Setting up a New PM-940M Milling Machine - Unboxing, Moving and Assembly 

Any package marked "Fragile" seems to be a challenge to a shipper and translates to "Throw harder" in Shipperese.

It might have seemed like one of the more mundane sections of the video, but showing step by step how you performed the lifting and maneuvering was very educational for those of us who might not have tackled that task before and would be concerned how feasible it is.

Well, think of it this way: The base casting got bounced around enough that it is now probably stress relived. May you and your family have a wonderful Christmas!

I am a 37 year CNC machinist and you just taught me more than all those years. I love all you hobby machinists. Your're all just bad ass. Keep 'em coming. I add this knowledge into my CNC work. It works.

Bouncy bouncy! Let's bounce the new mill as hard as possible! Kind of reminds me of the problem a computer manufacturer had when they discovered that a very large part of their warranty repairs consisted of reseating some chips in a certain model of computer. To solve this they immediately designed a way to secure the chips in the sockets and implemented it. Then someone did a study of the manufacturing and saw a forklift do a jump when driving over a sill as he was loading a pallet of new computers. The boxes all went airborne before crashing back down on the pallet. The truck driver thought nothing special of it and had the technique pat down to keep everything landing in good order, but the whole computer case got jarred and temporarily twisted slightly. It was enough to make the chips creep just slightly out of their sockets and in some cases they moved enough that the computer either failed when first powered up by the customer or it would do so a month or so later...

This looks like a good solid manual mill. It's a good thing the mill protected all that loose foam sheet packing so it wasn't damaged in shipping.

Outstanding and congratulations James! I have the PM-835S and couldn't be happier. I hope you enjoy yours as much as I have mine. Thanks for sharing!

Very nice addition to the shop, really appreciate all the camera angles and effort during the unboxing, defiantly entertaining content and look forward to what you can do with the new machine!

Cheers, that was really helpful for someone just 📕 learning in the sense of seeing it unpacked and craned into position and looks like a beast of a machine, enjoy!

Sweet new toy I look forward to seeing your projects unfold using it

Looks like a pretty nice mill. I’ll stay tuned to see it performs as good as it looks. Thanks for sharing without music playing in the background.

Thank you so much for showing the step by step, from disassembling the box and especially about the care with the lifting !!! Very useful . Congratulations from Brazil

Always exciting getting a new machine. Will expand your capabilities no end 😁👍👌

Well done. Everything in place, and nobody squished.

You've moved up a step in my book! Great upgrade! I have the baby brother to the 940, I have the 932 and its a great machine. Have fun moving it!

The smile in the beginning and the WD-40 smile really cracked me up :) Great content as usual. Looking forward to seeing it in action

Thanks! I’m going to be tackling this (with their smaller 728) next week. Super helpful to see the whole process moving the machine, plus a very enjoyable video as well!

Congratulations on your great new machine. Looks really great,

Great job on the de-palleting and installation, nice machine, accessories packing is abysmal. Great vlog thanks for sharing. Best regards from the UK.

Great video! Nice mill! Nothing like new stuff! Good luck with your purchase! 👍😎

Side note from experience (and a common problem) Open the electrical panel and make sure things are tight or prepare to be replacing a lot of burnt up wires!

Nice to have help. I did the same thing 8 years ago alone

Looks like a very nice mill. Nice job getting it in place.

Exciting to get a new machine, must feel like a whole world of difference from your G0704. I went from a Little Machine Shop 4700 micro mill to a G0704 (used) and it was a nice upgrade for me, I installed the power feed and power lift because hand cranking was getting very old, I did put a DRO with glass scales on it too. Congratulation on your new machine and I share that excitement with you. Can't wait so see you put it to good use. As always, your videos are super great.

Congratulations James!

James you do such a great job on the videos. Thank you!

COVET! That was also the smoothest setup I've ever seen.

As a G0602 owner and a PM727m owner...I'm excited to watch!

Great mill! Congratulations. Will be fun following along with your adventures. Merry Christmas!

Very nice addition to your shop!

