Machsupport Forum
Third party software and hardware support forums. => Third party software and hardware support forums. => Topic started by: ogre on July 14, 2013, 12:40:52 PM
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Hello,new guy that has a van norman mill,and southbend lathe but want to get a cnc. what is the best i can get for mostly metal work ,3axis for aprox. $5000+/-. Thank you for input!!!
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That's kinda like asking "What's the best motor vehicle for $5000?". Do you need a car? Truck? Motorcycle? RV? Boat? Does it need to haul cargo, or people?
What kinds of things do you expect to make? How big are they? What metals will they be made from? Aluminum, steel, stainless, titanium are all have very different requirements. Do you need coolant? What size tools do you need to use? Smaller tools require much higher spindle speed. Larger tools require much more spindle torque. What total work envelope do you require, taking into account vises, clamps, fixtures,, etc. What kind of accuracy do you require? What's more important - accuracy or speed? Does that $5000 include all the necessary tooling, which typically costs nearly as much as the machine itself, sometimes more? All these things and many, many more have to be factored into deciding what the "best" machine is for any particular application.
Regards,
Ray L.
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I want to do some gunsmithing as a possibility. But overall it will be mostly aluminum and some lite steels. I am not a manufacturer of anything so im not as concerned for speed. I doubt any tooling will exceed 3/8-1/2". And tooling is a never ending need for money lol I will b making some things for my harley like engravings and such. i know im ignorant to cnc but i do have a van norman mill and southbend lathe and the willingness to learn as i have taught myself my whole life w books and hands on. I appreciate the help. i do not want to turn the van norman into cnc cause theres no parts available for my mill and the wear and tear would worry me. Im wanting at least a 24by24" area towork w on mill table. thank you!!
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$5K is not going to get you much in the real CNC mill world. Even well used machines in that size will be 10-20K and you will end up with almost 1/2 that much MORE in tooling before you are done.
Do you want tool changer or not? I would say YES(;-)
24x24 is a LARGE table for most applications.
You might be able to find a decent series 1 or 2 CNC bridgeport kicking around to CONVERT BUT it will not be a 24x24 work area and you are limited to 6" on the Z if it is quill driven and not table driven Z.
You will have the price of the mill PLUS the conversion price, maybe 3K to do a decent job. Then there is tooling to buy.
(;-) TP
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I think i have mistaken a prefabbed router mill for something more powerful. i guess theyre for engraving only pretty much? i think ur right,i need a full sized mill for millwork and an engraver for engraving.
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Don't forget about the loading, shipping, unloading, and wiring cost. Don't have 3 phase? Add a rotary phase converter to the list.
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I think ive got one pinned down. Its a cnc router 4 axis for 2drive screws on y axis w gecko,380 motors and buy mach 3 software. its on ebay by cnc conversionkits .
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Sorry I thought you were serious and were looking for a real MILL.
(;-) TP
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Nobidy is offering any help. i have a van norman vertical&horizontal mill and southbend 13" lathe. but im new to cnc and dont know if a $4000-6000 solid cnc router will work or if a knee type mill is the only way to go. doing mostly aluminum. i havent had anybody recommend a specific machine for me to look into. im accepting any and all recommendations for me to look at.
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Nobody is offering any help
Please read the replies.
Why in the world do you need a 24"x24" table for what you described you are going to do?
You can use the CNC mill for engraving, just make an attachment for a high speed spindle. You said your not looking for
speed .....of what value is it if the engraving work takes an hour instead of 1/2 hour...?
I would say go with a mill, as it's more robust for metal work.
Funny thing about price.....you can have anything you want but once you pick what you want off the shelf you need to pay for it. ;)
RICH
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I think ive got one pinned down. Its a cnc router 4 axis for 2drive screws on y axis w gecko,380 motors and buy mach 3 software. its on ebay by cnc conversionkits .
post a link. I looked for this when you posted it, but couldn't find it.
what is the best i can get for mostly metal work ,3axis for aprox. $5000+/-.
Whenever someone asks a question like this, a router would not usually be the correct answer.
And a lot of the routers I've seen on Ebay are less than desirable.
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I agree i asked yhe question incorrectly. Apparently i t thought the cnc routers were better than what u guys know them not to be. i have with recommendations changed table size "wants" into more logical sizes. I looked for 3days prior to getting on here cause a guy on ebay sent me here to learn mach 3 and after seeing how bad of a mistake his cnc router would have been to buy,even though i made it clear i was doing aluminum and he assured me itd b fine. Definitly not after knowing more. ill just keep an eye out for some deals and c c what i can get my hands on.
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Again, post the link to the Ebay router.
Without knowing what it is, nobody can tell you if it's any good or not.
Some people say that with a little work, some of the Chinese machines on Ebay are very solid. But they often need the electronics updated, and a thorough inspection and sometimes minor repair or updating. But they can be had for a good price, and make for a solid base. But don't expect a great running machine out of the box.
There really aren't any heavy duty routers that are smaller than 24x36. And at that size, the price will be above your budget. Something like this.
http://www.camaster.com/StingerI.html
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Im cant post a link yet, im using my phone to visit site cause wife dropped the laptop and its all boogered up now. im gonna spend a 2 nd looking at stingers that were posted cause i seen a $6500 price tag and i can afford that. but im getting scared of the routers cause experienced people here are saying no to them. ill check these stingers out and get back on here!!!
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Wow these camaster routers look pretty impressive. i watched a utube video on it cutting aluminum like butter. Does anybody have an opinion on these? or own one?
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Ger21 u may have found my best bet on a cnc that can accuratly and powerful enough to cut aluminum and last along time ,has great reviews,great tech support,and everybody that has one loves it. which i havent seen on mist machines people dont like something about them after they buy them. it may cost me more than i wanted but thats usually how it goes isnt it? Ill prob get the 3-d capability,but most are happy w the router it comes w and its $2000 less than theyre spindle they offer as an upgrade.
if anybody has a machine for me to check out against this one or opinion of this one id like ur help. thank you!
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I cant post a link but if u go on ebay this was the bridgeport i was looking at . the item # is 160981482119. Might be crap for all i know but it looks impressive if u can give me ur thoughts!
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The other cnc router that i thought was decent w the 4axis (1being an extra y drive slave) w gecko and decent build is ebay item # 290948692108. I apoligize for not being able to give u direct links. This is the best one ive found until the stinger 1 by camaster. This runs mach3 and overall a nice setup i think.
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I also found some nice Hurcos if someone knows how good these are? They look well built.