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Jinpu Vertical Knee Mills


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Hello: If you are doing low volume stuff any of those mills will do just fine. They are copies of Bridgeports or XLO etc mills. It is better to get a new lower quality mill than an old Bridgeport that is worn out. If you want the fun of rebuilding a machine go ahead and buy a Bridgeport. You may also look at Grizzly Machine, Harbour Freight and Enco for mills. You may also look at old NC Bridgeport mills you can convert to CNC. These offshore mills also sell dirt cheap at machinery auctions or dealers. Good luck on your search. Oh one last thing is that some of the mills have chromed ways which should make them last a long time. Thanks, Eric

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One thing I can tell you about the company is Mike is a really good guy to do business with. Sold me a DRO for my Hardinge and later the 3rd axis for my CNC Bridgeport. Both times he beat everybody else's price. They're offering free shipping for some of the machines, too, so that adds up to anywhere from $500 to $2k depending on where you are.

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It is better to get a new lower quality mill than an old Bridgeport that is worn out.

You read my mind.

I was supposed to buy a mill off a retiring gunsmith at the end of the month, but he just won't budge on price. He's asking 2800 bucks for a 1HP chinese-made knee mill. I have no idea what it is worth, and I can't find anything similar on eBay to compare it to.

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I found this link on eBay: http://www.candomachinery.com/Mills.html#jinpu

Do any of you have experience with this mill? Is it any good. It looks like I can get a brand new mill with power feed and DRO for around 6K.

Go to the Penn Tool website. They have a Clark model B3VD for $5195.00. It is the same size as a Bridgeport (9 x 49 table).

That price includes DRO and X axis power feed. This is the best full size mill deal in the industry. It is a quality machine with

Turcite x + y ways. Some people like that better than chrome. If you don't have the space or the money for that, get a Grizzly

model G3103. It's like a small Bridgeport with x power feed for $2695.00. You will want to add a DRO. Grizzly has several other

mills that are good machines at economy prices. Make sure whatever you get has a digital read out. It will save you a huge

amount of time, mistakes and headaches.

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What is your use going to be?

It sounds like the 1911 building bug has bitten you. Are you going to use the machine for much more than that type of work? Just the occasional 1911/2011 ever now and then?

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Hello: If you are only going to do small stuff you may not need the large table. The large table is great if you have a couple of different setups that you leave on the table. You could have a vice, rotary table and other things ready to go on the large table. If not get a small table so you will have more shop space. You may only need a good quality mill/drill to do your work. Now I need to buy a DRO for my Bridgeport. Lots of options on those as well. Thanks, Eric

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It is true that many don't have the space or money for a full size machine. There are many smaller ones that will do.

However, I would stay away from the mill drills that have a round pipe connecting the head to the base. If you try to

take any kind of decent cut in steel, they vibrate all over the place. Better to get one with a cast iron vertical column

that has some beef to it.

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  • 1 month later...
What is your use going to be?

It sounds like the 1911 building bug has bitten you. Are you going to use the machine for much more than that type of work? Just the occasional 1911/2011 ever now and then?

Kyle, You're right on.. I'm planning to use it for occasional 1911 work.

I have taken over the basement at my house, and I have been thinking about getting a grizzly mini-mill (something in the one thousand pound range). The problem is getting it into the basement. I have a garage I could put a mill in, but it gets terribly humid in the summer.

I can't imagine that taking a mill apart is a fun job.

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I did read a bit on that guy's site (that is moving the mill).

If that is the mill you are considering, then be sure to read some of his experiences. After having it a year, he answers a "would you buy it again and why/why not" ...

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