Posted: 12/29/2015 11:13:50 PM EDT
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So I posted before about my sorta milling machine glorified Drill Press getting DRO and some other updates.
I Added the DRO and changed the spindle to be an R8 taper instead of a Morse 3... Good Deal! Well my inability to leave well enough alone I have now adapted the thing to be CNC... "Mill" now with motors on 3 axis... 
CNC Milled Spartan Logo... 
Milling (engraving) a Widget 
Finished Engraving... 
Have not yet done any serious milling I await arrival of the 2HP 240V3P motor and VFD... Should be able to handle a larger chipload and run at higher speed... so feed could be faster. I did do a surfacing action of a .150 cut with a 7 Flute Indexable face mill 3" Diameter... Feeding at 5IPM... surfacing the plate that I engraved the Spartan Face in. Engraving was done with a 60* 0 point engraving cutter single flute... |
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For all that you spent in upgrades, I bet you could have had a decent CNC machine from the get to. No offence, but what you have is akin to putting $2k in wheels on a Chevette.  Not even CLOSE to the cost of a decent CNC Machine.... Not even CLOSE... I could have gotten a Bridgeport perhaps but then would have to spend the same on the controller and accompanying motors etc. probably more than that. A Dedicated CNC machine can't really be had for anything close to what I spent on this. CHEAP CNC Machine goes for what? a 1999 9000# Hurco machining center goes for about 17750... a 1999 PMC 10t24 goes for 23500... I guess your idea of "Decent" is a bit different than mine... What I spent on this is vastly different... perhaps an 1/8 of that cost... A Tormach would have maybe been close.... to the same... I am still a bit cheaper. |
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Not even CLOSE to the cost of a decent CNC Machine.... Not even CLOSE... I could have gotten a Bridgeport perhaps but then would have to spend the same on the controller and accompanying motors etc. probably more than that. A Dedicated CNC machine can't really be had for anything close to what I spent on this. CHEAP CNC Machine goes for what? a 1999 9000# Hurco machining center goes for about 17750... a 1999 PMC 10t24 goes for 23500... I guess your idea of "Decent" is a bit different than mine... What I spent on this is vastly different... perhaps an 1/8 of that cost... A Tormach would have maybe been close.... to the same... I am still a bit cheaper. Quoted:
Quoted:
For all that you spent in upgrades, I bet you could have had a decent CNC machine from the get to. No offence, but what you have is akin to putting $2k in wheels on a Chevette. Not even CLOSE to the cost of a decent CNC Machine.... Not even CLOSE... I could have gotten a Bridgeport perhaps but then would have to spend the same on the controller and accompanying motors etc. probably more than that. A Dedicated CNC machine can't really be had for anything close to what I spent on this. CHEAP CNC Machine goes for what? a 1999 9000# Hurco machining center goes for about 17750... a 1999 PMC 10t24 goes for 23500... I guess your idea of "Decent" is a bit different than mine... What I spent on this is vastly different... perhaps an 1/8 of that cost... A Tormach would have maybe been close.... to the same... I am still a bit cheaper. I was thinking $6-$8k as "decent", but then again, I don't have an issue spending $3.5k on an auto-driven 1050. |
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Quoted: Not even CLOSE to the cost of a decent CNC Machine.... Not even CLOSE... I could have gotten a Bridgeport perhaps but then would have to spend the same on the controller and accompanying motors etc. probably more than that. A Dedicated CNC machine can't really be had for anything close to what I spent on this. CHEAP CNC Machine goes for what? a 1999 9000# Hurco machining center goes for about 17750... a 1999 PMC 10t24 goes for 23500... I guess your idea of "Decent" is a bit different than mine... What I spent on this is vastly different... perhaps an 1/8 of that cost... A Tormach would have maybe been close.... to the same... I am still a bit cheaper. Quoted: Quoted: For all that you spent in upgrades, I bet you could have had a decent CNC machine from the get to. No offence, but what you have is akin to putting $2k in wheels on a Chevette. Not even CLOSE to the cost of a decent CNC Machine.... Not even CLOSE... I could