# myford mg12 cylindrical grinder



## blighty (Sep 25, 2013)

for those of you that read my "welcome" thread, may remember i tend to have a few projects going all at once. i don't plan it this way, it just tends to happen.

well it's happened again. 

when i started to put the man cave together i wanted curtain machines and one machine i was after was a cylindrical grinder. i told a mate about this and he said i should look out for a Myford mg 12. so i went looking for one..... HOW MUCH!!! well forget that idea. 

fast forward to a few weeks ago...... a guy said to me "do you want a surface grinder?"... no thanks, i've already got one. "its a nice one, its got a chuck on it and everything"..... chuck??? thats a cylindrical grinder me thinks. what is it? "its a Myford mg 12" no thanks there mega bucks..... offer him £100 see what he says.

two days later i get a call....."he refused £100 but said ok to £200" BANG...(thats me hitting the floor) a week later i went to have a look at this grinder. basically, its 8 years old and all it has done is ground rubber (little rubber wheels found inside printers etc) and its dirty. that's it.

even if it don't work when i plug it in (no reason why it shouldn't) still a bargain at £200.

i had to take it to bits so i could get it in the shed. so friday i have to hire a engine lift so i can put it all back together as the top bit alone (that's without the bed, wheel motor and chuck head assy) must be round the 500lb mark. i'll take a load of pics when i'm doing it.


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## Swifty (Sep 25, 2013)

We need pictures th_wwp

Paul.


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## blighty (Sep 28, 2013)

well I've been trying all day to get this ruddy thing in the shed!!

met some problems on the way it's very heavy for starters. so i hired an engine lift that was rated at 255Kg it could just about pick it up. plus the engine lift legs are half an inch bigger than the shed door, so i cant pic it up with the lift and just wheel it through the door. also the top of the grinder is bigger than the door. so i have to pic it up so it is leaning to one side and then it should fit through the door, but i can't get it through door 'cos the lift wont fit :wall::wall:

round two happens on Wednesday when a mate is lending me his trolley jack... that will fit through the door, but i still have to pic the top up and lean it to one side then some how get it on the jack.

isn't this hobby  fun.


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## don-tucker (Sep 29, 2013)

We had one where I used to work,a nice grinder that produced a good finish,so looking forward to some pics
Hurry up and get it in out the cold &#128512;
Don


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## blighty (Oct 1, 2013)

i'm trying Don,

tomorrow a mate is coming over with a pallet truck (think i called it a trolly jack last time..... that will be the age creeping up on me then) well he was, till i phoned and canceled. as yesterday i thought i would load up the engine lift in the car before i got ready for work.

got it in the car ok, but when i walked back up the drive way, leaning slightly to the left and with a  twinge in my lower back..... i thought i shouldn't  really  of done that:wall: 

so as i type (still leaning to the left) i'm also thinking, why the hell is metal so ruddy heavy!!!!


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## MachineTom (Oct 2, 2013)

Welcome to the small MG12 owners group. I believe that you estimate of the weight is off a bit. These babies go around 1200 lbs and a VERY top heavy. While some parts are easy, motor, workhead, traveling bed, that is about all that comes off easily. The wheelhead removes with some effort, but that leaves you with ~800 lbs. To remove the top portion from the base would be tough, there are over 100 wires going all over the works in the base, maybe 30 through the armoured cables and switches.

Is it possible to cut a hole in the side of the shed and put it in that way, or remove the door frame. 

I was offered the loan of an Indy Race car to display in the showroom of my motorcycle dealership. Front door were 60 inches wide the car was 80, figuring to remove the wheels, and suspension pieces would do the job, As I sat and was working out how to do this I looked out the front floor to ceiling windows and 'Zip' remove two windows, and use a rollback and place the car right there. It took less that an hour to get it done. And most folks looked around to try to see how we got it into the showroom.

For the way an MG 12 is built, it would be simple to use wood planks like a 2 x 10 and rollers,I like PVC 1.5" size for this weight you would need about 4 per side,  so a dozen rollers 12" long each. A simple 30" crowbar will lift and move the machine quite easily using 1/2" blocks. the machine weight is also biased towards the rear, so lift the rear first then level the front as you lift it up. 

Drop me a note if you have question of operating the MG, I don't use mine much but I always like doing it.


