Re: [CAD_CAM_EDM_DRO] Re: Hi :)

bigshrek2005 wrote:

> I won't need a lathe, as pretty much everything was flat stamped steel or milled steel.
> I could techinically use just a regular mill with the proper cutters,
> but I want some flexibility & precision. Not to mention repeatability.
>

OK, now that I know what sort of materials you are planning to work
with, and the kind of
tolerances and surface finishes needed, I think I have to recommend a
step up in the machine.
Forget Sherline and Taig. These machines may be good enough for light
work in Aluminum,
but you may need to do some fairly hard steels in your application. I
think, MAYBE, that
a desktop minimill could handle it, but if there is anyone else with
more experience in these
sorts of materials who has tried it, it would be best to hear from
them. Maybe I'm just too
conservative, but I'd feel a lot more confident trying to do stuff like
that on my Bridgeport,
and even then I'd have to take it easy to keep tool deflection and
vibration to a minimum.

There definitely are some people here who make gun parts, so they might
be able to give better
guidance from actual experience. I remember Dave Engvall making a very
exotic curved part
for a falling block action on Roland Freistad's Mazak, and that 13,000
Lb machine handled
the cut VERY nicely! I know I'd have some vibration trying a similar
cut on my
Bridgeport.

Jon