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I used something like that (homemade) on my drill press and it worked fine while it lasted. I think that sort of thing might be in the way to often on a milling machine. They make really nice magnetic lights that i think would work really well. I was too cheap to get one of those for my machine but I ordered a regular magnetic goose neck lamp and just plan on using a led bulb in it.
I was the one who used the PA ring light, after modifications. Fits great, does not interfere with anything on the BP mill. No loss of Z-travel/head room. Has been working for years. Could have more LEDs in it for even brighter light... Maybe I am just getting old
I have two IKEA architect style lamps one on each side. They work but they need to be mounted higher up. Inexpensive and effective - they can take a big 100W equivalent LED bulb. I think the 'specialty' magnetic lamps and such tend to have bulbs that are too low power. The reviews for the PA lamp referenced by thriller seem to hint at that probelem. I have one of the lower power mag base lamps on my lathe and I've ended up with another Ikea lamp. I think I have about 6 of those...
Recently though I started taking out the flourescents 4' fixture bulbs in the ceiling and replacing them with LED bulbs. Supposedly by the lumen the bulbs are not any brighter but I think it is twice as bright as before. Made a huge difference. I measured with a light meter and it is about 2x as bright. Kevin got me on to that idea.
I'm using a LED converted cheapo student lamp very similar to John's pic. One for the mill, one for the scroll saw, one for the lathe.... Ugh! They are OK but I still want better. I've had issues with the some of the mag bases magnets not really sticking too well. Could be low magnetic strength or machine being cast iron or bondo/paint... On the mill I have the base attached to steel cover plate which sticks much better than CI but still not really in a great position. I guess I could tap the machine if I really liked the lamp.
I learned from previous experience you don't want exposed old school bulbs or halogen, basically anything hot unless its well shielded. Because any kind of liquid even just slinging a bit of tapping oil can make the bulb shatter. That's another advantage of LED aside from brightness & wattage, they run quite cool.
When I eventually do the ceiling florescent to LED conversion I'm hoping for much better ambient light & hopefully get rid of these add-ons. I'm thinking of stringing two 48" ceiling fixtures laterally on either side of the mill, which should also help the lathe situation right beside. I hate dingy light. Maybe an age thing but finding it hard to work on things you cant properly see .
I'm using a LED converted cheapo student lamp very similar to John's pic. One for the mill, one for the scroll saw, one for the lathe.... Ugh! They are OK but I still want better. I've had issues with the some of the mag bases magnets not really sticking too well. Could be low magnetic strength or machine being cast iron or bondo/paint... On the mill I have the base attached to steel cover plate which sticks much better than CI but still not really in a great position. I guess I could tap the machine if I really liked the lamp.
I learned from previous experience you don't want exposed old school bulbs or halogen, basically anything hot unless its well shielded. Because any kind of liquid even just slinging a bit of tapping oil can make the bulb shatter. That's another advantage of LED aside from brightness & wattage, they run quite cool.
When I eventually do the ceiling florescent to LED conversion I'm hoping for much better ambient light & hopefully get rid of these add-ons. I'm thinking of stringing two 48" ceiling fixtures laterally on either side of the mill, which should also help the lathe situation right beside. I hate dingy light. Maybe an age thing but finding it hard to work on things you cant properly see .
I just installed LEDs in my garage/shop.
Two rows of five 20w LEDs. Absolutely transformed the place from dark and unsafe to bright and completely workable.
This is an interesting thread because it highlights that we all have different requirements depending on needs. For example, I've tried almost everything when it comes to lighting. My drill press has a built-in light. It's OK, but often problematic because its glare makes it near useless depending on time of day and it my shop door is open. My mini-mill, which I rarely use, is in such an awkward location I can't add a light to it. To complicate things, my need for task light is different that many of you machinist types because I'm more of a fabricator. I need to position lights sideways and upside down and often in my driveway to weld bigger projects. The last permanent task light I have left is an old balanced arm design that I use for my ironworker. It doesn't work great either, even with an LED upgrade. The guard on this machine is also the hold down for the punch and the Lexan around it introduces glare.
What I have settled on over the years is mostly moveable and positionable task lighting. I use a Milwaukee Rocket light now as well as a couple of smaller portable M12/M18 tasks lights that can solve the drill press as well as the mini-mill problem as needed. But most of all they address my need for portable task lighting that can focus on a fillet weld inside a web of pipes upside down if need be. At least for me, as I get older, I need to see the weld path under a shaded lens. That being said, I wish someone would invent a marker that glows under UV light so older welders can keep their shade dark and still see the path. I understand Sharpie "Neons" do this to some degree (kind of) so I have to try these out (Amazon here I come). The portable lights are also great for looking between the blade and hold down on a foot shear to check your scribe line.
I was just never able to find task lights that could contort to my requirements for fixed machines and have strong enough magnetic bases. But I can find lots of lights that I can position for all my fabrication needs, so I just starting using these out of frustration and now they are my permanent solution (see pics).
I use what John and Janger has plus one more 24v light that came with a mill. I.e. left and right 15w LED (about 1500 lumens) plus 24v light that came with the machine and is also on the left.
You bring up another good point, Pete. There is such a thing as too much localized light. My first 'more-is-better' LED bulb replacement was a fail. Way too much reflection & glare because basically everything on the mill table is shiny metal. I then installed a diffuser (aka tupperware lid) which softened it a bit but not that much further ahead than just using a lower lumen bulb.
Another thing I struggle with is trying to take pics of machining in-situ. The lighting is all out of whack, both intensity & color so I have to apply compensation. I'm hoping overkill ambient light (more/brighter ceiling fixtures) will help. I have yet to install my test fixture tube but I should get on that.
Most of my picture issues disappeared when I installed an overhead LED fixture. I still have 3 more to replace but am too cheap to just buy them. I wait until my old T8 Fluorescent ones fail, then replace one at a time.
Lighting is the least of my issues when it comes to smart phone pics. I've been known to walk around for an hour wondering why my groin is getting hot before I realize I accidentally turned the flashlight on instead of the flash for the camera.
For pictures the HDR (high dynamic range ) setting makes pictures of reflective metal (or anything with lots of bright and dark areas) turn out much better. If you have an apple phone you just turn it on at the top. I'm not sure about android phones - do they have this too?
For pictures the HDR (high dynamic range ) setting makes pictures of reflective metal (or anything with lots of bright and dark areas) turn out much better. If you have an apple phone you just turn it on at the top. I'm not sure about android phones - do they have this too?