Only thing better than getting a new mill is watching someone else setting up their new mill..lol. That is a really nice addition to your shop.👌🏻🇺🇸

Last month: I finally got rid of all the woodworking equipment. This month: We used cut and drilled wooden blocking to lift the crane. We used cut and stacked wooden blocks to hold the mill off the floor. Ironic. And I'm jealous. I hope you and yours have a safe and happy holiday!

Real nice mill. I was worried about lifting head and jack staying down on floor. All went well. Thank you for sharing.

Congrats on your new acquisition!

Nice mill, I have a similar model from Grizzly, less the power downfeed which was not an option when I purchased mine. I installed a DroPros two axis DRO with magnetic scales and I love it. Absolutely spot on for precision drilling.

Congrats for Your new mill!

Have owned a number of mills snd Precision Matthews are my all time favorite. Lucky, Iucky😊😊😊😊

Nice new machine. Looking forward to new videos using it!

Now that is a serious bit of kit for a home workshop. Been looking at some of your very first videos and how things have changed and evolved. Your presentation, filming, sound and staging have all improved dramatically. It is very interesting to see what a difference the use of a plain and tidy stage backdrop has done to give the videos some real professionalism. Multi-cameras and split sound really shows on the later videos, congratulations.. Looking forward to seeing what you are going to attempt on the big mill. Have a good Christmas, stay safe and keep the videos coming (Love the long multi-part projects).

Thanks for sharing and Merry Christmas!

I bought that same model about 5 years ago, I like my gear change knob locations better, they face the front instead of the side. It needed a gooseneck work light, that was added later. Shars is a good source for tooling. Adapters run morse #2, #3 drills. I ordered the collet set to make use of end mills and annular cutters. I like your nice roomy shop....

I have watched most of your videos, I always enjoy it

Been going through your back-catalog of videos and really enjoying them. This was really similar to my receiving a Tormach SlantPro lathe and 440 Mill.. shipped to Canada. Luckily the lathe and mill and tools were all OK, but all the pallets, wood, boxes, were in splinters.

My Hafco 46 arrived a month ago, same machine, different badge. I love it, and yes, I too told myself It would remain a manual machine. A month ago ;)

I love the bubble wrap packing in the mill head crate. I mean,it could have been damaged beyond repair if were not for the token piece of bubble wrap 😂😂

Great vid, and kudos to your friend. Always good to have an extra set of hands when needed.

Looks great James. I have a PM-949 TV with the 4 axis DRO from DRO Pros. Excellent choice.

I bought a PM 932M 2 years. I was using an engine hoist to lift the mill off the pallet stack.... and the hoist collapsed/tipped. I utterly destroyed the mill control, the motor capacitors, etc. Sent PM a detailed list of what I needed, they express shipped the replacement parts, sent me detailed schematics, etc. Took me a while to work up the nerve to tear the controls off, but my mill is up and running. Absolutely LOVE my PM mill!

I have that same HF engine crane but optioned it with the air powered hydraulic vs manual cyl - its wonderful! Also added 100 lb counterweight ballast.

lovely little machine well done

Most delivery guys are like the road runner as soon as it is off the truck, well done that man.

Sweet little mill.

always fun moving a milling machine.. i had one this size transported sideways in the back of my car.. was a 4 hour move from its old place to where it is now.. impossible to do without a engine lift lol

You can double or triple the paper thickness on the gears if you want it more accurate. Paper is great for shims if there is enough bearing area, and it's tolerant of slight dirt because it embeds without affecting the shimming height.

when I got mine I drilled 4 holes through the base, ran 2 lengths of rebar through the holes, lowered the head as far as it would go, the put the lifting straps around the bars. Easy to drill being cast iron, some brands come with holes already in the sides of the base.

dude.. the envy is real. congratulations!!!

James, Wishing you and your family a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. Take care Paul,,

Nice informative video. Thanks for sharing.

Nice video very interesting for me as I have just order new mill for my shop due end January 2021 , bit small but will have same problem unboxing and putting it together. Now I know what to do thanks to your video.

