i think i need a cnc router but id love to hear your opinions.

[wizard]

My first though, second and third thought is that you want to avoid those Chinese machine unless you like to tinker with electronics. They aren't extremely bad machines but that is only if you exclude the electronics.

I'm left with the impression that you don't have time to screw around with setting something up and getting it to run. In other words you need something that works out of the box so to speak. If true I'd consider simply buying another machine from Roland which should fit into your current work flow. Roland has more than a few machines to choose from that would do the job and they are known to offer decent quality.

However most of the Roland's don't strike me as being robust for milling type work. You might consider something like a TIAG mill in a CNC variant as a very low cost way into a CNC that takes the shape of a conventional mill. They can be found here: Taig Tools - Desktop Milling Machines and Lathes.. However I'm not certain this would be good enough for your needs.

You might want to consider a commercial PCB router like such: The LPKF ProtoMat S-Series. However the problem here is I'm not up to speed on how they process G-Code if at all. Another example is here: PCB Milling Machine System,PCB Prototyping Machine, with the same problem of not knowing how they handle G-Code, in any event lots of machines like this on the market. The problem with many of the desktop routers out there is that they are flimsy. If you go with one designed for PCB you at least know that the machine can handle copper and fiberglass well.

I have to wonder though if you might be limiting yourself too much here, why not buy a larger mill that could be far more flexible. Tormach come to mind here. A little higher end would be a Hass Office Mill or MiniMill. A bigger machine would be a long term investment. However a real mill would allow you far more flexibility, especially if you get away from milling sheet metal.

In any event no matter which way you go you need to buy something enclosed or fabricate an enclosure for it. This simply for safety concerns.

There are lots of ideas out there. At the moment I don't know of a generic router that fits your needs ( off the top of my head). The desktop market is limited because most people want larger machines when it comes to routers. I mentioned PCB routers because they seemed like an excellent fit for your immediate mechanical needs (small squares of sheet metal), your challenge is to find a machine that works well with your current design environment.

no i havnt , i work for a weird company..we are a fashion embelishment studio and we do sampling and prototypes for the garment/fashion industry. we have a very niche market that requires a very fast turn around time , so for the most part, everything must be done inhouse and done very quickly..its for this reason im needing to source another machine for cutting of sheet metal only...i have been doing a little digging and i found what appears to be a reasonably priced chinese cnc machine ..its called the cnc 3040 and i belive there is also one called the 6020. the bed size seems good for my purposes and they claim its good for metals as well...honestly i can even go with something smaller but i have been unable to find one, is anyone aware of a cnc router that is even smaller than these that can cut metal?

[wizard]

In another response I mentioned looking for PCB router/milling machines, these seem like idea solutions to your sheet metal processing.

10 min?? Lol i wish...just to give you an idea of the problem is that im loading a 6 inch by 6 inch piece of 24 guage brass and im cutting say 30 of this shape..its taking 24 hours to finish the job and then my blade is worthless...

There are many issues that effect cutter life, Spindle RPMs, feed rates and depth of cit have to be tuned for optimal tool life, which also has to be balanced against quality. Actually running one tool for 24 hours is pretty impressive. It isn't uncommon to have to change cutter or inserts several times in one shift. One thing that might help you here big time is an automatic tool changer which would allow machining with the biggest tool possible for the task at hand.

i have other jobs and i cant tie up the machine for 24 hours...if you were to be milling complex small shapes from brass, copper or aluminum what blade would you use??..

Use cutters suitable for the task at hand. This is where a router with tool change capability can do wonders for you. You can have the machine select the right tool based on size and material. For example when doing aluminum with these small cutter is is often common to use a single flute cutter.

You are actually becoming a CNC machinist by getting involved this deep. The knowledge doesn't come overnight

im currently using a 1/16th carbide flat end mill and i also tried one of the needle point v shaped engraving bits..a single job ruins that blade too and also take 24 hours to cut a single job of 30 of these pieces

My first thought here is that your feed rates are slow for the spindle RPM. Also what are you using for lube/coolant. The next ugly thing to realize is that metal machining can be a bit dirty. Actually greasy or slimy, which is another reason to prefer a totally enclosed machine. Lube varies with the material being machined but aluminum often does surprisingly well with WD40, in othe materials WD40 is just about useless. On top of all of that cutters now come with coatings that are optimized for the materials being machined.

Once you settle on a machine you will need to revisit proper cutter selection.

[awerby]

That does seem awfully slow. What are your feed speeds and RPMs? How are you holding the metal down? Spray-etching is how parts like that are usually made. But you seem to want to do everything in-house, and that's a pretty nasty process to DIY. Abrasive water-jet would be another good way to go, or perhaps wire EDM. A Taig, as other people here have suggested, would be better than the machine you're using for this, but you'd probably want to fit it with a faster spindle if you're using really small cutters. That's not really a big deal; the Taig has an open architecture, so all you'd need to do is come up with a mounting bracket that interfaced with the dovetail spindle mount.

[bhurts]

If you are not doing this every day I suggest you don't do it at all. Instead get in a good relationship with someone local who can both do the job affordably and meet your turn around time. If someone local has a waterjet or high powered laser they could cut 10 small pieces for you in a few minutes. Sometimes it is cheaper and easier to drop off a dxf and pic up your parts in the morning from someone better equipped for the task. The biggest problem you will run into is finding someone you can trust to meet your turn around times on a consistent basis.

Ben

[victorofga]

using hss bit and about 800 mm per min, (35-40 ipm) 3 mm dia straight endmill

cutting time is about 40 second ... thinking on the tool home position out of way but not farer than 300 mm


part changing can be 1.0-1.2 min or less using an individual pod

that what can be calculated for series..
it can be changing faster, nowever thinking on series, working trough a shift the 1.2 min is real..


many folks run Chinese 24 hour continuously.. I also cut large stuff , starting nighttime, around 8-10 and next day morning machine still run..
as long as water runs in the spindle it wont overheat and going..

there are small motors available around 300-600 wat with 1000 Hz inverter and those can spin up to 60K


so in my opinion, there possible better machines for a lot more, however for practical life a Chinese router real alternative.. mine runs since 2012 jan and I had change the powersupply only when I tried to experimenting some settings.. so possible I messed up... beyond that all I have maintenance keeping clean the rails..