Opps - didn't attach the sheet - Peter
You could probably get away with a 5HP spindle/ You can get a Chinese one for less than $1000, and probably save much more than that simplifying the design?My problem is I have the 20HP spindle... I think we could get away with a 10 or 12HP but really I have no clue.
But not spending 6,000$ on a new spindle and use what we have seems like the way to go.
How much material will you be removing in one pass?
Gerry
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Opps - didn't attach the sheet - Peter
It sounds like an interesting project. I'd agree with Ger about the spindle - you're not doing yourself any favors by trying to reuse that beast of a motor from your old vertical mill. That needed lots of torque at low speeds, so it made sense for that machine, which didn't need to move it around, but you need much faster RPMs, which would require a lot of pulleys and even more weight just where you don't want it. Get a self-contained 5 hp spindle with VFD and don't look back.
Most wood carving projects aren't going to require nearly that much Z travel. If you're already finishing these things by hand, you can also dig out anything the tool couldn't reach. Remember, the longer the arm is, the more leverage you have working against you. A tool that's over-extended will vibrate and resonate wildly, giving you a horrible cut quality. And the longer the tool is, the further you'll need to retract it in order to clear the material. You might consider implementing a tilting/pivoting spindle to help reach inaccessible places in your sculptures; this can work better than sheer length of Z, although it's more complicated to build and program.
[FONT=Verdana]Andrew Werby[/FONT]
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The big router plows through the wood and removes a lot of material as it goes all at a slow speed. I think for milling logs we are looking at a bull dozer effect more than a high speed less material. That is the debate anyway. The Z is to fit big logs not to mill 36”. the travel will be 18” we only need to go down half way. We will be suspending much of the work half way up. I think Rich makes a good point if we build it to work and it fails we can add the smaller router. The big milling head worked great and we have it. The top photo is not one I wanted to attach sorry!
Hi - A moving (or travelling) column design would suit that sort of application. The moving column can be as long as you like. Here's one I was working on earlier. Most of the big mill makers have travelling column type machines. The table is fixed and allows long items to be loaded and set up easily. Peter
My problem is I have the 20HP spindle... I think we could get away with a 10 or 12HP but really I have no clue.
But not spending 6,000$ on a new spindle and use what we have seems like the way to go. My logic is if we design it for the bigger motor and it doesn’t work out, it will be over built for a smaller motor.
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