Re: Taig

I have a Taig 2019CR which is the "CNC ready" version of the 2019. I
say that in quotes because it looks just like a 2019 but has a few
subtle enhancements. The motor mounts come in a kit that I installed
myself. The CNC ready part has to do with extra thrust bearings as I
recall. It also has a different motor setup.

I am using ~200 in-oz NEMA 23 frame stepper motors driven by two
Geck0 201s on the X and Y axis and an old Thompson bipolar half-
stepping drive on the Z. I also installed home switches.

I tried 60-70 in-oz motors temporarily but they were woefully
inadequate and totally unusable on the Z axis as I had expected. The
200 in-oz motors and the Geckos yield almost 30 IPM on axial moves
but every once in a while I lose a step so I usually cap it at 20
IPM. This could probably be addressed with tuning or slightly larger
motors. I have some other motors that will probably work better that
I will try sometime.

I run the mill using EMC on RH Linux 7.1/RTL 3.0 on a headless P-III
600. I converse with the Linux box using VNC across my LAN.

I could not be happier with the 2019CR. It needed backlash
adjustment which is accomodated by split brass leadscrew nuts. No
big deal.

I considered the Sherline 5400 before looking at the Taig. The Taig
machine is very sturdy compared to a Sherline. I am hard pressed to
cause much deflection in the Taig column, but can easily bend the
Sherline significantly. This will make a difference in the accuracy
of heavier cuts I would imagine.

Variable speed would be nice and something I wanted, but so far I
have not missed it. I will likely go that route someday adding a
tach at the same time and putting spindle speed under EMC control.

I believe the Taig will last most people a long time presuming that
this is the size of mill one needs or wants. I like the extra X
travel and table size of the 2019. Every now and then I feel like I
need a bigger machine but end up making the part a different way and
dealing with it. The machine cannot be faulted for being too small,
obviously.

The 20 TPI leadscrews mean that very precise moves can be made, but
the downside is that you need good fast and powerful motors to get
decent speed out of the mill.

The Taig clamp kit is minimalist to be kind. I made some T-slot nuts
and also purchased this kit from littlemachineshop.com:

http://www.littlemachineshop.com/LMS/products/product_view.php?
ProductID=1628

At $14.95 it is hard to beat and it fits the Taig T-slots perfectly.

This vise works great for the mill too:

http://www.littlemachineshop.com/LMS/products/product_view.php?
ProductID=1164

I know the above is somewhat long-winded, but I have found there is
more to machine satisfaction than just the mill so I wanted you to
have a total view.

Bottom line is if had I the decision to make again I would not choose
differently. Taig's support is great. Nick Carter of
cartertools.com is great to deal with too. Great prices and down to
earth and honest business dealings. They don't come better in my
opinion.


Regards,

Barry

--- In CAD_CAM_EDM_DRO@y..., "Alex Canale" <alex.canale@r...> wrote:
> I was wondering if anybody on this group that has a Taig mill is
located in
> Orlando Florida or anywhere close to the area.
>
> I'm seriously considering getting a Taig but I want to see the
machine first
> and get a feel for what it can do and how happy people are with it.
>
> Thanks,
> Alex