Hey Guys,
I'm looking to add a machine for some in house parts we machine for our products. The parts are 1-2 inches in diameter and less than 1/2 inch thickness and always 316 stainless steel. They would be gripped from the ID and require some milling, slotting, and some small tapped holes (M1-M1.4). The parts require a 4th and 5th axis positioning, but do not need full 4th of 5th axis movement. I plan to run the machine about 10-20 hours a week so I'm not looking for anything new but rather a decent shape used machine that will hold +/- 0.002 tolerances. I have a Mazak SQT 15MS that I was hoping to use for this part, but the lack of a Y/B axis is restricting. I've thought of getting a used Integrex, but I think that may be overkill at the moment.
I've been looking at a Hurco VM1 and VM10U. The VM10U seems like a perfect fit, but they're hard to find and usually out of my budget. The max I'd like to spend on everything would be 35-45k. If I'm only doing 5 axis positioning would I just need a 4th and 5th axis table with a controller box? And then hook it up to the machine and trigger the table controller with M codes? If this is the case I was thinking a small Haas T5C or TRT160 on a Hurco VM1 would work? I also looked at some Brothers that I could fit a small table on. Would either of these machines work with the way I described sending M codes to the controller? Sorry for my lack of knowledge when it comes to this stuff. I'm so used to the Mazak, but I am ready to dive into a mill.
Any recommendations on mills and tables would be great. Also, the 14 tools on a Brother would work, but I wouldn't mind having more.
I'm looking to add a machine for some in house parts we machine for our products. The parts are 1-2 inches in diameter and less than 1/2 inch thickness and always 316 stainless steel. They would be gripped from the ID and require some milling, slotting, and some small tapped holes (M1-M1.4). The parts require a 4th and 5th axis positioning, but do not need full 4th of 5th axis movement. I plan to run the machine about 10-20 hours a week so I'm not looking for anything new but rather a decent shape used machine that will hold +/- 0.002 tolerances. I have a Mazak SQT 15MS that I was hoping to use for this part, but the lack of a Y/B axis is restricting. I've thought of getting a used Integrex, but I think that may be overkill at the moment.
I've been looking at a Hurco VM1 and VM10U. The VM10U seems like a perfect fit, but they're hard to find and usually out of my budget. The max I'd like to spend on everything would be 35-45k. If I'm only doing 5 axis positioning would I just need a 4th and 5th axis table with a controller box? And then hook it up to the machine and trigger the table controller with M codes? If this is the case I was thinking a small Haas T5C or TRT160 on a Hurco VM1 would work? I also looked at some Brothers that I could fit a small table on. Would either of these machines work with the way I described sending M codes to the controller? Sorry for my lack of knowledge when it comes to this stuff. I'm so used to the Mazak, but I am ready to dive into a mill.
Any recommendations on mills and tables would be great. Also, the 14 tools on a Brother would work, but I wouldn't mind having more.