James, Thanks for this video, it came right on time to me. Monday Dec. 21, 2020 I am receiving my PM833 TV so your video is extremely helpful. Congratulations in your new mill.

All I want for Christmas is bigger/more chips!! What a nice upgrade and great video. I have the small version PM mill and had the same issues with the packaging. Mine came a year ago so it seems consistency is on their side!

One great thing with a new small mill, you can add a Mini pallet system that covers the X and Y surface area of the milling table, that way you have the option to move your milling vise and even add a second vise that will be perfectly aligned with the first one.

Just received a PM 1236 Lathe in November (similar weights in the machine and pedestals) and had to move it from my garage out around the side of my house, which is down hill to the basement level back door, in through the door, across the Family Room, down the hall, and into my workshop. Watching you guys jockey that mill around your garage, I'm thinking "lucky SOB"...congrats on the new machine.

Congratulations on the new mill. I my self just bought a 12X36 Premium Mathews lathe. I have yet to mount it on the stand so its not running yet. I bought the 2 hp 3 ph. and am looking for a VFD when I found your videos and started watching. Thanks for the great ideas .

Nice machine. Envious. Enjoy your new machine. Hope to see it in action soon.

Hi James. In the UK I have the same mill but branded Warco. Had it a year and very pleased but you will need to make new knobs for tightening the gibbs. The little lever type ones supplied are not fit for purpose and you will probably find that the ones that tighten the X axis catch on the ways when moving the table away from you on the y. Enjoy. All the best. Jim.

I hope one day to have a garage with milling machine and metal lathe. The hobby is the most fun to me you could have. Super jealous of your new toy

Good luck with the new mill James. May it put plenty of chips on the floor for many years to come.

Great video as usual. Also, jealous! Looks like a pretty nice mill.

This is the most detailed mill uncrating and installation video that I've found -- and I got some good tips and detail w/r/t the hoist repositioning. My PM-30MV is arriving this afternoon (yeah!). It's much lighter than yours of course, but I'll still have the issue with the HF hoist legs not being able to straddle the pallet. My thought/hope is to ask the Saia delivery guy to unload the pallet directly onto the legs of my hoist out in the driveway, then wheel it into the garage like that. Hopefully I'll still have enough lift to get it off of the pallet and onto the stand from there. I also asked the PM folks to mark the top of the crate with an X to show where the front of the mill is facing so that I can get it onto the engine hoist legs oriented the proper way. Let's see if they actually do that X for me. If not, it may require a lift, swivel, drop, and lift again to get it turned the right way.

The advantages of being in climate that allows a shop in the garage. And here I was looking at 2 feet of snow on the ground last week Lining the mill base and stand up take for bolts and cut the heads off. Use those as guide studs when setting on the stand

Che macchina spettacolare!!! Grande James. (what a spectacular machine, great James) Ciao

" Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's milling machine" 🤣

Congratulations , it's looks like a real mill , nice one ! Looking forward for some interesting projects ;)

Great job! (I'm envious!)

I am from Brazil. Thank you for vídeo

Great video, it's definitely one of the more interesting unboxing videos. Congratulations to getting the new milling machine into position. I hope the precision drill chuck still lives up to its name after this abuse. At 8:00 I was a bit afraid about Jason's hand though. A loop that is soon to be under load might not be the safest thing to put your hand through...

Right when he smiles I wish I was there to say "And you'll eventually find the X&Y are out of alignment" lol. Sucks, I had a PM45M CNC that was also "springy" on the column which lead me to sell it as the cut finish looked like a beaver chewed it into shape. I spent countless hours trying different collets, clocking collets, clocking bits, 2 flute, 3 flute, 4 flute, TRN, TiCN, HSS, carbide, 1/4 to 1" , stickout, locking dovetails on Z and Y axis then doing a cut, locking Z and X then doing a cut, adjusting the gib on the one axis I did leave unlocked, hundreds of RPM to feed ratios, different aluminum stock vendors, light pass with spring cut, heavy pass with several spring cuts, climb mill and conventional, checking runout on R8 taper, checking for slop or bad bearings in spindle and probably 500 photos comparing all the various finishes. Had a rough time getting others with similar machines to even post close up photos so I could compare my finish texture with theirs although everyone had an opinion and of course theirs was fine...lol. I can now tell you a G0704 delivered better cuts at 1/3 -1/4 the weight and a wacky column mounting method.