have gotten a Bridgeport perhaps but then would have to spend the same on the controller and accompanying motors etc. probably more than that. A Dedicated CNC machine can't really be had for anything close to what I spent on this. CHEAP CNC Machine goes for what? a 1999 9000# Hurco machining center goes for about 17750... a 1999 PMC 10t24 goes for 23500... I guess your idea of "Decent" is a bit different than mine... What I spent on this is vastly different... perhaps an 1/8 of that cost... A Tormach would have maybe been close.... to the same... I am still a bit cheaper. have in the machine soon enough. And then you'll be on the hunt for a larger more rigid machine. It's a never ending cycle. My brother has a shop, and the amount of money these things cost is ridiculous. Heck some of the tooling is north of a $1k for one cutter and inserts can be a couple hundred per tool. And people get mad when they want a one off piece made and don't know why it is as expensive as it is. They only see that it's maybe $20 worth of raw materials. They don't take into account the cost of machines that can run several hundred thousand dollars each, the tooling costs, design and programming costs etc. |
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Cool setup!! I'll bet you'll have more tied up in tooling than what you have in the machine soon enough. And then you'll be on the hunt for a larger more rigid machine. It's a never ending cycle. My brother has a shop, and the amount of money these things cost is ridiculous. Heck some of the tooling is north of a $1k for one cutter and inserts can be a couple hundred per tool. And people get mad when they want a one off piece made and don't know why it is as expensive as it is. They only see that it's maybe $20 worth of raw materials. They don't take into account the cost of machines that can run several hundred thousand dollars each, the tooling costs, design and programming costs etc. Quoted:
Quoted:
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For all that you spent in upgrades, I bet you could have had a decent CNC machine from the get to. No offence, but what you have is akin to putting $2k in wheels on a Chevette. Not even CLOSE to the cost of a decent CNC Machine.... Not even CLOSE... I could have gotten a Bridgeport perhaps but then would have to spend the same on the controller and accompanying motors etc. probably more than that. A Dedicated CNC machine can't really be had for anything close to what I spent on this. CHEAP CNC Machine goes for what? a 1999 9000# Hurco machining center goes for about 17750... a 1999 PMC 10t24 goes for 23500... I guess your idea of "Decent" is a bit different than mine... What I spent on this is vastly different... perhaps an 1/8 of that cost... A Tormach would have maybe been close.... to the same... I am still a bit cheaper. My brother has a shop, and the amount of money these things cost is ridiculous. Heck some of the tooling is north of a $1k for one cutter and inserts can be a couple hundred per tool. And people get mad when they want a one off piece made and don't know why it is as expensive as it is. They only see that it's maybe $20 worth of raw materials. They don't take into account the cost of machines that can run several hundred thousand dollars each, the tooling costs, design and programming costs etc. My favorite is the plasma cutting stuff, where a guy wants a sign cut (custom design, so CAD Time, CAM time, and material) and it is not so big "You can probably get that out of a scrap, right?" "Maybe but it will cost the same" "FROM A SCRAP???" "Yeah I had to buy the sheet that the "Scrap" came from... so it still costs you the same as if it came off a fresh sheet...." "That will cost about $75 just to cut your parts... 1 hour CAD time, Minimum shop fee" "THAT IS CRAZY!!!! I DON'T WANT TO PAY THAT!!!!" or the "Can you make one of these and send me a picture of it to see If I want it?" |
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I was thinking $6-$8k as "decent", but then again, I don't have an issue spending $3.5k on an auto-driven 1050. Quoted:
Quoted:
Quoted:
