Originally Posted by
Galdang
these question i have prob. have been asked a zillion times and now i will do so for the zilllion +1 time.
i want to buy a new cnc and also a laser cutting table.
as I am a total noob at these things some noob questions.
( i do have experience with laser marking machines and also Gravograph routers)
I have asked and got a RFQ from JCutcnc for a JCUT-90150 and also JCUT-1216
(and the JCUT-1290)
I will be using it mainly for routing 3 mm aluminum, drilling in epoxy, various others.
principle questions for me at this moment are:
1) which is the better choice a P&R or a ball screw for speed and accuracy?
[A precision-ground ball screw will be more accurate than a rack and pinion, although R&P can be faster.]
2) same for stepper or servo?
[Servo systems are generally preferred, especially on larger machines.]
3) should i ask for a higher power stepper and drive? (if that is the standard for the mentioned machine)
[More power is good...]
4) what kind of interface is preferred? Mach3, other?
[Depends on the "other".]
5) communication connection USB, Ethernet?
[USB.]
6) should i opt in for extra''s as dust collection, vacuum, cooling system
[If you're cutting wood, then vacuum dust collection is good. If you're working on large flat pieces, then vacuum hold-down is good. If you're cutting metal, then flood coolant is good. But you don't usually see all these things on the same machine.]
7) a water cooled spindle or air cooled?
[Air-cooled gives you one less thing to go wrong.]
8) power of spindle and pref. Italian or chinese or ? make?
[All things being equal, I'd get the Italian one.]
9) same question for the drives.
[Same answer.]
10) any spare parts & tools?
[Yes, you'll need lots of them, depending on what you're trying to do.]
11) is there (at this moment) any preferred supplier?
[There are certainly some who are not preferred. But often when their bad reputation starts impeding their sales, they start up again with a new name.]
12) any experience with trying to pay with Escrow?
[That could work to some extent. But usually, once the machine arrives, they get the funds. When it doesn't work quite right, you're still stuck.]
i have many more questions but i would like to start with these for the CNC router.
Thanks in advance for the effort answering these questions.
George