VMC vs drill tap centers. New machine help

[DavidScott]

That's pretty much standard on 40 taper vmc's, no?

No idea, but that would suck doing big plate work. My 30 taper Kitamura will get to 4" from the table.

 

[EmGo]

I always thought the name "drill tap" was a leftover from the Burgmaster. The early ones were pretty much glorified burgies, and the name just sort of stuck for that machine layout ?

 

[rklopp]

That's pretty much standard on 40 taper vmc's, no?

No. Hurco VM10i has 4" min, DN Solutions DEM 4000 has 4.7" min, Bridgeport V480 & V710 has 6" min.

 

[Vancbiker]

I think the biggest features of a Drill/Tap mill are the spindle nose won't get closer than about 7-8 inches to the table and weak drawbar tension. If you want to work from vises you can't just clamp them on the table and still reach the parts with short gage length tool holders. I don't think there were that many Drill/Tap mills that couldn't do any milling with 1/2" mills. Robo Drills have always been up to it as far as I know, except for one that was sold as a Pratt and Whitney Tape Mate A in the mid 70s. Just because a mill has 2,000 ipm rapids, a 30 taper spindle, and sub 1 second tool changes doesn't make it a Drill/Tap, there are VMCs that do that.

Not convinced of that criteria. My mid 90s Mori 30 taper machine was marketed as a drill/tap machine. 5.9” gage line to table. Enough drawbar to run .75” diameter end mills in aluminum. Only 8k RPM and 5HP so pretty much running in the red all the with that size tool. Particularly using a Maritool stubby holder.

 

[DavidScott]

Not convinced of that criteria. My mid 90s Mori 30 taper machine was marketed as a drill/tap machine. 5.9” gage line to table. Enough drawbar to run .75” diameter end mills in aluminum. Only 8k RPM and 5HP so pretty much running in the red all the with that size tool. Particularly using a Maritool stubby holder.

Do you know how much drawbar tension you have?

 

[david n]

Do you know how much drawbar tension you have?

3/4 EM..............Enough................he has enough.

 

[Vancbiker]

Do you know how much drawbar tension you have?

I don’t have a spec for that.

 

[Wsurfer]

Fwiw, I use 2 Kurt D688 's bolted to the table of my speedio and don't have any trouble accessing parts with short gage length holders (Maritool). Working below the jaw height is a different story.

 

[Wsurfer]