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## blighty (Oct 2, 2013)

> I believe that you estimate of the weight is off a bit.



your not kidding.

it was all so easy when i took it to bits, but i did have a forklift to take the top off. 

not to keen on cutting a hole in the side of the shed and the door frame is part of the shed. so if i took the frame out the shed would probably fall over. hopfully it should be ok with the pallet truck. as at the mo i just need the top bit in the shed. all the other bits are in there and with winter just round the corner, need to get it in there asap. once its in there it can stay put for a while.

then i have to wok out how to lift the top up and put it on the base. 

wire wise, there is 4 cables coming out of the base that go up through the top.... chuck, wheel, lamp and coolant pump. there are 3 switches black knob type on the front panel. the first two are self explanatory, but the third one you can switch between internal and external. can you shed some light on that??

it would be great if you had a manual you could copy and send my way, as i have been searching the net and not found anything. i haven't  found much on the MG12 to be honest. there is a YT vid  where someone is re scraping in the beds. (good watch) apart from that there doesn't seem to be a lot about them. just that a good one is expensive and there ruddy heavy.  


also, while i remember. it didn't come with a tail stock. they are looking for it in there travels at where it came from. might be tucked away somewhere, not seen the light of day for many moons.... kind of thing.

if they cant find it, any ideas where i might get one?


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## MachineTom (Oct 3, 2013)

Glad it is working out for the move.  There is a internal grinder spindle available that mounts where the "Myford" badge is, So when using the Internal spindle the motor turns in reverse direction, hence the Ext/Int switch setting. 

The coolant switch has a 4 position setting, depending on the vintage of the machine, those are to have coolant on only when the wheel motor is on,  or to have the coolant on independent of the wheel motor.


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## blighty (Oct 3, 2013)

thanks for the explanation Tom. 

it hasn't got and internal attachment so i guess i won't be using that bit.

not to sure about the marking on the pump switch (haven't really looked yet)
don't think the pump has ever been used. i may not be using it when i get it all up and running. as being an ex tool maker i have done a fair amount of round stuff grinding and never used  the coolant once. i was told  "as long as you dont go made there is no need to use coolant.... we dont use it on the surface grinders. so whats the difference" 

been looking up tail stocks for it, just in case they cant find the one it came with. i have only found one and that was £1250....... i really hope they find that tail stock!!!


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## MachineTom (Oct 3, 2013)

I have used coolant in mine from the start, it helps with airborne dust, and improves finish. 
Sure hope they find the TS, it makes the grinder work on many more work pieces. Because of the way the T/S is indexed off the back edge of the bed, If you find a spring loaded TS it would not be that tough to adapt one to the machine.

I have an owners manual, purchased from I think is Tony's site. It is for a newer design machine, mine has the 10" wheel, 1973 went to the 12"wheel.The manual shows the lube points and oil required.

The U-tube Myford video's were done by Nick Mueller who is a member here.


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## blighty (Oct 3, 2013)

> it helps with airborne dust



we had extractors.

again thx for the tip. im not in any hurry for the TS at the mo. ill get it all set up then i can have a good look at whats need doing.

ruddy good clean wouldn't go a miss. i might give it a lick of paint. it's green at the mo and just doesn't go with the decor of the rest of the shed.

plus its a 3 phase. so i need to look up an inverter for it. think a 2.5hp or 3hp (to be on the safe side) will do.


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## waynesworld (Mar 27, 2014)

Hi all i'm trying to get an old myford mg12 cylindrical grinder going but the fuse's are gone and no one stocks them any ideas ???

thanks 

wayne


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## blighty (Mar 27, 2014)

sorry cant help at the mo. still haven't got the thing in the shed yet.


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## MachineTom (Mar 27, 2014)

Are the fuses missing, or blown. Is it those on the outside in the machine entrance box, or inside the door with the contactors, relays etc.

I have a MG 12 manual machine, 10" wheel size. I'd look up the numbers if that might help. The externally mounted box has porcelain fuses they are not like anything in the usa, The inside has cartridge fuses that may be available.

I am assuming you are in USA. You can just replace the outside box with another 3 phase box from ebay or others, its only 15 amp, if I recal correctly.


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## waynesworld (Apr 16, 2014)

Hi Thanks no I&#8217;m in Ireland and the fuses are the porcelain one in side and there is only one original crabtree fuse the others were 2 odd ones push in but I&#8217;d love to upgrade it to breakers possible

regards

wayne


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## MachineTom (Apr 16, 2014)

The inside fuses are 4 amps, These are control circuit fuses.

