Lathe Vertical Milling Slide

I am looking for a vertical milling slide that I can use with my Warco WM180. I know I’ll need to make an adaptor plate to fit it.

This has popped up locally but appears to be missing the base? I have asked for some more photos, but I’m looking for your expert advice.

Pic 1​​

That looks more like a cross-slide … but, at the right price, it might be adaptable

MichaelG.

I've sent a PM

Good morning William,

Have a look at "Ades Workshop" on YouTube. He has a WM180 and used a milling slide to make his QCTP. I'm sure if you contact him, he'll tell you where it came from. If I recall, he also made a base plate for it.

I think Ade's one is from Warco, and is similar to the ones you see all over eBay, etc.

I've been looking at the topic a little myself, as I'm not really keen on buying a small mill that I will still want to upgrade in any case. There seem to be three routes:

• bodge
• buy
• build

Bodge: I was considering simply bolting an angle plate to my cross-slide, and my compound to that. Unfortunately my compound has a fairly fixed post in the middle of it, the removal of which would be more of a pest than I think it's worth. Acquiring a surplus compound from eBay or the like would seem to make sense, but people want surprising amounts of money for them.

Buy: there are quite a lot of not very good devices out there, all of which I'd need to make an adapter plate for. Obviously a vertical slide is a compromise but I kind of feel all these are a compromise too far.

Build: there have been (at least) two builds in MEW, one recently in 305 and 306, and a bigger, more robust one in 205/6/7. I haven't had a proper look at this last one but just from scanning it looks like a solid machine. I was thinking of modelling it up in OnShape to see how it looks. Other suggestions warmly welcomed!

I've used a Myford double-swivel milling slide with a 3" wide vice for about 20 years now, on my current Warco WM250V with a modified Warco adaptor plate, and on the Myford Speed 10 I had before. It's certainly better on the Warco - you can't be greedy with cuts, but it does work. My decision to buy a mill keeps getting shelved because of it - I'd rather spend time gaining more skill than money filling the house with more stuff.

I'm guessing you'd need to tap the crossslide on a WM180 as I don't think it has T-slots like the 250.

Important - don't hold your end mills in the 3 jaw chuck as they will wobble free. Use either lathe collets or an ER collet chuck.

Another question. What’s the best type of vice / clamp to use with these slotted vertical slides. Any recommendations.

Any particular ones? I seem to recall looking at these a while back, but can’t remember which ones 😄

That would depend on your choice of slide, they are different widths + the slide may need to go down into the bed.

Well I use my 3-jaw to hold endmills and slotdrills, and have always found it OK so long as you tighten them fully. I can remember hitting that windout problem on the old Speed 10 I had, but its chuck was a bit worn and maybe coarser-geared than the Warco one.

My vice is unbranded, cost me about 20 quid at the 2003 Olympia Model Eng. show, has 3" wide jaws and 2" max gape. It's visible on pics in my album wherever the vertical slide appears, as I don't think I've ever used the slide without it. It has some battle scars owing to my own errors, but it still grips accurately and tight, and I have no complaints.

If I'm still active in another decade or so, I shall probably have to try and find another... 

Edited By Mick B1 on 10/09/2021 19:15:55

The carrier for the handle looks like as if came from Myford, and the body looks like a Cross slide, but neither for a ML7 nor a Super 7, unless my memory fails me.

With a suitable Angle Plate, it could be used as a Vertical Slide.

Maybe it was one, but the Base to adapt it to the lathe Cross Slide has been lost.

Howard,