Many questions !!!!!

[scappini]

Ok, I would like to start with what is happening with our company.
We are trading a Kitamura My centre 2C and our Kitako/Kitagawa CNC lathe for a new VMC. we are looking for travel on x about 1400, to 1600 mm.
Our shop consists of a Haas SL30 lathe with live tooling, a Hyundai/Kia SKT 21LM lathe with live tooling. Our new VMC is where my questions are.
I have never been involved in HSM and would like advice as to what feedrates you would recondmend to do this. As well as opinions on if it is better or not.
2ndly the Haas we are looking at is a V?5XT.....it has 1525.mm on X
Please point me in a direction elsewhere from Haas if you know or similar PRICED machines are comparable, please without bias or dishonesty.
There are so many machines all at similar costs I am purely looking for feedback for me to ponder on......

Kind regards

[Mitsui Seiki]

A Mori Seiki MV-653/40 is very good machine.X travel is 1530mm.
You won't have any problems with that VMC.I don't know the price but it's probably more expensive than a Haas.

[afmcorp]

speaking as a shop owner.... if u are unfamiliar with other brands F&B then b4 u even think about plopping down ur money i'd suggest u go to a machine show. that way u have a number of different brands to compare in one location.

first i'd go to the internet and google the different brands for downloadable catalogs. from this i'd make a spread sheet with the F&B's. then i'd choose which were important to me. note that on each machine. then get to a show and evaluate them on the floor. i'd also ask as many questions as i could.

don't forget the warranty and class room training. this all adds up.
good luck
craig

[adixon]

If you are new to high speed machining and the cutting tools required I recomend you get in touch your nearest OSG (www.osgtool.com) and SECO Tools (www.secotools.com) reps.

Neither of these lines are cheep, but if you want to get into high speed/hard milling you are are going to layout some cash for the cutters. We use a lot of OSG cutters for high speed/hard milling tool steels. We commonly machine S-7, H-13, and A6 soft and hardend in the Rc 50-60 range.

Like allways the exact speeds and feed depend on material and hardness. The sales rep or his techie can give you guidelines to get you started.

Now for the the next little surprise...what CAM software are you using? Be sure it has cutting strategies designed for high speed milling. There's more to it than just speed. Good toolpaths and good entry/exit in the cuts will give you better tool life, better finish, better cost per piece, etc.

In our neighborhood OSG, Makino, and a local machine dealer partner up and give a free seminar to customers and prospective customers that covers several good topics in this area. Any good machinery dealer will probably also offer similar seminars. Ask.

Good Luck...
Al

[hkchad]

Hello-
Shopping for any cnc is time consuming. Make a list of your requirements in order of priority, size, spindle rpm, # of tools etc. Include even the smallest details. Looking the list over several times and reprioritising your features. A friend of mine even suggested including the weight of the machine. When you come down to it there is no replacement for rigidity.

Give your self a resonable budget for your purchase. Do not set this budget on just what pricing you get from Haas. For instance the Mori Seiki mentioned above will be almost twice the amount of a Haas. Depending on your application this may or may not be worth it.

We have two Haas VF2SS machines and did not make a list. Several items were thought to be of no significance. We were wrong. We should have added several options to our equipment purchase.

If you have the time, shop and compare. It will be time well spent. All salesman believe that there machine is the best value. No matter how much you like them or how many are friends. You will be the one standing there at 6:00 p.m. working on the machine and realize that the feature you skipped on might have saved your company a load of money and time.

Happy Shopping

[rmcdowellbbi]

I am New to this site, and just want to say how grateful I am for it. I Build my own cnc devices from scratch whenever possible. I converted a Unimat from a lathe to a cnc machine by adding a 'Z' axis , and replacing the handwheels with stepper motors and a home made parallel port converter with stepper drivers.

[Mitsui Seiki]

Welcome! I agree,it's a great site.If you have a question ,you will get an answer.No matter what it is.

[Cam_Wizzard]

High Speed machining is the same as radial chip thinning. Contact your tooling salesman about the theory. Iscar is very good at this.