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Okuma M560 Chip Conveyor Selection

sirgreggins

Aluminum
Joined
Jun 7, 2016
We're looking to purchase the Okuma M560 once our new shop is ready. We machine a lot of aluminum, stainless and tool steel. Everything from plate work, to 3D surfacing, and even micro drilling. Since our business is growing, the diveristy of materials grows every day as well. Aluminum is the majority I think a drum filter type is the way to go. What conveyor type would you choose?
 
I originally got the standard LNS hinge conveyor with my M560. It was really good at filling the tank with fines. Made it necessary to clean out the tank about once a month - I was mostly running Aluminum at the time and use a lot of small tools (mostly 1/16” - 1/4” drills and endmills).

I have since upgraded to an LNS MH250 filtering conveyor. Night and day difference - hardly anything gets through to the tank. This conveyor has wipers to clean its own screens - so has been nearly maintenance free. Down sides of this conveyor - the bulk of the conveyor sits INSIDE the tank so coolant capacity is significantly reduced. You will need to make sure you don’t have coolant foaming or you’ll end up starving your pumps and potentially having tank overflow issues. Second, this new conveyor didn’t come wired to turn on/off automatically with the Okuma control. So have to add that yourself or have your dealer wire it up for you.

If I recall correctly, it was ~ $4k more than the standard hinge conveyor.

If you don’t make a lot of fines, probably don’t need to go this route...
 
Second, this new conveyor didn’t come wired to turn on/off automatically with the Okuma control. So have to add that yourself or have your dealer wire it up for you.

Recently was in the market for a new coffee maker. Which doesn't exist anymore, you can't just go in and ask for a coffee maker without some smart-assed 20 y/o smirking at you, and asking; "from the seed to the mug"? Or do you want a Press or a Percolator, or a Keureg®? I just want a machine that you put the coffee grounds in the paper filter and water in the tank, and flip the switch to on, and out comes coffee---twerp!!

I sort of feel the same way about chip conveyors. I want the on/off switch and the reverse button that only works while you are holding it down. I understand that if I leave it on, it's going to pump all the coolant into the barrel, so I don't. But I don't need it wired to run off M-codes or even the control panel. OSP has a hard button for the conveyor though, so it might be worth it.

R
 
Get the drum filtering conveyor if you are running aluminum. There is really no other alternative. Aluminum floats and will float right over the drains and into the tank in a normal steel conveyor system. In just a few days you will have a mostly aluminum / little coolant mix in your clean coolant tank area. The ROI is just a few months on it.
 
Is this the wrong General section? My bad if it is. We will definetly be running a lot of aluminum. I'm glad to hear the advice on the LNS MH250. Coolant foaming is something we'll be keeping a close eye on too. I want to avoid using aditives as much as possible. I plan on using swisslube synergy 735 because of the additional visibilty compared to the milky qualichem i use now. I plan on using filtered (ROS) water which I've heard helps.
 
Just to clarify, I'm engineering responsible for machining a few tons of aluminum every day. I've tried them all. There is nothing on the market better for aluminum than a drum filtering conveyor. Do not let anyone talk you into the "screening" type conveyor where the chain is supposed to wipe over the slots to clear them out. This will soon plug with aluminum fines and you are running over in the floor while starving the machine for coolant. As I mentioned above, conveyors meant for steel will absolutely not work, you just replace your coolant with chips.
 
I plan on using filtered (ROS) water which I've heard helps.

Make sure your coolant concentrate actually wants this... From what I understand, most coolant formulations depend on the calcium in tap water for anti-foaming properties. RO water will help keep the hardness down when replenishing, but if you mix the whole tank with RO you might be introducing problems... Don’t know about Swisslube stuff...
 
Some people use 20 Gallons of Oil a day, theirs is a whole different ball game. Why are people concerned with foam? IMO it's a sales pitch. It's something to talk about before there's a problem. De-ionized water is for EDM, is it better, yes. Is it worth the investment? Mmmm? Invest in an automatic saw.

R
 
Just to clarify, I'm engineering responsible for machining a few tons of aluminum every day. I've tried them all. There is nothing on the market better for aluminum than a drum filtering conveyor. Do not let anyone talk you into the "screening" type conveyor where the chain is supposed to wipe over the slots to clear them out. This will soon plug with aluminum fines and you are running over in the floor while starving the machine for coolant. As I mentioned above, conveyors meant for steel will absolutely not work, you just replace your coolant with chips.

Thanks for the advice! I'll make sure to ask the guys from Robert E Morris about the conveyor to ensure we have the right one.

Make sure your coolant concentrate actually wants this... From what I understand, most coolant formulations depend on the calcium in tap water for anti-foaming properties. RO water will help keep the hardness down when replenishing, but if you mix the whole tank with RO you might be introducing problems... Don’t know about Swisslube stuff...

I had no idea that was a thing. I've read posts of people swearing that switching to purer water alleviate foaming. I'll have to check with Blaser on that.
I really appreciate the help guys!
 
Some people use 20 Gallons of Oil a day, theirs is a whole different ball game. Why are people concerned with foam? IMO it's a sales pitch.

If you have foaming problems, it isn’t a “sales pitch”...

If you use any TSC, you’re likely to generate a lot of foam if your coolant isn’t happy. In my machine, TSC caused foaming that (if left unattended) would cause the coolant tank to overflow - every time this happens puts about 5 - 10 gal of coolant on the floor under the machine where it’s impossible to clean it all up. If the foaming happens when coolant tank is low, the machine continues to run starved and burns up your coolant pumps.

Calcium Citrate - maybe Calcium Acetate - (Qualichem brand provided by dealer) added to tank (was already using 100% tap water) was required to stop foaming. Small amount was very effective.

But I do agree about the de-ionized water. Probably don’t need it if you have decent tap water...
 
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I'll make sure to talk to my coolant rep to get the right mix, and i'll also do a tap water test. I've heard some mixed reviews about the M560 wiht regards to chip control. The DMG Mori CMX1100 was defintely build with chip control in mind. I'd say it's about the only negative I noticed with the M560 after seeing it in person. I can see that Okuma door rail filling with chips like the one at IMTS.

Have any of you guys had issues with your machine's chip control?
 
Have any of you guys had issues with your machine's chip control?

Hasn’t really been an issue for me. Just need to run the augers periodically. All my parts are made from .750” or thinner stock and lots of small tools, so I don’t think I ever see the problems other folks ave run into.
 








 
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