What looks like a slotting head has 'Victoria' cast into it. A now-defunct UK makwer of quality industrial equipment. The articulating vertical head on the mill is a desirable feature. No quill head shown, however. Info about Victoria on http://www.lathes.co.uk. Sounds like Aladdins cave! A good buy! Who cares about the house?

Edited By Kiwi Bloke on 25/06/2023 07:13:43

The mill looks to be Adcock & Shipley. I have an A&S 2E which is a universal mill, ie, the table swivels. The 2ER shown looks similar but older style, so I'm guessing 1840s/50s. I can't immediately see how the table swivels, so maybe it doesn't.

Looks to be pretty well equipped, although again there are questions; is the dividing head universal and if so does it have the banjo and gears?

Looking at pictures on the internet the 2ER doesn't seem to have a pickoff on the left hand table side for universal milling. So I wonder if it was a cheap version of the 2E with the universal facility deleted?

I use my A&S 2E a lot, but a horizontal mill is no substitute for a vertical mill. Ideally you need both. Here are some pictures of my 2E in action:

There are two caveats. One, these are heavy mills, mine is 3500lbs, so for me at least that means commercial movers. Two, mine has a two speed, pole switching motor, so to get the best out of it one really needs a proper 3-phase supply.

On the net 2E/2ERs are advertised at £2-3k. Depends how keen your friend is to be shot of the mill, but I'd offer up to about £1k.

If you have the space it might be worth offering a job lot price and taking everything away to be sorted later.

Andrew