Another New X3

[pntrbl]

Currently there are nine X3's in stock at Harbor Freight's Camarillo warehouse, and as of this afternoon, one of them has my name on it! I sure hope they pick me a good one.

With the 20% off coupon I learned about here it totaled out at $869.13.

Since you could hold all the chips I've ever made on a milling machine in two hands I'm gonna use it manually for awhile, but obviously I'm thinking about CNC someday or I wouldn't be lurking and learning around here ....

Meanwhile, I'll need some tooling. Clamping kit? Endmill holders? Any recommendations?

Knowing it was only a matter of time before I got my hot little hands on some kind of mill I've already collected a smattering of R8 collets. I also have a couple of 6" milling vises that I suspect are entirely too large for an X3, but anybody's opinions on the matter are welcome.

Thanx for any advice.

SP

[hoss2006]

The X3 review at mini-lathe.com is a good place to visit.
It covers the mill, accessories, setup, features, mods and more.
He has some suggestions for tooling and such as well.
Tons of good info.
Little Machine Shop has a getting started guide for the minimill but many of the tools
are perfectly suited for the X3 as well.
Plenty of R8 suggestions.
I have links to the MIT training videos that could give you some tips and
a link to the Machinists Handbook.
That should keep you busy while you wait for delivery.
Hoss

[Crevice Reamer]

Hi pntrbl. Welcome to the Zone!

You are probably going to want QC tooling eventually so I would suggest buying some now. You only need the 3/4 inch R8 collet and some endmill holders to start with--1/4, 3/8, 1/2. and maybe a JT-33 drill chuck adapter. You would spend almost as much on standard EM holders, so buying them now prevents wasting money.

http://littlemachineshop.com/product...itFast=tormach

You will also need some same shank endmills like these:

http://littlemachineshop.com/product...1242&category=

CR.

[pntrbl]

Thank You very much for the responses gentlemen. That is exactly the kind of info I was looking for. I didn't know QC tooling even existed, and since I saved two bills on the mill ...... you can guess the rest.

Hoss, if I can hijack my own thread, I saw you were using a NTE3100 for an index on your spindle and that inspired me to try an optical device for eventual use as a tach output on my old lathe. I made a wheel with 24 slots, mounted it up on a 12v motor, and then positioned an Optek OPB831W55Z slotted optical switch on it in just the right spot ..... with less than stellar results.

I don't think the switch can switch fast enough cuz all I'm seeing is a crazy sawtooth at .09ms intervals. Amplitude varies. The motor rpm is unknown but I'm guessing around 2500 rpm based on the .09ms. I was under the impression these things switched at the speed of light, lol, but I know freq response can be an issue.

Is your NTE exhibiting any problems?

SP

[hoss2006]

Not having any trouble with mine reading to 6300 rpm on the mill but I'm using a single slot disc.
Yours is having to register 24 times more pulses per rev.
Hoss

[HimyKabibble]

Originally Posted by pntrbl Thank You very much for the responses gentlemen. That is exactly the kind of info I was looking for. I didn't know QC tooling even existed, and since I saved two bills on the mill ...... you can guess the rest. Hoss, if I can hijack my own thread, I saw you were using a NTE3100 for an index on your spindle and that inspired me to try an optical device for eventual use as a tach output on my old lathe. I made a wheel with 24 slots, mounted it up on a 12v motor, and then positioned an Optek OPB831W55Z slotted optical switch on it in just the right spot ..... with less than stellar results. I don't think the switch can switch fast enough cuz all I'm seeing is a crazy sawtooth at .09ms intervals. Amplitude varies. The motor rpm is unknown but I'm guessing around 2500 rpm based on the .09ms. I was under the impression these things switched at the speed of light, lol, but I know freq response can be an issue. Is your NTE exhibiting any problems? SP

A 24 slot wheel, even at 6000 RPM, is only 2400 pulses per second. The opto is capable fo FAR better than that, *if* properly biased. Yours clearly is not properly biased, as evidenced by the waveforms you describe. You need to run the LED at something close to, but below, it's max current, and the same with the phototransistor. This means a relatively smallish bias resistor, typically in the range of a few hundred ohms. The LED resistor should be determined by the drive capability of whatever is driving it, though in this application, I assume it's connected directly to a 5V power supply. For the NTE300, about 30mA should be good for both currents, which means both resistors should be around 150-180 ohms.

Regards,
Ray L.