 A manual much newer than my machine states this:Main fuses Klockner Moeller D11-11040-25,
control fuses DEF.63 SIZE 0 5amp

simplatron FF8 5 x 20mm DC controller

A company named Jubliee Machine has purchased the last spares of Myford, they would be the most likely source of fuses for a Myford. There are a number of circuit breakers within the machine, but fuses for the controll and main.

Does the machine operate? when jumping the fuses?


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## blighty (Nov 3, 2016)

well lets drag this thread out again.

it's been well over two years since i last posted in this thread...... so whats happened to the MG12? i still have it and the top is still out side doesn't time fly when you have a million other things to do and you keep walking past a 400kg paper weight thinking "to heavy, cant be assed, I'll move it next weekend:wall:"

that weekend has finally come! we have worked out a way to get it in the shed using some 4b2 a bit of ply wood, a 1ton engine lift and a fridge full of bacon and eggs.to feed the troops. have also made a set of wheels that clamps to the side of the bottom of the grinder. so when you wind the levelling screws down you can slid them in. then wind them back up and the machine is now resting on the wheels. i should then be able to move the whole machine around the shed to work on it.

other thing... as the top has been covered up outside for two winters. i was a bit on the apprehensive side of taking of the covers and having a look at the condition of the ways and the bearing of the main spindle. to my surprise both are fine. there is a little rust/burn on the ways at the chuck end, but don't think the will matter. considering its been out side for this amount of time, i think I've been lucky.

I'll take some pics of the move. then the hard bit....... trying to remember how it all goes back together.


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## blighty (Nov 6, 2016)

well that was fun. 

after a few years of being out side the grinder is now in the shed. and as normal  we got it in the shed before a remembered to get the camera out. as this thing weighs over 350kg the move went better than i thought it would. 

pic below are in no particular order. sorry for the ones on there side.


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## blighty (Nov 6, 2016)

had a closer look at it when it was put together and it does seem i have got away with it. being out side for so long thought it would be a lot worse. with a bit of a rub the guides come up fine with no rust found on them. some of the dials have a small layer of surface rust on them, but again with a quick rub seems to get rid of the rust and the dial looks ok. think i have lost the fine feed dial, rust has eaten into the dial.

the wheel is shot. will need a new one of them. ill post more pics as and when i have them. think this will be a winter project.


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## blighty (Dec 6, 2016)

some more random pics


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## blighty (Dec 15, 2016)

dont you just love ebay!

when i got this thing, it didn't come with a tail stock. the guy had a look, but couldn't find it. never mind i'll see if a can get one. HOW RUDDY MUCH! this was the only one i found..... all yours for £1950 here is the link http://www.jubileemactools.com/website-pages/MYFORD_MG12_Tailstock._NEW!-p-446.html

two weeks ago i thought i would have another look, one on ebay came up £70 all in :thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:


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## blighty (Dec 17, 2016)

Jim,

as it took me 3 years to get the top on, i'm not taking it off again. so this is the best i can do 

you can get to the bolt by the door on the front.


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## blighty (Dec 17, 2016)

the spring guides??? under the table.


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## blighty (Dec 17, 2016)

the feet with the wheels on, 

the bit on the bottom is made from 1 1/2 angle (i think, i should measure it:wall
that tucks under the base, the wheel have been made to stick out 6mm below this. when you screw the levelling screws down you can push them under the base. then get the ratchet strap and tighten them together. then wind the levelling screws back up. 

be careful when pushing it around, the mg-12 is VERY top heavy. wouldn't take much for it to go over.


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## blighty (Dec 30, 2016)

been playing in the shed again 

the beds of OD grinder come in two parts. there is the main part that is fixed and goes up and down the main bed. the other table (the  one you can see) sits on top of the fixed one, but can pivot in the middle. when i was cleaning this part up it seemed a bit stiff. thought best do it proper like and take it to bits. the pic shows it was full of this rubber grindings/dust stuff.  

the work head was no better. second pic... top right is where the work head is.


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## blighty (Dec 30, 2016)

separating the work head bits, found more rubber gunk.


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## blighty (Dec 30, 2016)

random pics of the rest.

work head drive housing.
coolant tank.
guides that sit between the bed and table.


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## blighty (Dec 30, 2016)

all done.... ish. need to sort out the main coolant tank and pump. and give the bottom half a lick of paint.


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## bazmak (Dec 31, 2016)

I did not realize Myford made industrial machines.Nice refurb job well done
I wonder how much profit you could make on that,if you can get out of the shed


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## MachineTom (Mar 25, 2017)

All depends what a willing buyer will pay a willing seller. lOL
The market for cylindrical&#8203; grinder s is very small. While CNC cylindrical grinders are still in use, manual machines are no longer made.