For all that you spent in upgrades, I bet you could have had a decent CNC machine from the get to. No offence, but what you have is akin to putting $2k in wheels on a Chevette. Not even CLOSE to the cost of a decent CNC Machine.... Not even CLOSE... I could have gotten a Bridgeport perhaps but then would have to spend the same on the controller and accompanying motors etc. probably more than that. A Dedicated CNC machine can't really be had for anything close to what I spent on this. CHEAP CNC Machine goes for what? a 1999 9000# Hurco machining center goes for about 17750... a 1999 PMC 10t24 goes for 23500... I guess your idea of "Decent" is a bit different than mine... What I spent on this is vastly different... perhaps an 1/8 of that cost... A Tormach would have maybe been close.... to the same... I am still a bit cheaper. I was thinking $6-$8k as "decent", but then again, I don't have an issue spending $3.5k on an auto-driven 1050. Yeah that would be about a "Mini Mill" really... Heck a used Bridgeport "BOSS" 10 (I think that was the latest Boss model Not sure) About $8000 and the BOSS controls won't work or they won't work for long... 2 HP Spindle motor, might salvage the Servo Motors... Centroid or Mach Motion Controls to run on MACH 3 (I would like this setup) About 25k for a mach motion controller in all fairness that is a stand alone system not a controller and a PC.... Centroid Is about another 7k if your Servos still work... Plug and play, with all fairness that comes with a built in PC... Where I am just using a Panasonic Toughbook for my setup... I am running flashcut... it works OK and just works... On my Plasma I run MACH 3... I bought the Gantry and Controls... it runs great! That was about 5 grand for the gantry and controls and another 1000 for materials for the frame. A Turnkey table is about 10k for a smaller table... |
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The amount of money involved in a machine shop is staggering. Just the electric for one month at my brothers place is more than I can imagine. Machines and tooling are extremely expensive. I think his CAM program is around $20k or so for the VMCs. Heck he just got a single new Mazak VMC that costs way more than my house: Here it is getting unloaded at the old shop before the tornado: <a href="http://s901.photobucket.com/user/rbdub474/media/10922797_1597099140519672_1583749577460484213_n_zpsayw42j5j.jpg.html" target="_blank">http://i901.photobucket.com/albums/ac212/rbdub474/10922797_1597099140519672_1583749577460484213_n_zpsayw42j5j.jpg</a> His new shop is about 50k sq/ft which is a lot larger than the old one, so he has room to expand his capabilities, so he is getting a new Omax 5 axis waterjet that will be a little less than $500k all said and done. Here is one corner of the new place: <a href="http://s901.photobucket.com/user/rbdub474/media/New%20BKC%201_zpstpjjnylr.png.html" target="_blank">http://i901.photobucket.com/albums/ac212/rbdub474/New%20BKC%201_zpstpjjnylr.png</a> I can use some of the manual stuff, but past that I am lost. It is really neat to watch the CNC stuff run through programs and do all the tool changes and watch parts emerge at the end. Some of the machines are running 30k spindle speeds with through tool coolant and it is amazing how fast they can move through material. If you are ever looking for any specific machines, let me know because he buys and sells machines also. One of the toolmakers told me what the electric bill was at work for one month. It was $30,000 on a slow month. I can only wonder what that bill looks like when every machine is chugging away 24/7. I run some of the cheapest cutters in the shop, and most of them are $100 each. Some of the guys have cutters that are $500 to $5,000. Racks and racks of tooling as far as the eye can see. It's staggering how much money is invested. There is enough money in just micrometers to pay off a good mortgage. CNC was rough to get used to. I used to be a manual machine and hand work guy. Next thing I knew, I was on the conversational machines. They upgraded me to a pair of old-as-fuck Makino VMCs. One of those Makinos will do 20,000 RPM at 20 horse power. It's pretty wild watching that thing zip along at 150 inches per minute through heat treated tool steel. I'm also running the smallest, and one of the oldest machines in the shop. 
It's something wild to see those 50+ horsepower HMCs. There are several machines that are larger than a small house. They'll push a 3 or 4 inch cutter through a 10,000 lb block of steel at 300 inches per minute, at a 16th of an inch deep. Sometimes deeper than that. It's like watching controlled chaos. Chips are flying everywhere, the sound pressure vibrates the walls of the shop, and the machine munches through code like it's running from fire. 
