[MBG]

I was wondering what a tormach could do.

How good is it at circular interpolating holes with an end mill?


Can I thread mill on this machine?


I appreciate it.

[307startup]

There are plenty of good examples of the capabilities of this machine.

Start here: www.tormach.com

and here: YouTube - Tormach

and here: www.cnczone.com/forums/tormach_pcnc/

[Tormachmaster]

Yes to both questions.

[MBG]

Yes to both questions.

Thank you for answering my questions.


Have you had any success using xactform or similar thread mill?

http://www.xactform.com/catalog/Xactform_catalogUSA.pdf


I am just hoping this machine will be everything I expect before I buy it. I don't plan on doing serious production just a few parts here and there but the parts I make require to be circular intorplated and threadmill NOT tapped.

[btu44]

I use cicular interpolation on my Tormach often.
But I find I can not make a precision bore using this method.
The main limition I believe is backlash. My machine has .0006" of X backlash and .001" of Y backlash. This creates a bore that is .002" out of round.
Also the stepper motors create a slightly facetted surface finish that a full on VMC with servos will not.
But don't let this deter you. It's an awsome machine for the money.

[Don Clement]

I Threadmill using my Tormach. See: Thread milling M102-1mm Tormach video by miltons_stuff - Photobucket I also use circular interpolation with an endmill to make both round holes and trepan larger diameter holes. For the best finish on holes I use a single point tool with boring head.

Don

[Tormachmaster]

I use cicular interpolation on my Tormach often.
But I find I can not make a precision bore using this method.
The main limition I believe is backlash. My machine has .0006" of X backlash and .001" of Y backlash. This creates a bore that is .002" out of round.
Also the stepper motors create a slightly facetted surface finish that a full on VMC with servos will not.
But don't let this deter you. It's an awsome machine for the money.

Those lines cna be taken out I have never expeirenced the stepper lines using UG to do my programs

[MBG]

I Threadmill using my Tormach. See: Thread milling M102-1mm Tormach video by miltons_stuff - Photobucket I also use circular interpolation with an endmill to make both round holes and trepan larger diameter holes. For the best finish on holes I use a single point tool with boring head.

Don

What kind of runout are you getting just curious.

I hope I am not asking to much from everybody. I don't mean to be a pain. Just don't want to purchase the machine thinking I am going to get more but rather less.

I know it is a limited in hp and rapid speed. But if it is there with accuracy I am a buyer.

[btu44]

Tormachmaster,
Would you please expand upon how you get a smooth finish?
I get a great finish when cutting along the X or Y axis only. But if X & Y are moving together, as in an arc, I see facetting. I've tried different end mills and many feeds and speeds.
What is UG?

MBG,
I did a 8" x 8" stainless steel plate for a tooling fixture recently. All the holes had a + or - .0005" location tolerance. I did take care to approach each hole from the same direction. It passed inspection on the first part. I think the machine is plenty accurate.

[Don Clement]

Using a boring head with single point tool for finish cuts the runnout is whatever the spindle runnout is ~2 tenths of a mil.

What are your requirements and how much are you willing to spend to get better accuracy than that or for faster rapids or for more HP?

Don

BTW I surely would like better runout on my $2k lathe but I not willing to fork out the $$ for a Hardinge HLV or Monarch 10EE with the 50 millionths runnout. Also that reasoning goes for a VMC with servos and better accuracy than my Tormach. I weigh my budget to my requirements and the Tormach fits that caveat quite well.

[Tormachmaster]

Tormachmaster,
Would you please expand upon how you get a smooth finish?
I get a great finish when cutting along the X or Y axis only. But if X & Y are moving together, as in an arc, I see facetting. I've tried different end mills and many feeds and speeds.
What is UG?

MBG,
I did a 8" x 8" stainless steel plate for a tooling fixture recently. All the holes had a + or - .0005" location tolerance. I did take care to approach each hole from the same direction. It passed inspection on the first part. I think the machine is plenty accurate.

