ClappedOutBport
Cast Iron
- Joined
- Mar 30, 2016
Hi all,
I've been tasked with finding a way to rotary some large parts on our wire EDM at work. For reference, I don't run the EDM, nor have I ever. I am very familiar with manual machining and CNC a little bit, but EDM is pretty far out of my league.
So the parts we are looking to rotary turn are about 8-9" in diameter, at up to 11kg. The largest machine is an AC progress VP3 wire EDM with a Hirschmann H80R.MNC. It is rated for 10kg. With the part and it's fixturing overhanging, that would be pushing over the limits. We has a tailcenter, but the operator doesn't want to use it to avoid the thrust load on the bearings.
So I'm looking for a heavier weight rotary table. I know that Hirschmann has them, but they're pretty expensive. This is the first time that something this big has ever needed to be rotary turned at my work, so it's not something that will see use often, like the smaller one which runs everyday. I'm sure you can see why we'd rather not drop 50-100 grand on something that gets used every couple of years.
So basically what I'm asking is if there is any budget options that won't be destroyed after a few days of running? We need rotary only, no positioning. No need for it to be controlled by the machine either, it can just be an external control with a speed pot. No need for crazy accuracy either, a regular vertex style would be plenty accurate. I thought about using one of those (maybe a super-spacer with a IP68 stepper?), but I figured even with marine grease and a rotating ground that it may have issues after hours being submerged. I wouldn't care if a $500 unit got destroyed, but it needs to be able to finish the job.
So am I crazy or on the right track? We could sub it, and that's probably what we should do, but the higher ups would really like to do it in house.
I appreciate any help.
I've been tasked with finding a way to rotary some large parts on our wire EDM at work. For reference, I don't run the EDM, nor have I ever. I am very familiar with manual machining and CNC a little bit, but EDM is pretty far out of my league.
So the parts we are looking to rotary turn are about 8-9" in diameter, at up to 11kg. The largest machine is an AC progress VP3 wire EDM with a Hirschmann H80R.MNC. It is rated for 10kg. With the part and it's fixturing overhanging, that would be pushing over the limits. We has a tailcenter, but the operator doesn't want to use it to avoid the thrust load on the bearings.
So I'm looking for a heavier weight rotary table. I know that Hirschmann has them, but they're pretty expensive. This is the first time that something this big has ever needed to be rotary turned at my work, so it's not something that will see use often, like the smaller one which runs everyday. I'm sure you can see why we'd rather not drop 50-100 grand on something that gets used every couple of years.
So basically what I'm asking is if there is any budget options that won't be destroyed after a few days of running? We need rotary only, no positioning. No need for it to be controlled by the machine either, it can just be an external control with a speed pot. No need for crazy accuracy either, a regular vertex style would be plenty accurate. I thought about using one of those (maybe a super-spacer with a IP68 stepper?), but I figured even with marine grease and a rotating ground that it may have issues after hours being submerged. I wouldn't care if a $500 unit got destroyed, but it needs to be able to finish the job.
So am I crazy or on the right track? We could sub it, and that's probably what we should do, but the higher ups would really like to do it in house.
I appreciate any help.