[TurboNova]

I am looking at buying a Acroloc CNC mill, it looks exactly like this one below. It has the 4th axis with it. I can't seem to find any good info on it like the model number. Here is what I found though,

Series 10/gn6mb
serial 83-02-12453 the 3 might be a 6
230 volts, 42 amps
3 phase
Chtiys spindle drive

can anyone tell me a little more about this mill. The guy wants $2000 for it and says it is in running condition.

[chipuren]

HI, Just stumbled in here. My first job out of college was as installing and servicing Acroloc machines in Houston area, this was in 1978. The Acroloc is a neat machine, very productive for light milling work, and outstanding for drilling. fastest tool change, probably still to this day (been out of machine tools 9 years now). Tapping requires tension/compression type tap holders.
If you get this machine, the biggest problem is tool changers can be damaged if chips get inside, makes the pins stick and the tool holder will fall off the spindle in a heavy cut. there should be plastic pipe plugs in any unused tool holder position to keep the chips out of the carrosel. Tooling is unique to Acroloc, so be sure it comes with some!

We sold/serviced Acroloc machines with McDonnel Douglas Actron III controls and getty's servo drives, so I don't know much about the 6MB control, other than it is much more reliable, if not as well featured as the American Made MD. I would love to have one for $2000 just to play with! the General Numberic is same as FANUC 6MB so I would suppose parts are still floating around, it was a polular control. Check for backlash on the ball screws, watch for damaged ways (square way machine). Machine is pretty simple, no hydraulics, only pneumpatics on the 2 speed clutches on top (Probably hard to find now). Hope this helps, I may never pass through here again as I am in the tractor business now and spend most my time on tractorbynet.com as "bluechip" there. Someone beat me to that name here....

[Dualkit]

May be too late to help, but I know of a place that let a guy haul 3 away for free, that was the best deal they could get for them. That should tell you something. Acroloc is no longer in business and the tool holders they use only fit
their machines. Any replacement parts will be rare and pricey or not to be found, unless it came with spare parts or a parts machine, it is a useless pile of scrap waiting to happen.

[Indmach]

I use it every day just keep it clean if not it will work against you its a good machine for basic small detail work not for heavy milling fast production can;t beat the price though

[little bubba]

I've dealt with 2 series 10 acrolocs, one where I used to work, and one that I bought myself and recently sold. As has already been said, the General Numerics is just a Fanuc 6MB. By far and away not my favorite control, but there are a million of them out there, parts are available and a ton of people know how to use them.

Things you need to realize with this POS, you only have about 6" of Z travel, however the head can be moved well over 2 feet. On my machine, I had to crawl into it and loosen the head before I could move it, on the other machine it had an air operated lock. The lack of Z travel can really p**s you off, you end up having to chop down reamers and keep a close eye on your tool lengths.

Tool holders, very specific to the machine, for 2k it better come with a full complement of tool holders. They may acuurately loc in place, but they don't loc in very well, they like to come flying out of the spindle in a cut and end up spinning around in your chip pan. You WILL learn how to take apart the tool holders to remove chips from their guts. Also if you're running for a long time, and the spindle heats up a bit, they may not seat very well. An Mzero on a the toolchange so you can lock/hammer the retaining ring on properly is not a bad idea. I only did this when the machine was running for extended periods and the material was expensive.

Also, the tool holders use AF(acura flex) collets, make sure it comes with these also. The only other thing I know of that uses these is the Rapid Switch/Quik Switch system. They are still available, but they aren't cheap.

Check what spindle it has, one of the machines I dealt with had a single speed 6800 rpm spindle, it had absolutely NO nuts and the bearings were a bit expensive. The one I owned had a 3500 rpm spindle and used pinion bearings from a Dana 70, 60 bucks at Napa, and it was a two speed. It really had more HP(5hp) than the rigidity of the spindle could handle milling. It could drive a pretty big drill though.

Realize that the series 10 is not a rigid machine, the spindle is Bridgeport size, the rest of the machine is pretty solid though. You can mill, you just can't HOG. The machine I bought, I paid $1826, non-working 4th axis, 30 tool holders including tap holders, all the AF collets and the collets for the tapping heads. I milled a lot of 17-4, 304, 13-8 and 4140 in that machine, it took a while but it did it. Pulled well over 100k off of that machine in about 18 months, then sold it for $1000 to a guy down the street that used to work for Acroloc.

A few more words, odds are the ball screws on it are reasonably tight, the Series 10 machines were more of a drill tap machine than a milling machine. The 42amp requirement, BS, ran that acroloc and a CNC'd knee mill off a 10hp phase converter for a long time and never had a problem, and we were pushing both of those machines as hard as we could at the same time.

Its a good starter machine, it made me a lot of money and let me bring in bigger and better machines. I almost miss it, at least I sent it to a good home and oddly enough, the guy I sold it to was the guy who actually showed that particular machine at a trade show and then bought it for his own shop and sold it and then years later re-bought it from me.