Member postings for Bountyboy

Hi,

I had a similar problem with my EMCO mill and that also needed a new capacitor.

To quote Kiwi Bloke who helped me.......

"Just in case you don't know, make sure you get a 'motor run' capacitor, not a 'motor start' capacitor. The latter are electrolytic and will fail after very little running time. The former are usually metallised polypropylene. They are cheap, and available from electric motor suppliers, re-winders, electrical wholesalers, RS Components, Farnell (now called Element 14 - I think), etc."

I wasn't aware of this and I managed to get one from RS Components.

Hope this is of use

Hello,

I’m in the process of buying a collet holder and collets for my EMCO FB2 mill. Looking around the web I’ve narrowed it down to either ER25 or Clarkson autolock.
I have heard that when using ER type collets the cutter could move in the collet if too large a z load were applied, where as with the Clarkson system the cutters I believe lock into the collet.

Your thoughts as ever would be very welcome

Thanks in advance

Greetings and welcome to the site.
Talking from experience you’ll find lots of useful information and helpful advice.

Enjoy,

Paul

EUREKA 💡!

Hello,

Good news, the FB2 mill is now working correctly. I believe it was a combination of a faulty capacitor and an incorrectly wired motor.

In my quest to sort the speeds issue I removed the motor and took it to B & T Rewinds in B’ham. They did an insulation test on the windings and powered it up on their test bed, all good, no issues. They also showed me how the capacitor should be connected into the circuit and with that info I reassembled the mill and voila, I now have a fully operational mill.

The service I received from B & T Rewinds was excellent and the people working there very knowledgeable and helpful, taking time to assist me even though they were very busy.

Once again, many thanks for all your help on the forum.

Hello Howard,

Thanks for the info, I’ve already ordered one from RS Components.

Many thanks for everyone’s input. I’ve ordered a new capacitor and oil for the head unit. I’ll let you know how I get on.

Thanks once again,

Paul

Thanks John F, I’ll have a look.

Thanks Kiwi Bloke & John,

All information is very welcome. From the manual I did work out how to remove tooling from the MT2 and yes the manual clearly states never hit the spindle or "this could damage the precision bearings".

The manual does shows two methods of mounting and dismounting tooling: the use of a draw bar or arbors with flat tangs but I appreciate the possibility of the taper spinning and scoring the bore. Best to play safe and modify the MT-JT arbor as you suggest.

On the topic of Collets I think there are normal ER25 ones but the those made by Schaublin are ESX 25.

Thanks too John for the link to Farnell, I'll order one today.

Hello Joe,

I used to work on Swiss/German machines so I know how good the quality is. I've read a lot of reviews and forum comments about the FB2 and it's taken me about a year to find this one, luckily it was close to where I live.

Like you I think they're great machines and am looking forward to getting it up and running. The machine has been in storage for a long time and there appears to be a thin layer of coolant on the paint work, do you know what is the best way to clean it off without damaging the paint work?

Unfortunately there was not a lot of tooling included in the sale, so I'll have to invest in collets/holders, keyless chuck etc. Looking on eBay the genuine EMCO collets seem very expensive when compared to non branded ones.

I now need to find a good V10-P, proving difficult to find too!

Hello Kiwi Bloke,

Thanks for the info, no I was not aware of the difference between ‘motor run’ & ‘motor start’ capacitors. As I mentioned I’ve just bought this mill and am on a steep learning curve!

Many thanks for taking the time to reply I really appreciate the input from the forum members, invaluable.

Thanks Joe,

I’ve seen some of your previous FB2 posts and I now know I need a 8uF 420V capacitor. I’ll source one locally and hopefully it’ll do the trick.

Many thanks again for you help. My EMCO FB2 adventure begins!

Paul

Many thanks for your swift reply Joe. It makes sense what you're saying, it is a single phase machine and it has been stood along time so the capacitor may have deteriorated.

Do you know where I could obtain a replacement capacitor from?

Many thanks for your help.

Hello,

I have just purchased a very clean EMCO FB2 milling machine. The previous owner told me it was his father’s machine and it hadn’t been used for about twenty years.

When I collected the machine the head/column had already been dismantled and the table removed from the base.

Back at home I reassembled the miller and reconnected the wiring to the motor. On start up I noticed that when operating the six speed head the three slower speeds appear to be going faster than the three higher speed settings. Also curiously, when set at the fastest speed the spindle can be stopped from rotating by hand pressure.

Am I missing something obvious or do I need to delve deeper? I plan to change the oil (Castrol Hyspin AWS 46) as a precautionary step and see if that makes any difference, if not I’ll remove the motor and top plate and try to see if anything is amiss.

Any advice from other EMCO FB2 users would be very appreciated.

Thanks Chris,

Wise words.
Steve at Landylifts is only doing local jobs due to other work commitments. I’m waiting for a couple of quotes from professional machinery movers based in the Midlands so we’ll see where that leads.

Thanks again for all the advice, I’m sure I’ll get it sorted one way or another 😀

Thanks everyone, I now have a few contacts to chase up.

Many thanks for your suggestions. I’m going to inspect the lathe at the weekend, if all’s ok I’ve a week to sort transportation.

Hello ‘not yet done’,

Smart & Brown

1024

According to the internet it weighs around 2,200 lbs

Thanks

Hello,

I’m looking to buy a lathe but it’ll need picking up from near Heathrow and transporting and moving into my garage in Bromsgrove, Worcestershire.
I was wondering if anyone had any recommendations as I need to move the lathe one week after the sale ends.
I’ve contacted Landylifts but I know he’s always busy so I’m looking for alternatives.

Thanks in advance if you have any contacts.

Hello Roger,

I’m about to restore a Record No 5 vice myself and I found your video very useful. I also liked your under bench storage, I wondering where you obtained it from and was it very costly?

Thanks,

Paul

Love the comment,

”Claims to have case metalwork”

hope you managed to assemble it?