DRO PRO on CZ 1236 & LX 329

[strykerakamack]

Anyone here install DROs' on these machines?
Was thinking bout adding the new magnetic Electronica line
that they have.
If done an EZ job or a PITA?
thanks

[fastlanecafe]

I installed one of those Chinese made magnetic DRO units on a Harbor Freight 12 X 36, which is just like the Smithy. Installation was pretty easy- drill and tap some holes and fabricate shields etc. If I remember, I had about 8-10 hours in the whole job. However, the magnetic scales were a real pain- they are very sensitive to any liquids and they use shims to keep the distance between the scale and magnetic pickup. If you have any mis-alignment the scales can skip a beat and if you don't notice it, your measurements will be off. I fiddled with it for about a year before finally going with the Korean made Jenix unit with optical glass scales. They are spot on and very reliable. Also less expensive than the magnetics. Here's a link to their E-Bay site.

DRO JENIX USA 2 AXIS LATHES UP TO 14 X 40 599.00 | eBay

[Norvil l]

I installed one of those Chinese made magnetic DRO units on a Harbor Freight 12 X 36, which is just like the Smithy. Installation was pretty easy- drill and tap some holes and fabricate shields etc. If I remember, I had about 8-10 hours in the whole job. However, the magnetic scales were a real pain- they are very sensitive to any liquids and they use shims to keep the distance between the scale and magnetic pickup. If you have any mis-alignment the scales can skip a beat and if you don't notice it, your measurements will be off. I fiddled with it for about a year before finally going with the Korean made Jenix unit with optical glass scales. They are spot on and very reliable. Also less expensive than the magnetics. Here's a link to their E-Bay site.

DRO JENIX USA 2 AXIS LATHES UP TO 14 X 40 599.00 | eBay

I have the Jenix on my mill, and it is top quality. Easy to install and comes with a real English manual and generic mounting hardware. It arrived at my door about 6 days after I placed the order. You just tell them the length of the scales you need and they supply the proper sizes- no cutting etc. The scales have chrome steel jackets around the cable and a screw on connector- each cable is about 10' long, so you have plenty of options on where to mount the display.

[flatheadford49]

I have the Jenix on my mill, and it is top quality. Easy to install and comes with a real English manual and generic mounting hardware. It arrived at my door about 6 days after I placed the order. You just tell them the length of the scales you need and they supply the proper sizes- no cutting etc. The scales have chrome steel jackets around the cable and a screw on connector- each cable is about 10' long, so you have plenty of options on where to mount the display.

Norvil,
Who did you buy yours from.

[flatheadford49]

I installed one of those Chinese made magnetic DRO units on a Harbor Freight 12 X 36, which is just like the Smithy. Installation was pretty easy- drill and tap some holes and fabricate shields etc. If I remember, I had about 8-10 hours in the whole job. However, the magnetic scales were a real pain- they are very sensitive to any liquids and they use shims to keep the distance between the scale and magnetic pickup. If you have any mis-alignment the scales can skip a beat and if you don't notice it, your measurements will be off. I fiddled with it for about a year before finally going with the Korean made Jenix unit with optical glass scales. They are spot on and very reliable. Also less expensive than the magnetics. Here's a link to their E-Bay site.

DRO JENIX USA 2 AXIS LATHES UP TO 14 X 40 599.00 | eBay

Pretty sneaky way to advertise and not pay CNC Zones advertising rates

[Norvil l]

Norvil,
Who did you buy yours from.

I got mine off the E-Bay ad back in 2009- it was about 50.00 cheaper then.

[scudzuki]

I installed one of those Chinese made magnetic DRO units on a Harbor Freight 12 X 36, which is just like the Smithy. Installation was pretty easy- drill and tap some holes and fabricate shields etc. If I remember, I had about 8-10 hours in the whole job. However, the magnetic scales were a real pain- they are very sensitive to any liquids and they use shims to keep the distance between the scale and magnetic pickup. If you have any mis-alignment the scales can skip a beat and if you don't notice it, your measurements will be off. I fiddled with it for about a year before finally going with the Korean made Jenix unit with optical glass scales. They are spot on and very reliable. Also less expensive than the magnetics. Here's a link to their E-Bay site.

DRO JENIX USA 2 AXIS LATHES UP TO 14 X 40 599.00 | eBay

The Electronica systems are made in India and are top notch. They come with nice extruded shields and enough brackets to mount on practically anything. The scale and reader head are rated IP67 and you can bathe them in motor oil and they still work. Try THAT with glass scales. They are super low profile and will fit where glass scales and inductive (Sony Magnascales) will not fit. The alignment is not terribly fussy, no more so than glass scales. Once mounted properly, there is no tendency for them to shift out of alignment. I installed a 2 axis DRO with 1 micron resolution on the cross slide and 5 micron resolution on the saddle on a 1966 Colchester lathe and can now hold tenths (.0001") on the diameter.

fastlane, if you installed a magnetic system, you clearly did NOT install an Electronica system.

Joe

[strykerakamack]

scudzuki
You picked em up from dropros?
How were they to deal with ?
wondering if it would be worth the extra cash on the mill to go for the 4th axis since the scales are the smallest out there.

[scudzuki]

Yes I bought mine from DROPros.
Not sure who else carries the Electronica system.
They shipped my product quickly, and when I had a question, I was able to get someone on the phone without a problem. As far as retailers go they are good, but I did not hit them with any real tests of their customer service, since the DRO installed without a hitch.

My only complaint (and it's a minor one) is that if I have the cross slide output set to its highest resolution (one micron or .00005" radius, 0001" in diameter mode) and I have it in diameter mode, it displays a trailing zero (.00010, .00020, etc.). After working with one of the technicians at DROPros for over an hour, we were unable to eliminate the trailing zero. What I discovered on my own is that the trailing zero in dia. mode is a result of the fact that the last digit (always a zero in dia. mode) is required in rad. mode at that resolution, and the number of digits displayed is a function of the actual resolution (which is measured in radius even when displayed in diameter).

The "fix" for me was to change the read resolution to 2 microns instead of one, so in dia. mode I "only" get .0002 resolution (.0001 in radius mode, so no trailing zero). I rarely have to work closer than 5 tenths for the stuff I do so I can live with it.

The scales and reader heads are very small and seem bulletproof. I'm very pleased with mine.

I'm not sure what you mean by "go for the 4th axis"... axes 4 and 5 are typically rotary. Maybe you mean for the quill? I'm not familiar with the Smithy model numbers so I don't know with the layout of your machine.

Joe

[strykerakamack]

yea 4th axis would be the quill .
figured might as well get a read on everything that moves.
I do use the quill readout alot at the moment So figured it would be
worth it to add .
Did you place order over the net or call em up ?

[scudzuki]

I bought it on their eBay store.

Joe

[scudzuki]

Last night I resolved another nuisance.

The 2 axis DRO I have on my lather is based on the 3 axis mill DRO.

As such, it has an X, Y, and Z display and function buttons.

On the lathe, the circuitry for the Z display (input on the back of the DRO and display segment inside) are omitted to save cost. The Z position is displayed on the Y display. This bugs me, so I pulled the unit apart, separated the buttons (which were molded in one piece), belt sanded the "Y" off the Y button and swapped it with the Z button. Now the displays are arranged

X
Z
<blank>

It's the little things...

Joe