21-02-2021, 08:46 AM
A horizontal miller and a shaper are pretty much out of date machines today,Especially in a home workshop.
I used to own a shaper,set up just to cut keyways but unless you could set up a dividing head on its use was limited, (To a single keyway)and vision awkward.I bought a slotting head for the Bridgeport in the end,saved the floor space and much more useful.
When I was an apprentice a horizontal miller was more of a heavy blocking up type of machine even then.Although where I worked they were still used to machine the fir trees and lugs on turbine blades.
Things have moved on a lot since then with CNC and modern tooling.
It makes me feel old as an apprentice we didn't even have calculators. I sold LED watches to supplement by income during the breaks.
I used to own a shaper,set up just to cut keyways but unless you could set up a dividing head on its use was limited, (To a single keyway)and vision awkward.I bought a slotting head for the Bridgeport in the end,saved the floor space and much more useful.
When I was an apprentice a horizontal miller was more of a heavy blocking up type of machine even then.Although where I worked they were still used to machine the fir trees and lugs on turbine blades.
Things have moved on a lot since then with CNC and modern tooling.
It makes me feel old as an apprentice we didn't even have calculators. I sold LED watches to supplement by income during the breaks.