If we wanted to compare these machines disregarding: 1) Work Envelope, 2) Horsepower
What can the Haas do that the Tormach can't for cutting non-ferrous and ferrous metals? Assume the Tormach has coolant and toolchanger too.
I am currently pushing for a Tormach (via edsfund.org grant) for our shared shop, because the donated Haas is too expensive and risky for new people to operate, people who want to learn CNC milling and create their own projects.
Arguments I run into constantly:
1) The Tormach is not as accurate as the Haas to do molds; which maybe 0.01% of people want to use the machine for, we're not making aerospace parts either. Besides, the molds would be prototypes!
2) People can just get trained; however, no one has been trained for the few years it's been operational. There is talk of 20+ hrs of training by volunteers for each person, which is unreasonable to ask volunteers to do and 20 hrs may not be enough
3) Current operators can just cut your project for you; again, this is unreasonable to ask volunteers to do, in addition, it could take you weeks or months to get your CNC project done if you ask someone else
I am suggesting a hobby type CNC so people can get 3-6 hrs of training and set them loose on the Tormach; Learn by Doing. If they crash it, we'll fix it (how bad could it be?). If they crash the Haas, we could almost cover the investment of this Tormach.
Thanks for the insight!