control retrofit, which one

[chaz6966]

arrow 750 cnc 1994 model.
anybody have any suggestions what would be a good retrofit package for my mill. and money is very tight so i would need the cheapest model that would work.

[DareBee]

My Retrofit of choice is Fagor.
IMO it is not expensive for what you get, but the trend on this forum when people say "cheap" is that this setup will be too costly.

[GCMAN]

Hey Chaz, we retrofitted our 1995 Arrow 750 with a MachineMate controller from MAG (formally Cin. Milicron). Compared to the old CT, this system rocks!
We offline program so I cannot advise on the controllers programming but without the retro we would have scrapped a great machine. I can give you a contact if your interested. Not sure what the cost would be but it would be worth every penny. The setup on the control very easy to learn and the screen layout is decent. Windows computer controlled with touch screen. Any questions, PM me or post.
GC

[kcho]

Yes, for me the better choice is Fagor. In the 80 percent of the retrofiting you can use the same drives and spindle driver.

[themil]

I do retrofits on this machine with either the Power Automation (Machine Mate) control or the Fagor 8070 series control Contact me at 859-534-4748 for details.

themil

[scudzuki]

MAG's price on the Fagor 8070 or MachineMate controls installed is $18,000 or so.

I'd go with the Fagor if it were me just b/c it's a newer design but I've have heard favorable reviews of the MM.

Note that this package is developed around the CT machines. It reuses the CT servos, amps, spindle motor, and drive.

Of course if you call "themill" you will get all the dope on it, he IS the expert on these machines.

I'm trying to figure out where I'm gonna steal 18 large myself to get mine done.

Joe

[cncven]

If you wants to spend just the small price you can use a chinesse version of the GE Fanuc control.

But if you wants to get the best of the new cnc controls you can use Sinumerik 840D Solution Line.

[scudzuki]

Unless the OP is familiar with integrating the motion control subsystem of a foreign controller to his servos and spindle and programming ladder logic, it's kind of a moot point what the most inexpensive control is. Half of the cost of a retrofit is the labor involved in engineering the system, installing it, and tuning it. If it were a simple task, EMC2 would be the way to go, nothing cheaper out there than FREE.

Joe