PCNC quality (770 or 1100) vs. competition

[dbrija]

First off, let me say I have lurked here for the last year, and I see this forum as a great source for help, and its a friendly place to boot. Looking forward to being an active participant once February rolls around and half my garage is occupied with a PCNC1100...

Reading through the Tormach posts, one thing I have not seen are scary things like casting sand in the spindle lube and smoked spindle bearings in just a few hours use. This says to me that there is a much better QC process in place for Tormach assembly and pre ship inspection as compared to other machines in this class.

For those that have owned Tormach machines for a while, my question is are there any particular things one should look for in a new Tormach machine before starting to make chips, and any weak points that you would recommend addressing right away?

I already plan to do the usual things... check that wiring connections are tight, mechanical things all tight, etc... but would like to draw off of your experiences.

Thanks!
Danny Brija

[Magnum164]

The only thing missing on my machine was a plug for the 4th axis. I sent Tormach a note, and got a reply that they had taken the plug out of a demo machine on their showroom floor and was on it's way. I would have waited a bit


When installing my 770 at the last minute we made a location change and the location wasn't exactly level. I figured I could level it with the machine on it. Well, the feet on the deluxe stand did not hold up. I could not figure out why my machine was in tram one day and out the next. Then I realized one side of the machine, the legs collapsed overnight. I replaced the feet with a set that was easier to adjust. I doubt anyone would have this same problem, but i just didn't like the way you adjusted the Tormach ones.

[MichaelHenry]

I think that it's a good idea to run through the inspection tests right after you receive your mill to make sure that nothing important moved during shipping. Backlash is on that list and I'd definitely check that even if the others seemed too daunting.

Then cut a simple shape in aluminum under modest machinng loads and see how close the finished dimensions are to those you programmed to.

Verify spindle speed is close enough for the work you plan to do.

Check how accurately the mill re-zeroes.

Check your vise for squareness.

Check the runout on a few of your tool holders. I like to use gage pins, dowel pins, or precision ground shaft for this, though the latter isn't as straight as you might think.

Caulk the chip pan, let it cure, and then check for leaks. Those will be easier to fix before everything gets coated with coolant.

Most folks won't bother with any of the above and that's fine. I wanted to establish a baseline at the beginning, though, to compare things against as time goes on and things start to wear a little.

Mike

[benji2505]

I second the caulking of the chip pan. I also caulked the corners of the pan itself. Caulk the junction of table and x-axis limitswitch-cover.

After the mill is up and running, fill the coolant tank from the top with half a quart each time and see whether everything is flowing the way it is supposed to flow. Also check the coolant-tube thru hole in the pan - see whether you can close that somehow. I also caulked the top cover of the pump to the tank. Preventing the coolant from leaking out somewhere in the system is still an interesting everyday project for me.....

Make sure the lubricant system is not leaking anywhere and all points get some.

Invest some time to think about how you set up the tooling table/ numbers. Changing later on is painful.

After traming the mill I did not have any issues with electronics, precision, backslash or anything ever since.

benji

[BlueFin]

Tighten all the motor connections to the ball screws, get to them first before they slip and gall. Check them after a few days of operation (vibration) and then you should be good to go.

[dbrija]

Thank you for all the great feedback!