Seems to be a nice mill. Packaging problems aside, I hope it works as well as it looks.

Great packaging!😲😲😲

James, I have a 940m as well. I am in the process of a cnc conversion. I go a little sidetracked with a quadruple bypass but am in the process of getting it up and running. I built my own feet with hockey pucks and 1/4" stainless drops I bought from ebay. The feet turned out very well. I also took the mill apart and used a needle scaler to remove all the bondo that is used on these machines. I removed about a full gallon of bondo from the mill and base. The needle scaler removed all the bondo and paint very well and quickly. I blew up my cheap used air compressor and had to buy a new one. lol I was pleasantly surpised that the castings looked pretty good and wondered why they used so much bondo. I then repainted everything with POR primer and paint. The machine isn't as heavy as they claim but still is heavy. Here is what the parts weight. But my machine is the basic model with hardwaysand doesn't have the control box, control head or the z and x power feed motor like yours so your will be a little heavier. As for the mill; mill base 130 column 144 spindle head 185 Z saddle 34 motor 40 X table 131 Y saddle 48 mill total 712 As for the bottom stand 310 Total weight 1022

Scary, glad you got it moved. #1 cross your straps so there is always force tightening them, if it slipped they would both come off.#2 always assume the thing your lifting will fall - put a 4x4 under it when you put on the feet! If it fell you would save a hand. Speaking of hands - your friend was lucky it didn’t weight more when his hand was in the strap! Enjoy your videos!

Suffering from serious mill envy. May have to see my therapist. Actually I don't have enough clearance in my shop to fit it in. Your uncrating and setup went unbelievably smooth.

Very good video 👍. The machine look very nice .

Ohhhh that is a beast!

Very nice machine little bit off envy ;-) Keep up the good job and dont forget to share everything. Merry Christmas to you and your family! Be safe. Kind regards Gert

Santa was generous this year, which means you've done your homework. Congrats !

Hi, took delivery of the very same model (different colour of course)on Friday last but with the DRO option. So this video is of great interest to me as I have got to go through the same process. Unfortunately I do not have the room you have but very useful to see how it all goes together and how it operates. regards

Monster travel distances! Up there with many turret mills!

Nice Mill, love the 14"'s on the Y Axis!

31 years as a cabinetmaker have a pretty ok woodshop at home - for fun. I see a giant hole in my shop now - thanks

Congrats on the new toy, looks great. It's nice when Santa drops in early.

Congratulations on the early Christmas present. Not sure where you live but if that had to travel through Shreveport LA. It wouldn't surprise me if it were tipped over sideways. I moved from Texas to the East coast and back and all of the damage sustained was coming through Shreveport on I20. I feel like you will enjoy the mill and customer service from PM. I have a 1236 lathe and their bench top mill and would do it again because they are incredible to work with.

I am so jealous of you it’s it’s just not right,well maybe it is right.maybe I just need to save my money. Congratulations on your new mill

Great job!!!

Watching was sort of Deja vu. My first mill was a Grizzly G1007 and I have the same horrible freight engine lift you have. It was a very hard job getting the thing off the pallet with the stupid "Y" shaped legs. I finally got a PM950V and now I am in hog heaven. You will be glad of having ordered that hold down kit.

Thanks for the heads up. I've been thinking about buying a PM mill. I still am but I need to rethink where I put it

Omg what a beauty !

I am impressed with the features of your mill. PM does have nice machines… I have a 1640 TL lathe. It’s heavy and I’m liking it so far. I did not expect your mill to come with power down feed on the quill… I like your mill. Nice buy!!

Congrats with the new Mill! Tip...For adjusting the gear. Take some solder wire. turn the gear and messure the thichness of the it :)