Glad to have found this forum! It's very helpful, and I could use some advice...
We have a shop filled with 20-25 year old HAAS machines.
Some of our VF3s are configured to run a 4th axis, but we do not have a single 5th axis in the place.
I realize it won't be true 5th axis machining, it'll be 3+2 machining, but we are starting to get more and more requests for us to complete parts that require 5th axis machining. It would be awesome to have the capability and keep the work in-house instead of sending it out.
Our machines have over 20,000 hours on them, but then I look across our shop and see our old Lucas boring mills that were built in the 1960s that we still use on a everyday basis. I'm hoping these machines have 20+ more years of life in them, and just upgrading to the 5th axis makes the most sense.
But I'm worried that we would be sinking money into machinery that may not be as well built as the post-war era Bridgeports, lathes, and other machines that are still being widely used today.
Is going for the 5th axis for our current HAAS VF3s a wise move financially, or is it smarter to just keep saving up and try to get a new 5th axis machine like the HAAS UM500?
We have a shop filled with 20-25 year old HAAS machines.
Some of our VF3s are configured to run a 4th axis, but we do not have a single 5th axis in the place.
I realize it won't be true 5th axis machining, it'll be 3+2 machining, but we are starting to get more and more requests for us to complete parts that require 5th axis machining. It would be awesome to have the capability and keep the work in-house instead of sending it out.
Our machines have over 20,000 hours on them, but then I look across our shop and see our old Lucas boring mills that were built in the 1960s that we still use on a everyday basis. I'm hoping these machines have 20+ more years of life in them, and just upgrading to the 5th axis makes the most sense.
But I'm worried that we would be sinking money into machinery that may not be as well built as the post-war era Bridgeports, lathes, and other machines that are still being widely used today.
Is going for the 5th axis for our current HAAS VF3s a wise move financially, or is it smarter to just keep saving up and try to get a new 5th axis machine like the HAAS UM500?