Is old Maho suitable for in-house mold making? running cost?
Hi, first thank you for reading!
I am about to start to build a RF product of size of kids lunchbox, the case might be PET resin or AZ91d, either case, I need no more than 5k pieces in total. the shape of the product is fairly simple box-like water sealed enclosure to protect PCB inside from outside elements and allow connectors / antenna output.
A neighbor just handle over me a unused 500 m2 space that was used for furniture making, so space and power supply is no longer a concern. I am thinking to reverse the product design flow: I want to design the enclosure based on my in-house machine capability, like a machinist designing his own product knowing his machine availability and limitation and outsource just if really needed.
My limitations:
budget: +-30k euro for machine center.
Time budget: a lot.
I have been seeing MAHO machines of all condition selling here in Europe lately, some has pallet change (ending in U), other are MAHO 800/1200/1600, or DMU 4~5 axis, sometime I have seen with tilt table, other are V which has no tillable spindle...
I am not sure which of all those old machines are suitable for more or less rebuild, spindle reliability, control upgradability and overall running cost, aside from making mold, I might use it to process magnesium casing if needed, in that case, the changeable pallet comes handy, so the machine will be a mixed-use scenario..
Other than vintage MAHO, other suggestion at same price tag?
Please someone who has been there help me, I am so lost..
Thanks for reading, again!
Re: Is old Maho suitable for in-house mold making? running cost?
many ideas out of your intrigue.
1. if you do produce some electronics device why the hell you need to buy MC?
2. From one point of view seems that you know DM machines. On the other hand your questions suggest that you far away from machining tehnology.
3. I would suggest - don't stick to one single brand. What you need is good service in your area.
Re: Is old Maho suitable for in-house mold making? running cost?
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Algirdas
many ideas out of your intrigue.
1. if you do produce some electronics device why the hell you need to buy MC?
2. From one point of view seems that you know DM machines. On the other hand your questions suggest that you far away from machining tehnology.
3. I would suggest - don't stick to one single brand. What you need is good service in your area.
Hi, thanks for replying. I need machine because I am planning to design product based on manufacturing capability, say mold be more or less complex, not affecting much for end product, but knowing exactly what I am capable to manufacture make design route more confident and maybe less delay, I want to use machine center because some of later product might be larger, closer to 60 cm, a mold for such product could be pretty expensive, learning to manufacture part of the mold myself could make end product cheaper for end user, I am not familiar with local support, yet.
I might need to stick with one brand and/or machine and one controller at the end for mold making, so I can have time for other production tasks, I think knowing just one of those MAHO machines might be enough for me to complete 70% of need, or I am wrong? I am not sure... I know machine shop has multiple MC for different jobs, but my logic is, if I just have one, I can modify my design to capability of this machine, and so on for press, turrent punch, vertical or horizontal injection...
Re: Is old Maho suitable for in-house mold making? running cost?
It is reasonable, sure. I would do thorough calculations before.
If you want nice surface of mold ( = nice surface of final product ) you need very good machinetool and control system. Because every single even shortest stop of tool is visible on the final surface. Machining accuracy 3 microns is a disaster for comercial mold. You need to decide if You need such acuracy or not. Because from te practical point of view even 10 microns acuraccy is enough in most cases like yours.
Next point. The second-hand machine. Hire good independent expert to inspect before purchase. If the machine was not leveled regularly, if maintenance was poor, you can get just a package of headache.
And the most important again. Service quality in your area. Some people work with best brands and crying when it comes to service. Check the workshop nearby to see what branch they use and feedback regarding maintenance provided by authorised dealer.
Re: Is old Maho suitable for in-house mold making? running cost?
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Algirdas
It is reasonable, sure. I would do thorough calculations before.
If you want nice surface of mold ( = nice surface of final product ) you need very good machinetool and control system. Because every single even shortest stop of tool is visible on the final surface. Machining accuracy 3 microns is a disaster for comercial mold. You need to decide if You need such acuracy or not. Because from te practical point of view even 10 microns acuraccy is enough in most cases like yours.
Next point. The second-hand machine. Hire good independent expert to inspect before purchase. If the machine was not leveled regularly, if maintenance was poor, you can get just a package of headache.
And the most important again. Service quality in your area. Some people work with best brands and crying when it comes to service. Check the workshop nearby to see what branch they use and feedback regarding maintenance provided by authorised dealer.
What I am planning is that the face facing end user, if my machine has no capability to make it right, then outsource to machine shop for it.. I am following your advice looking for nearby service shop, contacting them or visiting them for a short chat is always a good start, thanks!
