Warco A1s or Denford equivalent

[Keith Payne 1Participant @keithpayne1]

Hi All,

Just wanted to ask a question about which of these two same make different sales company to go for. I have the chance to buy either but cannot find out much about the Denford one . I understand the weakness of both but , purely down to space, they fit the bill. I would appreciate any feedback from current or past owners of these mills. Many thanks.

[Keith Payne 1Participant @keithpayne1]

[SillyOldDufferModerator @sillyoldduffer]

Never seen either machine myself but in this thread petro1head quotes an owner on the Denford forum saying his manual has 'Warco A1S' Tipexed out. petro1head's post includes this photo:

Dave

[Dave WoottonParticipant @davewootton]

Hi

I've got an A1-S, the version sold by Myford and have found it to be a good machine, I only bought it as a stop gap when I had to move and sold my Bridgeport, It takes the R8 tooling ,I still have it 8 years later so a obviously quite happy with it! The speed range as supplied is a bit odd with a few gaps in it, but this is easily cured with a 3 phase motor and inverter. Mine was metric and a cheap Chinese ( Sino) DRO has proved excellent.

At one time I briefly worked for a company that imported and sold these under the RMT name, this was the very early 80's, I remember being quite impressed at the time and thinking they were a reasonable size for model engineering. I have seen the same machine badged as Elliott, Warco, Alpine, RMT, Myford, DST and I'm sure there are many more. The firm I worked for checked theirs very carefully and there were a few with alignment problems with the rotating base for the milling head, these were rectified by scraping true before despatch. I do believe these were made to the same basic design by different factories in Taiwan. The ones we got were made in the works that made Bridgeport copies under the Condor name and were of a very reasonable standard. The standard of pre delivery inspection would obviously have a bearing on which would the better choice, Denford being a major manufacturer would one hopes check machines thoroughly before despatch, the part about fitting quality bearings looks promising and would seem to cover both suppliers.

Provided the machine is in good condition I don't think you would be disappointed with its performance or capacity.

Hope this helps, you can always pm me if I can be of help.

Dave

Edited By Dave Wootton on 25/02/2022 14:05:35

Edited By Dave Wootton on 25/02/2022 14:06:54

[Brian Baker 2Participant @brianbaker2]

I had an A1 S, for many years from Warco, ran well, no problems, good service from this long established company.

highly recommended.

Brian B

[Keith Payne 1Participant @keithpayne1]

Thanks for taking the time to do such detailed replies. It would seem it's best to just see which machine feels the best. I will let you know. Thanks

[SillyOldDufferModerator @sillyoldduffer]

Posted by Keith Payne 1 on 26/02/2022 09:38:22:

… It would seem it's best to just see which machine feels the best. I will let you know. Thanks

In my opinion 'feels the best' is far more important than the brand-name on the machine. Condition is everything. However wonderful a machine was when new, it's history might include severe wear and tear, bodged repairs, abuse, and neglect.

Would you buy this Rolls Royce?

Outward appearances aren't a good guide either, because paint, putty and polish cover a multitude of sins! Nor is it obvious if parts are missing, controls broken, or the electrics are iffy. Seeing and hearing the machine cut metal is much more revealing.

Good news is we're living in the golden age of second-hand machine tools. Before 1950 machines were often worked hard until they were 'Beyond Economic Repair'. After 1950 industry progressively dumped manual machine tools in favour of automatics, especially CNC. Educational establishments followed suit because industry no longer needed lots of youngsters with manual skills. The discarded machines weren't worn out, or wanted by commercial buyers, so they sell at far below the original purchase price.

Still necessary to proceed with caution. Although the chance of buying a machine used flat out on three-shift piece work is low, it's still possible to buy a lemon. Compare the machines in action if you can.

Dave

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