Adam Savage Tours His New Benchtop Milling Machine!

Thanks to Onshape for sponsoring this video. Check out their cloud-based CAD tool at onshape.pro/Tested Precision Matthews Benchtop Milling Machine: www.precisionmatthews.com/shop/pm-728vt-ultra-prec…

Hello Mr. Savage. We met a long time ago, when you were at ILM. You really inspired me. Now, semi retired from Ubisoft as Lead Animator and 3d Modeler, your building and , "Imagineering" has made me the the Artisan, I am today. Thank You. Still have your needle nose pliers and red Pentel, Mechanical Pencil.

Adam, I've been a long long fan of yours since the Mythbuster days. You guys silently brought machining to the forefront of the public and as a machine shop owner I feel we are a bit forgotten as we spend our days in quiet isolation making things everyone uses. To see you shed light into this trade has inspired me and I'm sure many others to take on machining as a career. We as a country need people who can make things and use these pieces of equipment and tooling to keep our pride of things made here in USA. I've got plenty of years ahead and I hope I can continue doing what I enjoy. Other foreign countries has made it difficult for us to compete due to cost of labor being lower overseas. I'm glad your video came up on my feed, keep carrying the torch and be a light for others in the trades. Warm greetings from SoCal. -Casey

I got the exact machine 2 weeks ago and I have used it everyday since. I also own a PM 1130V Lathe. Great stuff.

I have the little cousin to this mill... The Sieg X2D. It's honestly a great machine. I've made lots of good parts on it, and can usually hold +/- 0.001 or so (if I'm super careful). I've added DRO scales, and use TouchDRO for the display. I've upgraded the spindle bearings to angular contact bearings, and swapped out all the plastic gears for metal ones. I've been using the Tormach TTS tool holders for a while, and absolutely love them. Having quick-change tooling on my mill is a quality of life upgrade that I can't recommend enough. No more changing collets! Plus, they're repeatable, which is amazing when coupled with the tool library in TouchDRO. I've even made my own TTS-compatible tooling. Always enjoy seeing, and sharing, your enthusiasm for making things, and for the tools that you use to make. I've made a few videos of improvements to the machines in my shop, and it would be amazing for you to check them out.

Awesome!! I've been wanting one for years! Thank you for the insight into your machine. I do love the idea of lights inside of cabinets too! 👍

This press has worked like a charm for my projects youtube.com/post/UgkxajoEbapTfqWaadnqb04h6U576yxXp… . I didn't even secure it to my table top, mainly due to the fact that I was using a 15 lbs drill vise. It's not flimsy at all as to what others have claimed it to be. Make sure the locking nuts and levers are secured and there won't be any issues with light pressure and patience. I was able to drill through aluminum, plastic, and steel (steel took a while) with no problems at all. Yeah it took a little longer than a regular drill press, but I don't have the space OR the money for one.The instruction manual was worthless, but luckily assembling the press was intuitive. However, the manual would be good for ordering replacement parts if needed. There is a nice breakdown of the parts that are included in the kit. Before ordering, make sure it is compatible with your unit, it is clearly stated what models the press is compatible with.This was an excellent purchase for $40!!

Since I am single, I replaced my living room furniture with a modest size mill and 12 x 36 lathe. Sometimes life is good!

The other nice thing about benchtop mills is that it’s easier to follow or cut tapers because it’s easier to manipulate both axes at the same time since the handles are closer together. I have a 4” machinist vise with an angle plate that I’ve found to be useful. I use a cordless 3/8” ratchet for a power drawbar. I had a gunsmith mentor that encouraged me to buy this machine first since it will do a large range of jobs and even if I needed a larger machine later, it won’t replace this one.

I have been shopping for a bench top mail for two or three months now, and still had not decided until I watched this video. I’m very intrigued and the smell and I’m leaning toward getting this one. Thanks as always for a great video Cheers

You have just demonstrated the most expensive and most precise etch-a-sketch ever made.

Thanks, Adam, such a good video. I have a Smithy 1324, twenty years old now in my crowded basement shop, and if I had it to do all over again, I would incorporate this mill into my shop with a standalone lathe. R8 collets are an important touch, and you've done a good job accessorizing the mill.

You should get a set of screw machine length drill bits for your small mill. They are about half the length of standard "jobber" bits

Very clean, very sanitary, very well thought out. Wow. I think I can learn things here.

I am just on the edge of watch repair, coming from carpentry and custom liquid computer building. I got hooked on the work of George Daniels, Breguet, and many of the pioneers of Horology and Watchmaking. I hopped freight trains through California after oil rig work in the early 2010's, so I immediately fell in love with railroad grade watches. I have a few crude tools salvaged from scrap, some fine preision tools, and some antiques that feel like they carry more character than your average politician. I am looking to aim for a custom watch eventually, so videos like these are invaluable to get a feel for equipment while seeing them operated by someone as passionate about the workings of things as I am. Thank you to all of you the produce this content, and those who make it popular:) Happy Making!

I especially enjoyed this video, THANK YOU! My better half presented me with a small bench-top mill for my birthday from THE LITTLE MACHINE SHOP over in Pasadena. Thankfully it has a 3 axis DRO which makes me seem to actually be fairly good at cutting what I intend! Watching your videos along with CEE ( Cutting Edge Engineering ), Blondihacks and others I have gotten a good jump-start on how to use the machine! As with my old Atlas/Craftsman lathe, it seems that you can never have enough different tools to plug onto the machine!! Of course, the best part about the videos is catching on to the hints and kinks of how to easily do the otherwise seeming impossible things!!

Love my precision mathews PM-728VT. It’s converted to CNC but it’s seriously served me for years now

Great Work Mate! I really like how you explain all the acronyms for people that might not know.

Nice mill and good video. It’s a blast setting up a new mill, one of the things I learned very quickly when I set up my work area is that chips go everywhere ! Especially if you use air to blow away chips ( which I do also ) Problem is that the chips end up in your collet rack and your hold down rack and it becomes a chore keeping things clean. I found that setting these items under cover or out of the chip zone is a small price to pay in order to keep your tools clean. P.S. you ask 5 people how to do something and you will get at minimum 5 different answers, lol

I just bought my first mini mill from little machine shop. It was great seeing some of your custom mods. And we have the same vice! Haha