[ihavenofish]

My criteria for a CNC machine tool is that it have a spindle motor rated at least 2HP on single phase 220Volt and 3-axis precision of at least .001" for around $10,000 that can cut a 5"x5"x5" cube of steel.

mactech54 generously provided me with a suggestion to look at How-Mau...and after some assistance at finding a modern web site for them I am happy to say that their HM-145X does "appear" to meet those requirements. Spindle motor power is rated at 1.5KW using 220Volt Single phase (or apparently even 110Volt) which is equivalent to 2HP and the rated precision is exactly .001". The table is 24.65"x8.11" with table travel (x,y,z)=(11.81",7.87", 11.81") which will accomodate my theoretical 5"x5"x5" cube. And, the control system is Mach 3 which I have learned is a modern PC based control system. The price tag is $7650. They also have a model HM-241X with a 2.2KW motor (3 HP).

Edit: I just noticed that in the Electrical section of the HM-145X it indicates a power consumption of 750W...even the HM-241X only requires 1500W. Electric motors are not very efficient...if the spindle motor really is producing 1.5KW of cutting power, then the power requirement would be more like 3KW...nearly double, but the specs from How-Mau are indicating a power requirement of 1/2 the spindle power output. I only minored in physics, but I believe if a machine is only drawing 750W from a power source then the theoretical maximum it can produce is 750W. Perhaps it's a mistake or I'm not reading it right.

Thanks for the suggestions...keep them coming...I'd like to see if there is another one available that meets my requirements. The Tormach's don't, but thanks for the opportunity to take a look at them. The Okuma's are production machines with at least 10HP and have 3-phase power requirements which are more than what I'm looking for, but again...thanks for mentioning them.

hiya. a few things to note. ive got a novakon nm145 in my shop. the how mau is a copy of the novakon design. how mau used to make their machines, but there was a falling out. some research on the forum will show that how mau as a company is not the most trustworthy source of machines. their US counterpart might be a little better, but id still watch my step with them.

ok, that out of the way, on to the machine. as mentioned, ive got an nm145, and also an nm200. these are NOT linear rail versions, but they are basically the same otherwise. the machines are good in general. the 200 series is head an shoulders above the 145 though. the 145 could be looked at as a high end bench machine, the 200 as a low end industrial machine. they come from 2 different factories in china.

the spindle motor on the 145 is of particular note. the maker of the motors and drives has had serious issues on certain models, and the motors have been not delivering full power. novakon has a fix on the way, i assume other companies using the motors do as well but a fix may be still many months off from the original drive maker as my understanding is they need a complete redesign.

the 145x will NOT likely do well cutting a 5" cube of steel. the y axis travel is a bit short. you wont be able to comfortably get a tool all the way around the piece. the 145 dovetailed machine might do ok, it has slightly more usable y travel. you would really be better served with the 200 series machine. the nm200(non linear) has a comfy 15" y travel and 24" in the X and alot of clearance over the table for tall workpieces and long tools. the linear version has much shorter travels, but still quite good for the work you need. the linear version will be a little less rigid than the dovetail model.