Weiss WMD30LV conversion project

[LongRat]

Sounds like we are all feeling good then
I will go with the linearmotionbearings 16mm screw for the X, looking at it all again I think you could fit a 20mm nut in there if you only modified the nut flange and the saddle. As I said I don't want to hack the saddle, but if I was pushed I would much rather do that than modify the table underside. That would be a very long strip of cast iron to remove.

[HimyKabibble]

Originally Posted by LongRat Sounds like we are all feeling good then I will go with the linearmotionbearings 16mm screw for the X, looking at it all again I think you could fit a 20mm nut in there if you only modified the nut flange and the saddle. As I said I don't want to hack the saddle, but if I was pushed I would much rather do that than modify the table underside. That would be a very long strip of cast iron to remove.

"I think you could fit a 20mm nut in there if you only modified the nut flange and the saddle..." - Huh! Seems like I've heard that somewhere before....

[LongRat]

I was just trying to clarify the situation - the fact that you would not have to modify the flange, saddle AND table to get it to fit. I appreciate you pointing to the Homeshop screws as I welcome all info that could make this an easier or better conversion. For me personally, I've chosen the 16mm screws. If I do another, I would probably use one of those 20mm Homeshop screws because I would have a working big milling machine to modify the saddle accurately.

[digits]

Longrat - glad you've found some screws that almost fit! I was about to suggest you just jack the whole table up 40mm or so on some nice linear rails

[LongRat]

That's a really good idea and I actually considered it. But I need the machine running soon, so I will hold off. But I am not ruling it out in the future. What do you think would be a good choice of rail for the X on this machine? Any good sources other than just checking Ebay for what comes up?

[digits]

Originally Posted by LongRat That's a really good idea and I actually considered it. But I need the machine running soon, so I will hold off. But I am not ruling it out in the future. What do you think would be a good choice of rail for the X on this machine? Any good sources other than just checking Ebay for what comes up?

I used 35mm Hiwin HGR rails on my DIY machine - it was about 300kg too, but those rails were severe overkill! I'm thinking about trying some 25mm rails next time. I got my rails and screws from Marchant Dice but it looks like there are a few other places in the UK that do similiar items these days - Zapp Automation looks interesting, though I haven't used them myself.

Is the underside of the table milled flat along the edges above the dovetails? If not, I guess you'd need to find a bigger mill to mill the table, or come up with a clever way to have it mill itself! Or ofcourse, buy another table - didn't someone in the UK do that - I seem to remember reading about that on here?

On an unrelated note - I don't suppose you know what size bolts hold the mill down to the table? I'd quite like to pick up some eye-bolts to make the lift eaiser once mine arrives...

[ihavenofish]

35mm is much overkill on the z. 20mm is probably "adequate, but if you plan heavy lods, 25mm might be idea. the novakon nm200 has hywin 25mm rails on the Z, and they seem quite stable, i was milling 304 stainless on saturday with it and there was zero chatter.. eerily silent cutting actually. for reference, that machine is nearly 3 times the mass and twice the spindle torque of the weiss. its got dovetails on the table though, rails only on the Z.

[LongRat]

Referring to the above picture, the horizontal sliding interface surface of the table is of course very flat. The corresponding surface on the saddle looks to be hand scraped. The underside flat surface of the dovetails is flat-looking but has been over painted. I can't make out any machining marks but I doubt it is ground either. Probably not flat enough to rely on, without taking the whole table off, inverting it and measuring the flatness. The sliding surface width is about 38mm though, so I guess you might be able to mount some rails on there.

[digits]

I'd guess that if you were going for rails, you'd mount them to the sliding surface of the table, and then mount 4 carriages onto the saddle, so it sounds like everything is flat enough

With my thinking hat on for once, I guess you could make a dovetailed fixture to mount onto the saddle to allow you to flip the table over and clamp it square to the X-axis for drilling. You could then slide it along by hand to drill your way along the X and then flip the table or crank the y-axis to drill for the second rail. You could even use the rails as the drilling template if you have a transfer punch.

Not that I'll trying to sell you on linear rails...

[digits]

I wonder how Opti manage to use 20mm screws in their conversion kit - perhaps they have pre-machined their tables to take them?

http://www.optimum-machines.com/prod...-30/index.html

One thing I do like is that they've bolted the Y-motor on the back of the column where it belongs

[LongRat]

I hadn't spotted that they put the Y motor there. Pretty nice. They must have slightly different castings on the Opti machines than the one I have. The hole in the back of my column wouldn't fit a 20mm screw through it, and the back of the column doesn't look flat enough to get a nice mounting surface for a bearing block. It would certainly be neater, but it is a lot more hassle than having a front-mounted motor.
I would be interested to see the differences between the machines, I get the feeling the Opti ones are just a little bit nicer in most areas. You do pay for it though.

[digits]

I wonder if they really are different castings, or if they're just machined differently?

That said, I did decide to take one of the X-axis handles off today - the Warco might have different castings to your blue one - my nut's got corners and I've got a couple of extra mm under the table!