Originally Posted by
joeavaerage
Hi,
I don't mean to criticise the HDM.......but do you think spindly aluminum extrusions are as stiff as cast iron and steel of the RF45?. When it comes to machining metals you need a
super rigid machine....there is no such thing as 'overly rigid' machine, but rather a seemingly 'overbuilt' machine will maintain tolerances and finishes than an 'under built' machine
will never match,.
awerby's recommendation is good. Taig have been around for a long time and thousands of users have hundreds of thousands of hours use.
If you are considering Taig the I'd absolutely have to go with ballscrews, they are just so much better than leadscrews for backlash free detailed work. Spindles, steppers, power supplies etc
can all be upgraded later if you so desire, but ballscrews are at the heart of the machine, get ballscrews from the beginning.
The drill-mill I linked to is just a typical version, there are many manufacturers with a range of models. Ideally you'd want a square or rectangular column with dovetails as they are more rigid than cylindrical columns,
but are commensurately more expensive. Where you to find a good and rigid example second hand that would be a major plus for going in this direction....and if you are patient many good drill-mills do come onto the
market with hardly any use whatever.
When all said and done such a drill-mill is only a bigger Taig, they are essentially the same construction, just the drill-mill is bigger and therefore more expensive.
There are a number of threads where these machines have been converted, and it is not for the faint hearted, on the other hand its not difficult. It depends rather on you. If making
injection moulded parts is what you want to do then shagging around converting a drill-mill to CNC is not likely to appeal. If however you are interested in CNC as a hobby then
such a challenge may be a great thing to do.
I designed and built my own CNC mill, in part because I am a CNC enthusiast but I also now use it to make parts for my business. A happy confluence. It is somewhat larger than
the RF45 I linked to, and maybe somewhat more capable, but not by much, that is to say my machine can do steel, but like the RF45, with care. My machine has cost me about $20,000USD
to date and that does not count the trunnion fifth axis I've just finished. So you might say I have paid dearly for the privilege of designing and build my own machine. Building you own machine is satisfying,
if you want that sort of challenge, but is usually much more expensive than buying something already built, even if you had to convert to CNC.
Craig