Sieg SX2PG Mill

[Mark Salzedo 1Participant @marksalzedo1]

Does anyone know who now stocks spare parts for the Arc Euro Trade SX2PG Milling Machine?

Many thanks,

Mark

[IanTParticipant @iant]

Axminster sell a version of the Sieg SX2, so that may be one place to look.

Not sure there are too many other Sieg stockists in the UK now…but I’d be happy to hear otherwise.   🙂

Regards,

 

IanT

 

[Nigel Graham 2Participant @nigelgraham2]

One very slender possibility is a company called Techsoft but its website suggests it sells primarily industrial equipment.  I suggest it only because if it sells Sieg machines, albeit the factory versions, it may be able to obtain spares.

Although it does not stock milling-machines, Axminster Tools sells the sort of “badge-carrier” metalworking lathes that suggest it may be able to order the milling-machine spares you want.

[Mark Salzedo 1Participant @marksalzedo1]

Many thanks for the heads-up. I wonder what happened to all the spares that Arc Euro had in stock?

[BazyleParticipant @bazyle]

Which part do you need. Maybe it is similar to some other machine that can be identified.

[JasonBModerator @jasonb]

Axminster (who do sell milling machines) would be your best bet. They don’t list them on their site like ARC did and don’t carry as many but should be able to help.

There are also european stockists if Axi can’t help or have a long wait due to ordering in from Sieg.

[Mark Salzedo 1Participant @marksalzedo1]

Thanks to all. There seems to be a general consensus on Axminster. I’ll give them a call.

[Ches Green UKParticipant @chesgreenuk]

Mark,

As has already been said, Axminster is your best bet. I had cause to look for a new motor and control board for my SX2P mill last year….Axminster had all the parts I needed. Give them a call.

There are other sources such as Aliexpress and even Amazon, but at least with Axminster you are buying a known good part, and have Support available.

Ches

PS: This is my ‘mill thread’ where I was helped by the forum members …. https://www.model-engineer.co.uk/forums/topic/seig-sx2p-mill-cutting-out/

[Mark Salzedo 1Participant @marksalzedo1]

Thanks Ches. Yes, my mill is exactly the same as yours. Looks like you’ve got the gas strut(s) as well. I’m glad you managed to source your part successfully. I’ve just rung Axminster and they’re going to send me a picture of the part to make sure it’s the same, otherwise it’s a six month wait from a slow boat from China.

Presumably, yours is the fixed column. If so, just out of interest, do you have much flex when you push or pull the head or column fore and aft? I think there are some high spots on one or some of the four small pads on the base that the column sits on. I can tram out the x-axis errors with shims but the flex fore and aft is worrying on mine.

Thanks, Mark

[timdotdParticipant @timdotd]

If you’re really stuck, and can handle the shipping headaches, then Paulimot in Germany are able to source more or less anything Sieg-related and usually have stocks of most parts.

[Ches Green UKParticipant @chesgreenuk]

Mark,

Yes, I got the SX2P from Arc and later fitted the gas struts….the struts made the head movement much more predictable and greatly reduced any sudden slippage downwards of the cutter.

My mill has a fixed column. I haven’t tried pushing/pulling the column, but you have roused my curiosity…if I find significant movement I’ll report back.

I have the mill mounted on two lengths of wooden studding (see below) to lift the X and Y handles away from bench level. 4x bolts (with washers/nuts) pass through the mill mountings to the underside of the bench.

The studding, being made of wood, is probably soft enough to take out and high spots on the underside of the mill feet.

I use the mill for making Stuart and PM Research models, plus some odds and ends. So it has a reasonably gentle life.

Ches.

 

[Mark Salzedo 1Participant @marksalzedo1]

Interesting Ches. Like you, I use the mill for Stuart Turner models and of late a Clarkson horizontal engine. Yes, the gas struts make light work of moving the head up and down, and I have the same kind of bolt down method to the bench. All in all, a nice little milling machine but I must do something about the flex. Happy and safe machining. Mark

[Ches Green UKParticipant @chesgreenuk]

Mark,

A couple of hours ago I put positioned a DTI on the mill bed with the DTI plunger near the top of the mill column. I then pulled the motor towards me with both hands to get a ‘flex reading’….I saw about 7 thou (…about 0.2mm) movement.

I kinda feel that is acceptable, although I’m not sure what the reading should really be.

All I know is that I have never suspected that column flex was an issue with any models I made. I tend to take only light cuts….maybe a max of 0.5mm deep on cast iron with a 20 mm dia mill, say.

I misunderstood you earlier on when you mentioned the 4x pads at the base of the column, I thought you were referring to the Base itself…my mistake.

I’ve just had a quick look at the pads on my mill column….the column bolts are done up snugly but the ‘pads’ seem to be made of a hardened metallic paste/filler or have a filler material surrounding them?  It is difficult to visually inspect the pads properly as the mill is tucked into a corner. I have never separated the column from the base so don’t have a clear idea of what the pads should look like.

Ches

[Mark Salzedo 1Participant @marksalzedo1]

Hello Ches,

You have better readings in the flex than me. Total flex on my machine is 0.47mm (push and pull). I think I might get a few quotes from local machine shops to square up the mill column and base. I need the column feet skimmed perfectly square to the dovetail slides, and the base pads skimmed flat to match. I think I won’t be able to overcome these errors just with shims.

