting resistance in quil lock assembly can give you false feeling of backlash, and if quil is unlocked, you will see it drops unexpectedly, which can interfere with your cuting expectations…This is just my opinion now or the time being.

Note-2:I had relook at Drill Press with similar quilspring assembly. The drillpress has 2x locknuts so you can tighten them without screwing the springcup down on shaft and the drillpress has a small play here, unlike the mill had.

Edited By Chris Mate on 19/03/2022 21:22:33

Edited By Chris Mate on 19/03/2022 21:23:34

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