Boys and their toys. 
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One of the toolmakers told me what the electric bill was at work for one month. It was $30,000 on a slow month. I can only wonder what that bill looks like when every machine is chugging away 24/7. I run some of the cheapest cutters in the shop, and most of them are $100 each. Some of the guys have cutters that are $500 to $5,000. Racks and racks of tooling as far as the eye can see. It's staggering how much money is invested. There is enough money in just micrometers to pay off a good mortgage. CNC was rough to get used to. I used to be a manual machine and hand work guy. Next thing I knew, I was on the conversational machines. They upgraded me to a pair of old-as-fuck Makino VMCs. One of those Makinos will do 20,000 RPM at 20 horse power. It's pretty wild watching that thing zip along at 150 inches per minute through heat treated tool steel. I'm also running the smallest, and one of the oldest machines in the shop.
It's something wild to see those 50+ horsepower HMCs. There are several machines that are larger than a small house. They'll push a 3 or 4 inch cutter through a 10,000 lb block of steel at 300 inches per minute, at a 16th of an inch deep. Sometimes deeper than that. It's like watching controlled chaos. Chips are flying everywhere, the sound pressure vibrates the walls of the shop, and the machine munches through code like it's running from fire.
Boys and their toys. Quoted:
Quoted:
The amount of money involved in a machine shop is staggering. Just the electric for one month at my brothers place is more than I can imagine. Machines and tooling are extremely expensive. I think his CAM program is around $20k or so for the VMCs. Heck he just got a single new Mazak VMC that costs way more than my house: Here it is getting unloaded at the old shop before the tornado: <a href="http://s901.photobucket.com/user/rbdub474/media/10922797_1597099140519672_1583749577460484213_n_zpsayw42j5j.jpg.html" target="_blank">http://i901.photobucket.com/albums/ac212/rbdub474/10922797_1597099140519672_1583749577460484213_n_zpsayw42j5j.jpg</a> His new shop is about 50k sq/ft which is a lot larger than the old one, so he has room to expand his capabilities, so he is getting a new Omax 5 axis waterjet that will be a little less than $500k all said and done. Here is one corner of the new place: <a href="http://s901.photobucket.com/user/rbdub474/media/New%20BKC%201_zpstpjjnylr.png.html" target="_blank">http://i901.photobucket.com/albums/ac212/rbdub474/New%20BKC%201_zpstpjjnylr.png</a> I can use some of the manual stuff, but past that I am lost. It is really neat to watch the CNC stuff run through programs and do all the tool changes and watch parts emerge at the end. Some of the machines are running 30k spindle speeds with through tool coolant and it is amazing how fast they can move through material. If you are ever looking for any specific machines, let me know because he buys and sells machines also. One of the toolmakers told me what the electric bill was at work for one month. It was $30,000 on a slow month. I can only wonder what that bill looks like when every machine is chugging away 24/7. I run some of the cheapest cutters in the shop, and most of them are $100 each. Some of the guys have cutters that are $500 to $5,000. Racks and racks of tooling as far as the eye can see. It's staggering how much money is invested. There is enough money in just micrometers to pay off a good mortgage. CNC was rough to get used to. I used to be a manual machine and hand work guy. Next thing I knew, I was on the conversational machines. They upgraded me to a pair of old-as-fuck Makino VMCs. One of those Makinos will do 20,000 RPM at 20 horse power. It's pretty wild watching that thing zip along at 150 inches per minute through heat treated tool steel. I'm also running the smallest, and one of the oldest machines in the shop.
It's something wild to see those 50+ horsepower HMCs. There are several machines that are larger than a small house. They'll push a 3 or 4 inch cutter through a 10,000 lb block of steel at 300 inches per minute, at a 16th of an inch deep. Sometimes deeper than that. It's like watching controlled chaos. Chips are flying everywhere, the sound pressure vibrates the walls of the shop, and the machine munches through code like it's running from fire.
Boys and their toys. I kinda got a chub just reading this |
