Milling Machine Recommendation For Lowering Freight Cars

[ai5629]

I want to buy a milling machine for the purpose of precisely modifying the bolsters of N scale freight cars in order to lower them to the proper ride height.  I would like to lower bolsters made of metal (for example MTL boxcar and hopper underframes) and plastic (for example: Atlas 60' ACF boxcar underframe).  I would need the cuts to be precise and level.  I do not want to spend a king's ransom, but I am willing to invest in one if it can do the job.  I have searched through The Railwire archives and have arbitrarily narrowed it down to the Proxxon MF70, Sherline 5400 and the Micromark R8.  Does anyone have any experience with or recommendations of any of these machines (or any others) for the purpose of precisely lowering freight cars?  I am also thinking of the future and using it to add DCC and sound if I ever decide to make that leap.  Precision does not seem to be as critical in regards to that however.  I just want to be able to correct the ride height of my freight cars, and keep them sitting level and square on the track.  This is something I cannot accomplish with a file.  Thank you in advance for your replies.

Jeff

[Rasputen]

I bought the milling column for my Sherline lathe, which looks like the same column you get with the 5400 mill.  It takes a few minutes to install the column but I have the versatility of the lathe and a light duty mill while using the same collets.  While the throat isn't very big, it does work on small jobs like N scale freight cars.  I also installed the extension block for the motor that increases the throat distance.
If you ever wanted to use a rotary table, however, you would need a dedicated milling machine.

[bbussey]

I love my Sherline 2000, which is a lower level than the 5400 and inexpensive if you don't turn it into a CNC machine.  It's inexpensive even if you do convert it into a CNC machine.  Point being, the 2000 would do everything you want to do now and allow for growth to additional functionality in the future if desired.

bb

[wvgca]

for about 100 us you can get a cnc milling machine kit, although small, it's more than enough for doing plastic and aluminum ..
it took me two evenings to put a kit together  .. and i have gotten five years out of it now [ i run HO stuff], and have done many bolsters with it ...

[ednadolski]

for about 100 us you can get a cnc milling machine kit, although small, it's more than enough for doing plastic and aluminum

do you mean soemthing like this?

https://www.amazon.com/Genmitsu-3018-PRO-Control-Engraving-300x180x45mm/dp/B07P6K9BL3/ref=sr_1_25?keywords=diy+cnc+milling+machine+kit&qid=1657226266&sr=8-25#customerReviews

[peteski]

I had a Sherline 2000 lathe for over 30 years.  Few years after I bought the lathe I also purchased the milling column attachment, which worked well for small milling jobs.  Then I bought a longer cross slide which extended its capability.

Then about 10 years ago I wanted to have separate milling machine.  I contacted Sherline and they told me that they could modify my vertical column to fit onto their standard mill base.  I sent it in and had them do that, and also purchased another headstock/motor assembly.  Now I have a lathe and mill, and I saved some money.

Over the years I also kept upgrading my machines wit accessories and a digital readout.  I love the modular design of Sherline machines.  It is like Lego blocks - you can keep just adding more stuff as your finances allow.  It is high quality machine. It is also made and supported in the USA, which doesn't hurt.

I bought the original  lathe from Micro-Mark (this was before Internet and online ordering).  Funny thing is that in those days Walthers also carried a full line of Sherline products, so I  used to order the accessories (even the milling column) from Walthers through my local hobbu shop (and get a standard discount from the hobby shop).

Micro-Mark stopped  carrying Sheline for several years, instead selling Chinese-made small lathes (which were larger and bulkier than Sherline). But few years ago, they started carrygin Sherline again (alongside of the Chinese lathes).

The other thing I like about Sherline is the compact size and weight.  While they still have some heft, they can be easily carried and moved around.  The other machines are quite a but bulkier and heavier.

[JeffB]

I give my recommendation for Sherline products too...

I've had the mill and lathe for about 32yrs now.  Neither have given me any problems and have produced many, many parts for the HO and S scale narrow gauge models I've worked on through the years. 

If you can only buy one of them, I recommend getting the lathe, with the vertical milling column.  It's the one that mounts on the lathe bed, as opposed to the vertical milling attachment, which mounts on the cross slide table. 

Oddly... I purchased the mill first (I wanted to be able to machine custom gearboxes, locomotive frames and turnout fixtures), but realized soon after that the lathe would be more helpful. 

Things to avoid...  Don't pay near retail price for a used Sherline Lathe or Mill on ebay.  Over the years, all too often I'd see used Sherline lathes and mills go for almost what a new one could be purchased for.  Sometimes they'd be in really bad shape! 

Don't endeavor to spend the minimum amount you can on equipment like this.  If it's cheap, it's probably junk or at least will require a lot of refinements to get something that works to the degree you want it to.  The nice thing about the Sherline tools is that they work right out of the box.  No dicking around necessary.

I have a Taig Micro Mill as well...  Bigger and a bit more robust than the Sherline, it's not as refined as the Sherline mill, but it's just as accurate and probably more capable than it. 

They're a great hobby sized machine.  Good for most everything in N, HO, S and O.  Probably G scale stuff, at least some of what you'd do in it.  If you're looking for something more capable of larger projects (like 7.5" gauge live steam), I'd spent more and buy larger machines from someone like Grizzly or Precision Matthews.  The Precision Matthews  machines are about 3-4X the price of the Sherline machines, but they're quite a bit bigger, so they're good for a lot more projects.  That's the route I plan on going in a few years when I retire, so that I can give some outdoor live steam a try.

Jeff

[wvgca]

this i an image of mine so you can see what it looks like, you do need a computer to work it, but it comes with software ..

[wvgca]

do you mean soemthing like this?

https://www.amazon.com/Genmitsu-3018-PRO-Control-Engraving-300x180x45mm/dp/B07P6K9BL3/ref=sr_1_25?keywords=diy+cnc+milling+machine+kit&qid=1657226266&sr=8-25#customerReviews

kind of, it shows out of stock and no price on the mill though , that one looks pretty expensive though

[wvgca]

here is a link to 3d printed cnc table , for not a whole bunch of money ... is you have access to a 3d printer of some type.... have to watch where you buy some of the parts from as it uses real linear slides in the contsruction

[peteski]

this i an image of mine so you can see what it looks like, you do need a computer to work it, but it comes with software ..

That is not a Sherline (as discussed in most recent posts). What is it?

[wvgca]

That is not a Sherline (as discussed in most recent posts). What is it?

it's an ordinary cnc mill, working area of about eight by eight inches, nothing fancy, from china  ..
came with everything shown in the photo
original post mentioned three by name, as well as experience with 'any others'

[ai5629]

Thank you for all the suggestions and recommendations so far.  How about where to get any of the machines initially listed or any of the others suggested?  Thank you again.

Jeff

[jagged ben]

For N scale would something like this be reasonable? 

https://www.amazon.com/Proxxon-37110-Micro-Mill-MF/dp/B0017PTAHG/ref=asc_df_B0017PTAHG

It's more in the budget range I'd hope for.

[Chris333]

For just lowering cars get an XY table for a drill press.
https://www.micromark.com/MicroLux-X-Y-Table-Attachment

Car frames are soft cast metal so the side load of a drill press will be fine.