Brought a new toy home - Wells-Index 860

[ScrapMetal]

I just got back from Michigan with a new member of the "family". I would like to present my mill, the Wells-Index 860C...





It has a DRO but the "box" has something wrong with it and the "X" power feed is buggered. Once I get it in place I'll have to figure out how to power it as it's supposedly 3-phase 440v and all I have is single-phase 220v. The biggest issue with it right now though is how to get it off the trailer, through the low garage door, and past all my other stuff into the workspace.

But, I have a mill now!

-Ron

[ScrapMetal]

Not that anyone is watching (I'm used to talking to myself, I have three kids in high school. ) but I did learn a bit more about my 860 today. Looking over the motor it appears that they can be wired for 230v 3-phase. That means all I would have to do is get some gizmo that takes the 1-phase 220v and turns it into 3-phase 230v. Everything else, DRO and power feeds look like they run on 110v. The electrical setup should be cheaper than I anticipated. Woot!

Now I can turn to getting a couple missing parts (the horizontal "arm" and support), fixing/replacing the DRO, and getting the "X" feed operational. Oh, and remove bugs - lots of smashed insects. You know how your windshield gets after 12 hours of driving through the trees, at night, etc? My mill gets that way too as it sticks up above the truck - what a mess.

I didn't get anything done to get it off the trailer today. Had to catch up with a lot of things at the office as well as try and come up with a good plan. So far, it's not much of a plan let alone a good one. I am going to have to rethink the layout of my whole workspace to accommodate this moose of a mill and all these big heavy iron things will have to moved to get it in. It's not going to be pretty.

I'll have pics and updates when I actually get something done.

-Ron

[rleete]

Harbor Freight sells phase converters. Less than 100 bucks, as I recall.

[ScrapMetal]

Thanks! Great timing btw - I was planning a trip over to the local HF to see if I could find a pallet jack to move things around. I'll check out what they have in the way of phase converters while I'm there.

-Ron

[ScrapMetal]

With a lot of effort and a few heart-stopping moments I got the 860C unloaded and in to the "shop".

Did I mention I LOVE this Terex telehandler. It wasn't cheap to rent but it paid for itself in spades. (Told the wife I want one for Christmas. She wasn't to enthusiastic. )


Here I have the last machine to get out. The lathe is rigged up so I can pull it to the door and get it on the forks. I could have extended the boom to get it but it's kind of a "precision" move and the farther away it is the harder it is to tell what the fork tips are doing.


My idea here is to lift up the mill and place the straps underneath, using the bolt slots to keep it from slipping. Never tried that before but it seemed to work okay.


As further "insurance" I used a strap around the lifting straps and the turret. This was to keep the mill from doing a half-gainer into the asphalt.


Talk about nerve racking! It feels very tenuous to have that much iron being suspended by a couple small strips of nylon made in a country not known for it's good quality control. Needless to say, I set it down as soon as possible.


From here things got a little "rushed" so no pictures of the whole process, sorry. The sun was going down and I had rain storms on the way. I also had all my other machines spread out over the parking lot so I had to move fast.


The rains hit soon after it got dark and I still had all my other machines out in the lot. I was able to get the forks under my SB lathe and get it inside but almost "lost" it a few times in the process. I don't want to do that again! I had to quit for the night though as the conditions made it too dangerous to continue. I put a couple of garbage bags over my 16" shaper and LeBlond grinder and left them in the lot overnight. It's a "good" neighborhood and I was hoping that the rain would keep most people off the street. Morning came and everything was as I left it. I took the opportunity to hit the shaper with some de-greaser and a power washer before dousing it with AeroKroil and putting it back in the shop.

Finally in where it needs to be. Now I just need to horse it around about 90 degrees and center it against the back wall (and figure out where all my other machines are going to fit ).


Now I need to figure out how I'm going to power it up. Suggestions from some knowledgeable guys on other sites lead me to go in the direction of a RPC. I have single phase 110v and 220v in the shop but need 3-phase 230v or 460v (which the motors are already wired for). I'm going to have to do some research so I can get up to speed on these kind of devices.

More when I have it,

-Ron

[rleete]

Not that anyone is watching

I'm watching, I just don't have anything constructive to add, so I'm keeping silent.

[ScrapMetal]

Not that anyone is watching

I'm watching, I just don't have anything constructive to add, so I'm keeping silent.

That's good to know. I start feeling like I'm talking to myself (which I find myself doing more and more as well ).

I picked up some 1/2" iron pipe today with the intent of using them to move the mill around a bit. I was considering some kind of jack to lift it enough to get the pipes underneath but I may just use whatever I have handy - most likely a crowbar and block of wood. "Give me a lever big enough and I can move the world!" - or something like that.

I have been playing around with the DRO box a little bit. It appears that the power supply is working properly but when I tweak the logic/display board I hear a "tink" which leads me to think that I either have a cracked board or a solder joint has lifted. I'll need some heavy magnification to really check it out when I have some time.

Once I get started with the "re-positioning" I'll take some pics for posterity (or the med examiner whichever is more appropriate ) Actually, I think I'm past the point where I might hurt myself badly but there's always a chance that I turn out to be an over-achiever.

Same "Bat" time, same "Bat" channel...

-Ron

[pjf134]

Ron,
You need a bigger shop!!!
Paul

[ScrapMetal]

Paul,

You don't think it's "cozy". Like working in a shoebox. I'm seriously considering co-opting the next garage over and tearing out the wall between the two but I'm afraid that I would only end up buying more machinery. It seems that no matter how much space I have my "stuff" expands to fill it. How does that work?

-Ron

[ScrapMetal]

Got it horsed around into place or at least pretty close. Here's a shot during the "process" with pipes and a tractor jack:



The ONE nice thing about my shop being so small is that I can brace my back on one of the walls and use my legs to push the mill around. Here it is at it's (nearly) final resting place:



Now I have to do a better job on providing lighting instead of the slapped together mess I was working with.

Time to start figuring out the power supply to it.

-Ron