Sieg mini machines.. Are they good?

bojan · #1 28-11-2010, 06:35 PM

I am looking at Sieg mini lathe/milling machine... The model I am interested is this one:
http://www.siegind.com/product.php?id=1
Anyone has any experience with these machines?

torana68 (Roger) · #2 28-11-2010, 08:49 PM

chinese? Id say no, the ones Ive looked had QC issues with the carriage and tool post screws and general fitting slopiness. things either binding or so sloppy as to be useless ( I hate machines with sloppy fitting parts) there probably are good quality ones out there but they cost the same as any good quality one.

snowyskiesau · #3 28-11-2010, 08:56 PM

It's an excellent choice for a small mill and mid range lathe.
I have this combination but as separate units which I'd recommend instead of the 2 in 1 unit pictured. For a review of these separate components, check out Frank Hoose's website.

The lathe is much more capable than the more common 7x14 minilathe but is still usable where space is a limitation. I don't have a garage/shed so I have it installed in a spare room of my house.
The mill is excellent for aluminium and plastics and will handle steel although you have to watch the speed and feed rate. The mill does require a bit of tweaking to get right but nothing too difficult or requiring specialised tools.
I've had mine for 2 - 3 years and both get a fair bit of use. No problems or complaints to date - apart from the cost of accessories, expect to spend at least as much as the purchase price of the mill/lathe on tools you'll need/want.

I've few pictures on my website, see signature.

If you've got any specific questions, please ask.

multiweb (Marc) · #4 28-11-2010, 08:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bojan

I am looking at Sieg mini lathe/milling machine... The model I am interested is this one:
http://www.siegind.com/product.php?id=1
Anyone has any experience with these machines?

Did a bit of research on the C3 series. Mixed reviews. Obviously bang for the buck as they're relatively cheap but they don't seem to work out of the box. They need to be pulled apart, adjusted, relubed and a few mods to be done so they perform as advertised. Also read that the beds are not heat treated and is the first thing that wears out. Most of the gears are plastic also. They are budget units. Depends what you are going to do with them I guess.

bojan · #5 28-11-2010, 10:41 PM

Thanks guys for the feedback.
I am not after large series or production, it is for hobby.. small parts here and there, just to unload my friend (who has decent workshop) a bit when I need those little things like adaptors, shafts, mainly plastic and aluminium :-).
I am guessing, like almost every product from China there will be no perfection, but reasonable functionality and precision, a good price/performance ratio...

I saw C3 on ebay, but not this particular one, neither combined nor separate from mill. Who is selling them?

snowyskiesau · #6 28-11-2010, 10:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bojan

I saw C3 on ebay, but not this particular one, neither combined nor separate from mill. Who is selling them?

The C6 lathe - the one that forms part of the M6 combination you linked, is sold by Carbatec and Hare and Forbes. Both places also sell the X2 mini-mill. Hare and Forbes also have the M6 combination.
You can also find these on eBay, seller ozmestore1 (where I got my mill) usually has the X2 mini-mill for sale and occasionally the C6. He also has the C3 lathe as does Carbatec.
Minitech in Queensland are Sieg importers and carry some of the Sieg range.

For the difference in price/weight, I'd suggest the C6. It can handle a bigger work piece but still do the smaller stuff.

Somethig to bear in mind is that the X2 mini-mill is very simple to convert to full CNC operation for about the cost of the mill itself. You can go into production making astronomy accessories for IIS members

bojan · #7 28-11-2010, 11:12 PM

Geoff, thanks for this info, I will certainly contact them as soon as I can (tomorrow)..

AstroFlyer (Arek) · #8 29-11-2010, 12:44 AM

I have Sieg X2 mini mill & C3 14"x7" mini lathe.
For the money they are excellent.
Bought both from ebay - seller ozmestore1.
I did strip both machines & did some "tuning" - gib adjustment, lapping, etc. Improved accuracy quite a bit.
One excellent site to visit is mini-lathe.com
For the money, in my opinion, there's nothing better on the market.
Sure, the bigger machines will do a better job, but they do cost much more, take more room & weight MUCH more.
I posted some pic of one of my projects few weeks ago here.
That was my first ever job on the mini lathe.

marki · #9 29-11-2010, 02:33 AM

I have a C4 lathe and X3 mill. Both are extremely accurate and easy to use. I have had mine for about 2 years and done a fair bit of work without any problems what so ever bar the occasional adjustment to make sure everything is nice and snug. They are great value and I have not had to do any extra work on mine to get it to do what I want ( I make stirling engines which have very tight tolerences). The C4 has excellent thread cutting abilities as well with a huge number of both metric and imperial threads able to be made (not so for the C3 and C6 models). The C4 also comes with a powerful brushless motor that has a huge amount of torque even at 100RPM.

Mark

ZeroID (Brent) · #10 29-11-2010, 07:07 AM

I have the wee C1 and when it works it is very useful but it has electronic speed control issues. Sometimes it does but more often it doesn't .... go that is.
I've been trying to source a new main controller board over here without success. So check your local support options, via China does not work. They put you on their distributor list and send you email about buying bulk but no replies about your real problem.

Hagar (Doug) · #11 21-12-2010, 07:03 PM

I am also very interested in this thread as I am looking at the same purchase in the new year.

I am interested in the comments re the thread cutting ability of the various models post by Mark. Reading the spec sheets for all models they all seem to have this ability.

Any further advice would be welcomed.

snowyskiesau · #12 21-12-2010, 08:52 PM

The C6 can cut both imperial and metric threads with the standard supplied gears although changing the gears can be a pain if you have to do it too often.
There's no threading gauge supplied as standard on the C6, it's an option. It's fairly easy to thread without one by using the motor reverse.

