[CAM-TEK of OKLA]

I am burried in work. I am needing another CNC machine. I have a 1991 VF-2 that Im currently running. Bought it new. It's going to get tired one day. I have put 1 million pounds of aluminum accross this machine. I need another machine ... anyone want to lease?own there machine , OKLAHOMA.

[DEAN]

http://www.cncassoc.com/ will lease you a machine.

[sixstring]

Our Company Bought A New Vf-3 In January And We Have Had Nothing But Problems With It, 5 Spindles In 8 Months.they Keep Going Bad And Haas Just Keeps Replacing Them.they Actually Burned Up A Spindle At The Factory While Testing It Before The Sent It To Us.we Have 3 More Haas Machines , 2 Mills And A Lathe And They Have Had There Share Of Issues Also. I Recently Talked To A Guy Who Works At A Near Buy Aircraft Manufacturing Shop And I Asked Him If They Used Haas Machines And He Quickly Replied , " Don't Even Get Me Started On Those P.o.s. We Can't Keep Them Running For A Week At A Time ".same Problems With Spindles That We Have Been Having . From What I Have Been Hearing And Reading The Older Haas Machines Seem To Be Of Higher Quality Than The Ones Made In The Last Couple Of Years,seems Like They Are Trying To Push To Much Product Disregarding Q.c. A Factory Rep From Haas Was At Our Shop Today To Discuss The Problems We Have Been Having With The Vf-3 And Low And Behold The Tool Would Not Change Because Spindle Overheat!!

[big_mak]

I have had only one minor problem with my New Vf-3.

Cut Everything from stainless to UHMW on it no issues. There are a few guys here who are relatively satisfied Haas customers.

[GITRDUN]

Our shop has 4 Haas VF machines ranging from my 94 model (lots of problems, it has tons of hours on it) a 96 VF3 (very reliable) a 98 VF1 (very reliable) a brand new VF1 (3 months old, no problems).
My biggest concern with a machine breaking down is - how long will it be down before its fixed. Every day your down your losing money. When it comes to the HAAS machines we can be up and running again sometimes by the next day. Parts are readily available. On many of our Japanese machines, ive seen a few of them sit there for a couple months because the factory had to make a new part for it then ship it here from Jap on the slow boat. Not to mention the parts for them are usually about 2 to 3 times more expensive than the HAAS parts. Service and parts availability is key, especially when your broke down. At least in my opinion.

[NC Cams]

Few people understand the logic of Japanese CNC machines but essentially this is it:

The Japanese build their machines under the assumption that new technology will be available when the machine needs major service. Hence, the customer surely will trade up for the newest latest technology rather than repair old, obsolete technology.

What happens to the used machine is not so important to the machine tool maker as they make their money selling NEW machines, NOT servicing old/used machines. Some Japanese suppliers never adapted to the North American service requirements and still sell them here like they do back in Japan.

This is why they don't stock parts - at least for the older stuff. They don't tie up the money in inventory, hence, if someone needs it, they farm out the service part business to some small job shop who effectively custom makes the parts on a onesy/twosy basis. Result, high cost and long lead times for "simple service parts". Perhaps "simple" in our culture but not so in their culture

Moreover and more importantly, there is NOT an aftermarket in Japan - if you want/need service, you call the OEM. Why? They are the only people with the "know how" to fix the OEM built machine as they designed them, hence only they can/should fix them. Like it or not, that's how they do business.

There are ways around this but they all pretty much involve the machine tool owner buying and stocking their own stock of replacment parts. This is pretty much the ONLY way to avoid the "down for a month" issue that so many folks have experienced.

Regarding Haas, the neighbor has 5 machines - they consist of both machining centers and lathes. They pretty much run day in and day out. He and his father are pretty adept at fixing stuff and keep them up and running but, every time I go there, they're making chips instead of being repaired.

Read and study post #5 above - that member knows of what he speaks - and now you know the background as to why.

[BallisticFab]

I have an 06' SL-10 BB and an 07' VF-2YT, both machines have been running nothing but 303SS and 4130 as hard as my carbide will allow for 50 hrs/wk. We had an encoder go out on the spindle (lathe) and recently an air actuated relay that controls tool changes, but that's it... nothing on the VF-2YT so far, great machine with the 10K 30HP spindle and gear box IMO...