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## RGerlach (Nov 5, 2018)

Not sure how to start a new thread so I will post a reply with my new message.
I picked up an MG12 machine that was a little rough around the edges.  I have gone far enough to make everything functional and have actually done some OD grinding.  The BIG problem is the leaking wheel spindle seals.  The pulley side leaks so badly that I can hardly get more than a few minutes of grinding done before new oil leaks out and onto the pulley making the belt slip and slide badly.  How big of a job is it to change both seals?  I have sent an email off to Jubilee Machine Tools to inquire about the availability of the replacement seals and am waiting for a response.
I have included a photo of the "as received" condition.  It looks much better now but I don't have any good pictures.


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## blighty (Nov 6, 2018)

if your head is the same as my one, there are two bolts on the other side of the spindle (from the front) that you undo. The housing for the spindle is split, undoing these bolts lets the whole spindle come out the wheel side.

i'll post some pics later to night. might explain things better.


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## BaronJ (Nov 6, 2018)

Hi Guys,

A couple of years ago, I looked at one in a Birmingham dealers yard.  It had been stood out in the weather for at least six months, everything that could go rusty was.  It was waiting to be put into a container and shipped to India.  The dealer said I could have it for £150.00p if I provided the transport to take it away.  Sadly at the time I couldn't find a company who was prepared to shift it for me.  It had been shipped off a few weeks later.

I did find out that there was a group of buyers going round factories and auctions buying machines of all kinds and shipping them to India.


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## blighty (Nov 11, 2018)

sorry for the delay........

I haven't taken the main spindle out, but it moved after i rebuilt the whole machine. then noticed i hadn't put the screws back in.
It looks like the spindle is in a sleeve that you take out in one piece as unit. Slides out the wheel end.


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## RGerlach (Nov 24, 2018)

Thanks for the pic but it looks different than mine.
I did finally figure out how to get mine all apart with some help from Andrew at Jubilee Machine Tool.  I have all the old seals out and waiting for the new seals to show up next week.  I did not have to remove the wheel spindle cartridge.  I was able to do everything with it in place.  The only tricky part is that I need to modify the bronze conical sleeve bearing so I can press the wheel side seal a bit further into the spindle towards the pulley side.  There is a common problem where abrasive grit gets onto the wheel side seal lip and wears a nice groove into the spindle surface.  Andrew's suggestion was to slightly deepen the bore where the seal goes.  The added depth just has to be enough to move the lip past the little groove so it is resting on virgin metal.


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## Cogsy (Nov 25, 2018)

Alternatively you could fit a speedi-sleeve. They are simple to install and don't require a different sized seal to be fitted. Done properly, it's as good, or better, than the original shaft.


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## MachineTom (Nov 25, 2018)

I had a similar problem with the workhead. The seal Myford used was unique size on the ID. No standard seal could fit it, so I made a sleeve to fit the std size oil seal., installed that on the spindle, worked fine.


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## blighty (Nov 26, 2018)

as we have a few people with MG12's. do any of you guy's have some form of filter on you coolant?

when i got mine, there was a big tank bolted to the side of the base. the coolant would over flow through two pipes into this tank where it would then be pumped back up the the wheel. Looking all over this there seems to be no filter. my only thought is that the grindings would sink to the bottom of the top tank and the clean ish coolant would go out through the pipes into the main tank. if this is the idea, doesn't seem to be a good one. As i got rid of the main tank i'm just circulating all the crap around. need to sort out a filter.

was thinking of big bucket with the pump in it that will sit behind the grinder. the over flow pipes would drain out into another bucket (that fed the main bucket) with some sort of filter in it. but what could i use as a filter? would think it would need changing quite often.


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## blighty (Nov 26, 2018)

this is the part im using as the coolant tank. the pump just at the bottom.


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## DJP (Nov 27, 2018)

While working at an SKF manufacturing plant in my youth, we shut down the plant for a week each summer to clean out the 'mud' that created sediment in the coolant rivers that flowed under the machines. I don't remember any filter in the system so a little grinding waste in the coolant water must be OK. It did stink after a year which is why students were hired.

A fine mesh screen as a filter should work and you may need to back flush it often. A plan for annual cleaning of the holding tank would be prudent.

I have avoided grinding machines and coolant in my shop for some reason and now it makes sense.


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