I just unwrapped my new rolling mill and am afraid of damaging it as
I assemble and reassemble the rollers. I am a “newbie” obviously.
This Indian import came without instructions. It has a wrench and an
Allen wrench and several types of rollers for square and round wire
and textured sheets. It looks really sturdy and well-made so I don’t
want to return it for lack of directions, but I bought it on ebay so
there is a time limit.
Any suggestions on books that might help with assembly or advice
would be greatly appreciated. Also any suggestions about a stable
table other than the pricey official rolling stands would be helpful.
I believe the Otto-Frei carrier an economy India made roll mill and
has online instruction available. Maybe some minor differences but
should be close enough.
Assembling or re-assembling rolling mills is not an easy, clean, or
fast operation. The mill like these that offer interchangeable
rollers are, in fact, one big time-consuming and messy affair to deal
with. Taking the 1/2 hr. to 45 min. of greasy work to change out
rollers is not my thing, as I need the mill to be ready when I need
it.
Even the side rollers on my Durston mills come on and off in a matter
of a few seconds, with no grease or oil to mess up my hands. Me, I’m
a fan of Durston Mills, and in second place, Cavallin, out of Italy.
These are great mills, and well worth their price.
Meryl, I can’t help you on the assembly problem. But I can tell you
what I have in my studio in terms of a stable surface. I like to
have as much as possible on wheels so I can move items out of the way
as needed for more working space depending on the tasks I’m doing. I
purchased a set of workbench legs and stringers from Rockler
Woodworking as well as the locking wheels and a butcher block top.
This compact moveable bench measures only 24" by 30" (but you can
customize to whatever size you need). I have two rolling mills, a
large vise, a small Profiform shear, a bench shear and a ring
stretcher all attached to the work surface with C clamps. This has
saved a great deal of floor and bench space for me yet keeps the
equipment close at hand and easily accessible. I just roll this out
from its corner, turn it to the item I need, lock the wheels and I’m
good to go.
Over the years I have written accolades about Durston Rolling Mills
on this forum. While the Indian made ones seem cheap and attractive,
it’s important to evaluate where you will be spending your time, and
more important what happens when something goes wrong.
What is the $250 Indian rolling worth when something doesn’t work.
Who do you call? What is your time worth in dealing with the problem?
One eager student at Metalwerx compressed a piece of metal with such
force that the handle on the our mill became damaged. I only had to
make one call to Matthew Durston, enclosed some photos which I sent
via email, and he talked me through the repair. He is in England and
stayed up until 10pm to help us for an upcoming class. Who does that
kind of service?
Yes, a Durston Rolling Mill is expensive, but in the long run, I
still have my very first combination Durston mill purchased from Rio
Grande in 1995. It has survived the torture and stress of thousands
of students and still is working perfectly. What is that worth to
me? Priceless.
I have an economy rolling mill and found this info via the Otto
Frei site. PDF file: http://tinyurl.com/ykku8l8
Thanks for sharing this Pam. I have the same mill and have never used
the patterned rollers as I had no clue as to how to change them out.
I bought mine from a different source, before Otto Frei started
selling the very same model, and mine had no instructions whatsoever