OK folks, I need some input.
I tend to limit what I cut on the CNC machine due to bit changes being difficult and often moving things out of index. I'd love to be able to rough out a piece with a big ball end and then finish it with a nice fine detail bit, but I end up doing it all with one bit because changing the bit on my router ( it's currently a Bosch Colt ) is a real pain in the a$$.
So, for my new machine, a Solsylva belt-drive homebuilt that I just finished all the parts for and am about three days from cutting with, I have a PC 690 router with an outboard speed control that I plan on using.
Now, I see on
chipsfly.com a replacement collet that makes bit changing a simple matter of a single setscrew that tightens a ring around the collet. That's a great idea even if they don't make a quarter-inch version.
BUT- and there's always a but- if I go that route, I'd have a half-inch collet with a quarter-inch reducer holding an eighth-inch reducer for use with the
Precisebits.com 8th-inch shank bits. That's a lotta runout potential if you ask me.
So I see Ron's got some nice
precision collets for use with the small bits. Ooh! I want!
BUT- another but- this wont' address my issue of bit changes being a b*tch. ( Isn't it interesting that the first 5 letters of the phrase 'bit change' describe the process perfectly?)
So, anyone got any suggestions on how I can make bit changes easier? Should I forget the idea of a quick-change quarter-inch collet with a reducer for the 8th inch bits ? I need some input on how much runout these quick-change collets introduce, and what my options are- I've only ever seen the one quick-change collet, are there others that might work? Where do I look?
Help me Obi-Wan, you're my only hope.