[j3dprints]

Hi I'm looking to buy a Fanuc based cnc lathe on a budget and I'm wondering what is the oldest era of machines I should look at before spares become super expensive or hard to get because of age.

Is there an era or type of machine I should avoid or aim for? I would prefer to spend around 10k-20k on the lathe (and Im in Australia so that may equate to a lot less in the USA) but I am flexible if spending more will get me a lot more, or similarly if spending less won't make a difference. It will be for a hobby/side business to start with. My friend has a Series 0 TD based lathe he can sell me, I'm not sure how expensive spares will be for it if something breaks.

Also if anyone knows if Okuma or Mazak are something I should be looking at (or another brand) please tell me. My main concern is spare parts and reparability above all else.

Thanks for any advice.

[Algirdas]

Okuma (y)

[wildhorsemfg]

. My main concern is spare parts and reparability above all else.

Thanks for any advice.

Seems like if you looking for someone older and cheap . parts are going to be a issue on all of them .. I've found LOT of fanuc parts cheap on ebay and even bought cards and drives .. but finding Technical HELP is the hard part ....

[Jim Dawson]

Do what I did on my antique (1989) Fanuc controlled lathe. Remove everything that says Fanuc on it and replace it with modern controls and servos. My total cost including the lathe was about US$ 20K.