Looking for a new ram edm

We do wire edm but not ram. I am looking for a new machine to do certain slots in hardened tooling we use in our production process. I dont know much about ram. Key things are accuracy, ease of set up and good support. Currently I have Mitsubishi and Makino wires.

What does the hive suggest?

Hi G-Auto:
My vote goes to Makino if you need extreme precision especially on super tiny stuff.

My vote goes to one of the Sodick linear motor machines if you are doing more conventional burning on conventionally sized workpieces.

Cheers
Marcus
Implant Mechanix • Design & Innovation > HOME
Vancouver Wire EDM -- Wire EDM Machining

implmex said:

Hi G-Auto:
My vote goes to Makino if you need extreme precision especially on super tiny stuff.

My vote goes to one of the Sodick linear motor machines if you are doing more conventional burning on conventionally sized workpieces.

Cheers
Marcus
Implant Mechanix • Design & Innovation > HOME
Vancouver Wire EDM -- Wire EDM Machining

Click to expand...

Ugh. I was afraid I would get that advice. We are not happy at ALL with Makino and I swore I would never buy another. Any experience with the Mitsubishi EDMs?

Hi G_Auto:
Now that's very interesting...I have no personal experience with either machine, but I have buddies who own them and have only good things to say.
I've subbed out work to them in the past and they did superb work for me on those machines...far better than I could have done on my Hansvedt.

Makino is known for extreme precision small sinkers...it's a big part of their brand.
I did a tiny mold once upon a time with features in the 0.010" range and with tolerances in the 0.0002" range, and the Makino guy was brilliant.
Everything was dead nuts accurate and beautifully burned...I was sooo envious of that guy's machine!

Sodick is the original linear motor sinker company...I did a job once (another mold) that used electrodes you could not put flushing holes in...no way, no how.
A "state of the art" Agie couldn't reliably burn these features, but the Sodick could, and it was the ram speed that did the trick: jump flushing this ridiculously complicated trode with ribs all over it, no sweat at all.

So I've always cherished a hard-on for either, but could never justify splashing out the coin for either with the small amount of sinker burning I do in a year these days.

What bad things have happened to you with the Makinos?

With regard to Mitsubishi...they are a well respected brand used and liked by many.
I believe RJT who posts on this forum is (or was) a Mits sinker guy.

Here's a link to his company...maybe he will put in his two cents' worth you if you contact him.
Progressive Tool @ MFG. INC. Greensboro, NC

Cheers

Marcus
Implant Mechanix • Design & Innovation > HOME
Vancouver Wire EDM -- Wire EDM Machining

G-Auto,

I am sorry to learn of your bad experience with Makino. I work for Makino and I would like to offer my help and assistance if you are open to it.

-Brian

We have had good luck with our Mits sinker. We use it for some really fine features (milling electrodes with .005" end mills @ 50k rpm) with features so small , no thru the electrode flush is possible. Also burn a lot of threads and burn sideways in tall work pieces. We use graphite 98% of the time. Orbiting is really helpful to dial in sizes. Applications has been spot on when we needed it. Just finished a real headache of a job in titanium. Electrode wear was really terrible, but we only had a few parts to do and suffered thru it. Applications gave us settings, but still really slow going. About the same as burning carbide. I can only compare it to manual sinker I have run in the past, its the only CNC sinker I have ever had experience with. CNC sinker is the only way to go, no comparison to manual. Like driving a model T compared to a new Corvette. Its really that much better. If you do a lot of sinker work, it will pay for itself in no time compared to a manual machine, even at 2,3,5 times the price.