Base for benchtop mill?

[Jim27]

Thinking about a base for a benchtop mill. It's not terribly heavy - maybe 250 lbs tops. I have a sturdy bench made of angle iron but it has no good shelves or storage underneath. I could add something but considering getting a large toolbox and mounting it on top. That would give me lots of drawer space for tooling. Tooling will add considerable weight so I may be reaching the weight limit. Thoughts?

Thinking of something like this and adding a butcher block top or something similar to distribute the load of the machine. Maybe a bit longer toolbox so I have room for the PC (it's CNC) and some additional work space. The control box is about the size of a tower PC so could go behind or on the end - probably behind to keep cables short and neat.
https://www.harborfreight.com/tool-s...ack-64458.html

We used a Husky tool box for a similar manual mill at work and it seems to work fine except the wood top is only a bit over an inch thick and bowed slightly in the middle so it hits the drawer. The back edge is supported by the tool box back and looks fine. Thought about bolting an angle across the front to stiffen it up but haven't gotten around to it.

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[CL_MotoTech]

It would probably work fine assuming you are at like a 25 size mill or less. The G0704 base is pretty flimsy, as are the PM bases that I have seen. Reinforcement is a good idea if you go the toolbox route, but reinforcing sheet metal can be somewhat tricky. Especially thin low quality sheet metal. The big problem I personally have with using the toolbox as base is that it's kind of a waste of a work bench, IMO. Also, you kind of lose access to the tool box if the machine is running which isn't great. With my 0704 I built a base that holds the coolant, control, and enclosure then parked a tool box liked you posted right beside the machine for all the tooling. After a few years that box is basically full, as is the tool cart beside it. I use the work space on top of the bench to store stock, store completed parts, measuring instruments, etc..

[Jim27]

What's a 25 size mill? Haven't heard that term before. Got some examples? This is bigger than an X2.

[atomarc]

I did the toolbox base route on my G0704 and I felt it worked well. The box was braced internally and externally, larger casters were installed and all the drawers were usable. I'll try to insert two screen shots of the setup, but if you can take some time, you can see how it was done in my thread. https://www.cnczone.com/forums/bench...24194-cnc.html

Stuart

[dazp1976]

What's a 25 size mill? Haven't heard that term before. Got some examples? This is bigger than an X2.

Precision Matthews PM25.
Roughly the same size to G0704.
A little bigger than the X2 and double it's weight.