Re: Smithy Lathe/Mill/Drill

On 1 Nov, Smoke wrote:

> Hi Alan,
>
> Dan Mausch told me earlier this AM about the Shoptask machines. I went to
> their web site and investigated them.
>
> After reading nearly everthing there, all I can say is WOW. They provide a
> heck of a lot more for your bucks than any other place I've seen. There is
> also a really big users group for them on Delphi.
>
> So, right now I'm trying to locate someone in my area to see if I can see on
> e in action.

This is a good idea .. the web site does paint a very glossy picture.
I actually drove down to Shoptask to see it in person. I was a bit
disappointed ( just a BIT ) in the appearance at very first glance, but
upon closer inspection, I found it to be better than I expected and
happily forked over the coin.

Remember, these machines ARE Asian .. better than most Asian, but
Asian. You WILL have to do some work once you get it home, you will hate
the paint, you will be constantly reminded that there's a reason it's
cheap.

Having said that, I LOVE mine. Plain and simple love it. Grin from
ear to ear every time I use it.

It IS better quality-wise than anything I've seen from HarborFreight
or from Grizzley. It's just not American or European quality, that's
all, and if that's what you think you're buying, you'll be disappointed.

With tools, you almost always get what you pay for. There is very
little magic to this, no astronomical markups, you get what you pay
for. Sometimes, though, you get a bit more than what you paid for, and
that's my thought on the Shoptask.

Again, and to repeat things said over and over again in the various
newsgroups, for about the same money, you could buy a used American
mill and a used American lathe. They would likely be better tools
over all.

However, to CNC TWO machines .. and to buy tooling for two machines ..
and to maybe add a DRO to two machines .. very quickly those two
machines get a lot more expensive. Yes, they might be better machines
but yes, they'd be a lot more money.

For me, I wanted to get into machining with a real machine. But I
didn't want to spend too much money just finding out if I liked this
machining stuff - I've spent a lot of money on other hobbies that went
nowhere.

Also, I have VERY little room. There's really no way for me to find
room for anything larger than a 3in1. I picked a Shoptask and still
think I did the right thing two years later.

> My only questions with those machines so far is: Does it do 3
> axis CNC milling;

Oh yes, the Shoptask is set up to add a motor to the Z axis. However,
there is a fair bit of lash in the stock Z axis feed mechanism. This is
a result of the Z axis fine or coarse feed possibilities ( drill press
mode or milling machine mode ).

This problem is solveable .. with some easy enough modifications, I got
the lash down to a REPEATABLE .010" - most acceptable for me. There is
also an aftermarket ballscrew modification for the Shoptask that gets
lash down to zero.

That brings up another point - there is a bit of a critical mass for
Shoptask machines, meaning that there are a growing number of
accessories available.

Many of these are from Chuck at C&G Research, and all are interesting,
innovative, and of absolutely the highest quality. All are done on
one of two Shoptasks, which he uses to crank out some astonishing
work.

People describe Chuck as an eccentric genius. As he's a friend of
mine, I can say without hesitation that those people are being
polite - in point of fact, he's just plain nuts. <G> He's also a
hell of a machinist who really thinks things through and takes care
and pride in his products.

> What software would be best for it to run the CNC from a PC:

Least of your worries, as there's LOTS of good stuff out there, and my
opinion would be mine alone.

I use CNCPro and am VERY happy with it. The more I use it, the more I
like it, and the $175.00 I paid for it seems cheap right now.

EMC is free and is a very good choice. A bit of work getting it
installed and configured, but once that's over with, it's absolutely
first class.

DeskNC is also highly regarded, although I have no real experience with
it.

Then there's all the others that I'm even less familiar with.

> Why the hell don't they make a machine with a longer bed for the lathe?

I would assume that Shoptask made a business decision, simple as that.
A longer bed means a bigger, heavier, much more expensive machine.
While that would attract some customers, I guess they felt that it would
turn more customers away than it would gain.

For an idea of how much more, check the Smithy site, where they do have
a bigger machine .. for a lot more.

It would certainly have turned me away .. it would just have been too
big for my shop and too big to get into the shop.

Don't forget, this is not a Skil saw you're planning on moving in, this
is half a ton or so of awkwardly shaped cast iron. Getting it in place
was a bit of an effort for many of us, all by itself.

And don't forget that no matter HOW big your machine is, you'll always
come up with a project not easily done on that machine. Fact of life.
The challenge of working within the limitations of whatever machine you
have is half the fun !

Hope this helps.

Alan



--

Alan Rothenbush | The Spartans do not ask the number of the
Academic Computing Services | enemy, only where they are.
Simon Fraser University |
Burnaby, B.C., Canada | Agix of Sparta