Re: Report from Westec

Message: 8
Date: Wed, 04 Apr 2001 18:05:16 -0400
From: Matt Shaver <mshaver@...>
Subject: Re: Report from Westec

Andrew Werby wrote:

> Report from Westec

First of all, that was an excellent report!

[Thanks, Matt.]

>
> PC-based controls were hot, and a number of different systems were on
> offer, from well-known brands like Centroid <www.centroidcnc.com> and
> Milltronics <www.milltronics.net> to ones I'd never heard of before, like
> Acroloop <www.acroloop.com>, MS-Tech <www.ms-tech,com>, Delta Tau
> <www.deltatau.com>, and Omni-Turn <www.omniturn.com>. For some reason,
> though, they didn't want to compete on price- it seemed like everybody was
> trying to get at least $10k for a controller.

Does that $10k include motors and/or drives, or was that just the cnc
itself?

Matt

[The controller package generally included the pendant/monitor box,
software, and complete amps/driver set for 3 or 4 axes. I suspect that if I
was an OEM instead of a retail customer, the price would drop a lot,
though. Usually anybody willing to retrofit a controller onto an older
machine wanted to replace the 43-frame motors for another $1000 or so per
axis, although one person I talked to who was familiar with my
Leadwell/Ramco said my motors were probably good, although he expected I'd
need to replace the Lovejoy variable speed drive that powers my spindle.
Unfortunately, he had nothing good to say about my mid-eighties Westamp
servo amps- apparently modern amps use a higher baud rate, which eliminates
their characteristic high whining sound (or boosts the frequency so only
dogs notice...).]

www.computersculpture.com


Andrew Werby - United Artworks
Sculpture, Jewelry, and Other Art Stuff
http://unitedartworks.com