Re: [CAD_CAM_EDM_DRO] Re: cnc lathe/mill

First - on the lathe, what's nice about the 9x20 is one person can
reasonably carry it/move it. What's not nice about the 9x20 is that one
person can reasonably carry it/move it.. Which is to say, although you
can do fairly precise work with it and although the work area is fairly
reasonable, it is a very slow lathe because there is not enough mass to
give it sufficient rigidity.

I've been looking at a Grizzly 11x26 for a while. I haven't actually
used one but it appears to have the mass and rigidity to be a nice lathe
while still being small/light enough for 2-4 (strong) people to move,
although really at ~500lbs, you're getting into the realm of requiring
equipment to move it. Apparently WTTool is going to be selling a version
of this soon.

Incidentally, the older version of the 9x20, from Enco, Jet..etc., the
one with the two levers for threading instead of the single lever on the
modern version, has much more mass and is actually a quite nice lathe.
However, I rarely see them in good condition and they're usually price
similarly to new ones. I believe the weight is around 5-600lbs.

However, it all really depends on what you want to do with the machine.
A 9x20, under CNC control will turn plastics and the occasional
aluminum, no problem. The entire machine can easily fit in an apartment
and can be moved if necessary. However, if you have the space, and can
deal with the difficulty of moving, in machine tools, bigger is almost
always better. (Within reason!)

Regarding the milling machine, regardless of whether or not you have a
stepper on the quill, unless all of your parts are the same height and,
unless all of your tools are basically the same length, you're going to
have to move the head up and down. I would not (now) even consider
CNC'ing a round column mill - for the price difference, the square
column mill offers a lot of advantages.

As for which one - I've personally seen/used the Grizzly, Enco, Rong-Fu
(not clone) and WTTool versions. Out of the ones I've seen/used, the
WTTool version was the clear winner in fit/finish. If you want my whole
report on that, you can search the mill/drill list archives.. (The round/
square/brand thing has been discussed over there at least once every 6
months for as long as I've been a subscriber...)

All that said, you might consider a ShopTask 3-in-1. I've never used one
but I understand that, as a lathe, they're pretty good, as a mill
they're adequate and they're fairly easy to convert.

Oh yeah - I personally would definitely go with servos rather than
steppers. You can get appropriate servos on eBay for around $100-150 and
with a Geckodrive G320, they're no more complicated than a stepper.
Rolled ballscrews should be more than sufficient for your needs.

You can see some pictures of my CNC efforts here:

http://www.smidgie.com/928/machineshop

(Sorry, long overdue for an update)

--C.S.

>Thanks for the info dave,
>I really started to look up info, and like you said they are all the
>same, but what suprised me was all the bad feedback on the 9x20
>lathes. Another downturn is the need to change gears or belts for
>diffrent speeds. At my school we have a enco lathe, with about 40"
>between centers, but its pretty old, and has as alot of backlash and
>runout. I needs alot of work to get back to good runnign condition for
>precise machining, so I want my own lathe and I want to convert it to
>cnc. Can anyone suggest a lathe of good quality and ease of use that
>is around the size of 9x20 or bigger under 1200 bucks?
>I am favoring towards the lathe, but am still thinking about the
>possablilty of getting a mill and converting it to cnc. Just like the
>lathes, all of them seem to be the exact same thing. Man no one can
>come up with their own design. I plan on converting a mill to cnc too,
>but like the lathe I am not sure what to go with. I did see a website
>selling a rongfu31 mill converted to cnc, but for almost 8k, so I know
>its a good canidate for a mill, but does anyone have any suggestions
>what mill they would go with if converting to cnc around 1200 or
>below? I know the lathemaster mill has a dovetail colum which is
>better than a round colum, but since I am going to be putting the
>stepper on the quill, I dont think it really matters.
>
>I really am mainly looking for people to give me suggestions on what
>they think is a good lathe or mill for converting to cnc around the
>size and price I am looking for, as I don't know what type of stuff to
>look for when shopping for one of these machines. Sorry for the long
>length of these post of mine.
>-Jason
>
>--- In CAD_CAM_EDM_DRO@yahoogroups.com, "turbulatordude"
><dave_mucha@y...> wrote:
>>
>> the Grizley, Harbor freight and JET are all the same lathe.
>>
>> the longer machine offers lenght. a nice plus.
>>
>>
>> check out all the options that come with and price them up seperatly.
>>
>> make sure you list every feature you can. ask the 9x20 lathe list
>> for more comparisons.
>>
>> Often there is one unit that offers so much more in options that it is
>> the best value.
>>
>> Check shipping also. Harbor freight and use-enco might have better
>> shipping costs.
>>
>> make sure the stand comes with or that you add to make it compare.
>>
>> Dave
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> --- In CAD_CAM_EDM_DRO@yahoogroups.com, "jak785" <jak785@h...> wrote:
>> >
>> > Hi,
>> > I am about to get a bonus at work, and this is my chance to get a
>> > lathe or mill and I want to convert it to cnc use.
>> > I like to play around with small turbine engines, and I want to
>> > start making my own instead of buying parts, so I need a lathe and
>> > mill, but right now I can only get one of them. Most of the parts
>> > are symetrics, so the lathe will probably be the better choice
>> > although with a mill I can machine all kinds of stuff. I found tons
>> > of information on retrofitting a mill for cnc use, but almost
>> > nothing with a lathe, so I was hoping you all could help me out a
>> > little.
>> > First lets talk about lathes.
>> > Can anyone give me some information on a good lathe with a size
>> > around 9"x20"
>> > Here are three I found that are about the size I need and in my
>> > price range:
>> >
>> > Grizzly G4000
>> > http://www.grizzly.com/products/item.aspxitemnumber=G4000
>> >
>> > JET 321373 BD-920N BENCH LATHE http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?
>> > ViewItem&item=6003249800&rd=1&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWA%3AIT&rd=1
>> > or
>> > Lathemaster 9x30" lathe
>> > http://www.lathemaster.com/LATHEMASTER9x30Lathe.htm
>> >
>> > Can anyone give me an idea on which one would be better for
>> > converting to cnc? Also what size stepper motors would I need for a
>> > lathe of this size?
>> >
>> > Mill
>> > If I go with a mill, I was thinking about:
>> >
>> > RongFu31
>> > or
>> > Lathemaster mill
>> > http://www.lathemaster.com/HEAVYDUTYMILLINGMACHINE%207045FG.htm
>> >
>> > Does anyone have any suggestions on what mill they would get, or
>> > know of any other brands about this size. The taig mill is too
>> > small, and I don't want a huge knee mill either, so these are in the
>> > size range I want.
>> >
>> > Also about ballscrew and stepper motors
>> > has anyone ever bought ball screws from this site
>> > http://www.homeshopcnc.com/ , and are these stepper motors any good
>> > for the size I would need. I'm guessing around 600-1000 oz/in
>> > motors. I know ground ball screws are much better, but i dont got
>> > that type of money. any suggestions on this topic would be helpful.
>> >
>> > Sorry for all the questions, but I'm trying to figure out which
>> > route to go, and then what machine to get after I decide mill or
>> > lathe.
>> > -Jason
>> >
>>
>
>
>
>
>
>
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