The four small pads (about 25mm x 25mm) on my machine are on the mill base. I have attached an image. Good luck with the Stuart engines. They are a pleasure to machine. All the best, Mark

[Ches Green UKParticipant @chesgreenuk]

Hi Mark,

I suppose there might be a manufacturer’s ‘flex number’ somewhere on the interent eg 50Kg pull = 0.2mm movement, but I’m not sure they go to that depth. 0.5mm of movement in your column seems perhaps excessive but it all depends on the load you are putting on it.

Maybe Shanghai Seig could provide some answers?… https://www.siegind.com/shop/sx2p-mini-mill-drill ?

For reference, here is a pic of the base of my column… what I thought was some kind of filler at the pads is probably just the bare cast iron shining through.

All the best with the machining exercise.

Ches

PS: The empty tapped hole on the column is where I used to have the Z axis DRO, but it interfered with the gas strut, so was shifted to a different position on the opposite side.

 

[Dave HalfordParticipant @davehalford22513]

If you paint some oil around the mounting lugs it will betray any movement. Nearly half a mill of movement should be very obvious at the joint.

I would have thought that heaving on the top of the column with both hands may be excessive for the build of the machine.

[duncan webster 1Participant @duncanwebster1]

Are we into language issues, Americans mean 1/1000″ when they say mil, British mean 0.5 millimetres. Similar confusion caused the failure of a space probe, which is why I believe NASA now uses SI units

[old martParticipant @oldmart]

I have never heard of British referring to a mil as 0.5mm, I thought it was 1mm. I certainly know that a minority of machinists over the other side of the pond call 0.001″ a mil, but they would wouldn’t they.

[duncan webster 1Participant @duncanwebster1]

Dohhh, I meant millimeter of course

[Mark Salzedo 1Participant @marksalzedo1]

Thanks for the feedback – Duncan, Old Mart, and Dave.

On my Sieg SX2, there is a slight rock between the column feet and the four small matching pads on the base. The column doesn’t sit positively on the base, which is causing flex – fore and aft, and issues tramming the mill in the x-axis. I did manage to reduce the x-axis errors to about 2 thou on a roughly 12″ dti total sweep but I cannot solve the flex as the error would require quite thick shim(s) and this would then undo the tramming along the x-axis.

Ches – I think the ‘filler’ you see is actually the small metal pads on the base. They are roughly 25mm x 25mm square. The pads are clearly visible in my picture just above your last post.

Anyway, thank you all for your good suggestions. I might head off to a machine shop and get the column feet skimmed at right angles to the flats of the dovetails, and the base pads skimmed parallel to the y-axis rails/ways.

[duncan webster 1Participant @duncanwebster1]

Just a thought, have you considered liquid shim? It would eliminate any gaps, and steel shims under 3 pads would get alignment right before applying the liquid.

[Mark Salzedo 1Participant @marksalzedo1]

Duncan – it’s a good suggestion and one that i researched quite a lot. There are one or two definitive YT videos out there showing how it’s done with expertise.

I did try it a few days ago but without success using JB Weld and doing the appropriate preparation – clean surfaces, wax etc. When attempting to tram with the liquid shim in place, I wasn’t able to tighten the right hand bolts sufficiently to correct the error on the other side. So, I aborted. If I ever did this again, which I don’t think I will, I would need to think of a better and safer way to raise and lower the column.

So, having used metal shims, liquid JB Weld, and not experienced enough to do scraping (which could make the problem even worse), the only other route in my humble opinion is to take it to a machine shop.

[JasonBModerator @jasonb]

You are making the assumption that the top of your table is parallel to the dovetails on the bed and that the head and quill are parallel to the dovetails on the column. Little point in having the pads machined to the DTs if not.

Shim has worked fine for me on my X3 for the last 19years and it must be 9yrs that I have had the SX2.7 and shimmed that. And yes pushing on the 2.7 head will show more movement of a dti than the same test on the X3. To be expecte das one is of lighter construction and has a smaller base to the column as well as a more spindly column.

But both machine sgive a good finish and accurate parts at least to the level I need to make model engines.

[Mark Salzedo 1Participant @marksalzedo1]

Jason – I appreciate the insight on shimming—it’s definitely the standard approach for these mills.

However, the reason I’ve opted for the machine shop is that my column was actually rocking on the base pads.The ‘dry’ assembly showed that the surfaces were so uneven that the column was essentially a see-saw.

I was seeing 0.4mm of mechanical movement at the head, which is more than just structural flex; it’s a joint stability issue. Shimming a rocking pivot point is a moving target, so I’m having the shop flatten the mating surfaces relative to the dovetails.

My goal is to get a solid, metal-on-metal foundation. If the table or head is still slightly out after that, I’ll follow your lead and use thin shims or skim the table to dial in the final few thou!

[JasonBModerator @jasonb]

Really there is little point in having the four pads all level. You are more than likely to need further adjustment so as soon as you put in a shim you are no longer in contact with the freshly machined pads.

Shim to take out the rock and then shim again to get things true to the assembled table.

I have far from full contact between bed and column.

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