Changing the speed on the C6 is done by moving the drive belt between pulleys and can be a knuckle skinning nuisance, the C4 with a variable speed DC motor is superior in this respect.
For threading, the lower speed that the C4 is capable of, is an advantage.

Hagar (Doug) · #13 23-12-2010, 08:56 AM

Thanks for the explanation Geoff. Looks like I'm off to Hare and Forbes after the Christmas break to spend a few more hard earned dollars.

Are there any must have accessories I should be looking at?

Thanks.

hikerbob (Bob) · #14 23-12-2010, 11:06 AM

I've not tried the Seig lathe's yet. My expe rience so far with the X1 mill has been good. Some of this feedback might be relevant in general. A few limitations with it (the nylon gear on the motor tend's to fail if the motor has been running for a while (and is hot) then a cutting tool hit's sudden load. I'm not wrapped in the slide adjustment screws (not sure what the proper name is), the row of adjustment screws along the side of each part of the cross slide. I'll swap them over to set screws sometime soon. The conversion of the X1 to CNC has been relatively easy although I'm well into a remake of the fittings - I roughed up fittings with hand tools to get it going and am now rebuilding them using the mill under CNC control. Others have strongly suggested the use of ballscrews but at this stage the additional cost is making that a 'later' option.

I do have a larger Lathe/mill combo (almost the same as https://www.machineryhouse.com.au/Pr...stockCode=L159) which does fine for most of the lathe work that I do but which has been less than satisfactory for milling. The layout makes it hard to fit long pieces in to work on them and the round column supporting the mill head does not hold in position as well as it should. It may do better under CNC where feed rates are better controlled. My impression is that separate units make sense.

If upfront cost is a big driver for the combined unit it is possible to get after market bit's for some of the Seig mill's and I've heard of people buying the combo and getting the base for the mill later.

There is some links on the thread on my conversion of an X1 to CNC which might be useful, a couple of the guy's who are way ahead of me have provided some great material.

Bob

scopemankit (Chris) · #15 23-12-2010, 11:10 AM

I bought a Chinese mill/lathe 14 years ago and have never regretted it. One piece on the cross slide broke so I milled a replacement and fitted it. The lathe bed and cross slide makes a great platform for your Foucault tester, All you need is your light source and knife-edge and a dial indicator.

I should imagine the quality has improved somewhat since I purchased my setup.

snowyskiesau · #16 23-12-2010, 01:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hagar

Are there any must have accessories I should be looking at?

Two good sites to check out for required tools/accessories are:

mini-lathe: This site has been going since the mini-laths and mini-mills first appeared. It has some excellent information about the various brands available (in the US). Most of the mini-mill covered are rebadged/repainted Sieg mills.

Little Machine Shop: They sell everything for mini-mills and mini-lathes. There are also some excellent info files there covering what you'll need to get started.

Be warned, the cost of tooling for the mill will be at least equal to the cost of the mill itself! It's a bit like astronomy in that respect

Terry B · #17 23-12-2010, 03:38 PM

I have a 9x20 lathe and an X2 type mill from Titan machines.
They both needed a little fiddling to get up to standard but I have been veryhappy with both of them. I have made various adaptors for my scopes and have started to make model engines. All good fun.
Here is my first engine.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=296Fr...layer_embedded

marki · #18 23-12-2010, 08:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Terry B

I have a 9x20 lathe and an X2 type mill from Titan machines.
They both needed a little fiddling to get up to standard but I have been veryhappy with both of them. I have made various adaptors for my scopes and have started to make model engines. All good fun.
Here is my first engine.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=296Fr...layer_embedded

Gotta love the stirlings, I have made about 4 of them now including one that runs on a cup of hot coffee

. Its all great fun and I really want to have a go at one with a rhombic drive.

Mark

wasyoungonce (Brendan) · #19 07-11-2012, 07:55 PM

Old thread resurrection.....Sieg X2, $650 + GST from Hare & Forbes, till 17th Nov. In fact they have special on pretty much everything ATM.

My question....is the X2 worthwhile considering the limited X & Y table travel (225mm x 100mm)? I've trolled the internet and it appears ok but the travel is a bit of a limitation.

I'm looking for a small Mill I can later convert to CNC (and Mach3), preferably one that can travel around 350mm min X travel.

Anyone have thoughts on all this.

Pro's Con's..any advice accepted.

MrB (Simon) · #20 07-11-2012, 08:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wasyoungonce

Old thread resurrection.....Sieg X2, $650 + GST from Hare & Forbes, till 17th Nov. In fact they have special on pretty much everything ATM.

My question....is the X2 worthwhile considering the limited X & Y table travel (225mm x 100mm)? I've trolled the internet and it appears ok but the travel is a bit of a limitation.

I'm looking for a small Mill I can later convert to CNC (and Mach3), preferably one that can travel around 350mm min X travel.

Anyone have thoughts on all this.

Pro's Con's..any advice accepted.

I have the X2, bought it (and a C3)about 7 or 8 years ago when they were double the price.
The X-Y travel is limiting at times, but can work around it most times.
Where I find I have trouble is in the Z travel.
Once you bolt a decent vice or rotary table on the table, and factoring for your collet holder, you are suddenly very short of Z travel.
Many times I can't even change mills without moving the table to clear the workpiece and allow me to drop the mill out.

Much wiser choice for the money is the X3 which is a VERY popular machine for CNC conversion.
Wish I had bought it from the outset but it was quite a lot more $ back then.
I should look at upgrading the C3 to a C6 and the X2 to an X3.