The machine is capable of moving in tenths so depending on hole size cutter size and program output you can have no lines on the surface I do small finish passes to get a good finishes depending on material and cutter taking in that it is a small machine. so lets say I do a 4" hole with a rought cuts leaving .006 for finishing I would use a GOOD "key word" finishing cutter and use radious for the hole some cad/cam programs will post out a pile of lines that is one way of getting those lines a few others are cad/cam programs models surface and also speed and feed calculated the right way for the particular cutter dont forget size of cutter I am sure there are some good vids online showing no lines in milled holes it is really no big deal and you will over come it fast post a program and give all of your details cutter size type material everything so we all can see whats going on.

[Tormachmaster]

Using a boring head with single point tool for finish cuts the runnout is whatever the spindle runnout is ~2 tenths of a mil.

What are your requirements and how much are you willing to spend to get better accuracy than that or for faster rapids or for more HP?

Don

BTW I surely would like better runout on my $2k lathe but I not willing to fork out the $$ for a Hardinge HLV or Monarch 10EE with the 50 millionths runnout. Also that reasoning goes for a VMC with servos and better accuracy than my Tormach. I weigh my budget to my requirements and the Tormach fits that caveat quite well.

Boring heads are great I agree but you dont need one for a smooth finish you agree

[philbur]

I had this problem some years ago. In Turbo CAD, if you are not careful how you break an object down (explode) to its component parts a circle will become a series of straight lines (a polygon) which is not necessarily apparent on screen, unless you zoom in. When this circle is processed by the CAM application it faithfully writes Gcode according to the series of straight lines and this is what the mill subsequently produces.

Maybe your problem is the same issue.

Phil

Would you please expand upon how you get a smooth finish?
I get a great finish when cutting along the X or Y axis only. But if X & Y are moving together, as in an arc, I see facetting. I've tried different end mills and many feeds and speeds.
What is UG?

[Don Clement]

Boring heads are great I agree but you dont need one for a smooth finish you agree

I agree only to the point of how smooth one's requirement is. I get the smoothest finish in aluminum using a boring head and insert boring bar. http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i1...blankFlynn.jpg
starting wih an endmill and leaving 0.02" to be finished with the boring head.

Don

[Tormachmaster]

I agree only to the point of how smooth one's requirement is. I get the smoothest finish in aluminum using a boring head and insert boring bar. http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i1...blankFlynn.jpg
starting wih an endmill and leaving 0.02" to be finished with the boring head.

Don

Size of cutter mean alot for those lines. Would like to see your finish with that boring head?

[btu44]

Here are some pictures of what I'm trying to describe.

This is a bracket for mounting a dry sump pump to a high perf car engine. It started out as a 8 x 6 x 4" piece of aluminum.
The engineer gave me a Solid Model to work with. When I programmed this, I was using I&J incremental arcs. Now I'm using radius arcs which has not changed the surface finish in arcs, but makes it easier for me to read the G code.
These surfaces were cut using a fresh 1/2" carbide, 2 flute, high helix end mill.
The speed was 3500 RPM, the feed 15 IPM, and radial depth was .010".

This operation was done with the 'dogleg' mounted with it's long length along the Y axis (the holes at Y+ or -).

So the the 45 degree shows the facetting while the X and Y axis are moving at pretty much the same IPM. The 20 degree shows how the facetting changed while the Y axis is moving faster than X to get the programmed linear IPM.

I add the NURBS spline picture to show the effect that I believe philbur mentioned.

By the way, I also use a boring head for a precision holes if too large for a reamer.

Barry

PS. I hope MBG does not feel his thread has been hijacked but I think we're staying on subject.

[Don Clement]

Size of cutter mean alot for those lines. Would like to see your finish with that boring head?

I get a mirror finish on 6061-T6 on 3"-4" diameter holes bored with the boring head with inserts shown and Relton A9 cutting fluid applied.

Don

[307startup]

Try climb-milling rather than conventional cutting. You fight the ballscrews with conventional cutting on a CNC mill, the cutting forces try to backdrive the ballscrew.

Climb-milling will never produce those waterline marks...looks like the finish a rougher leaves on a manual mill.

Here are some pictures of what I'm trying to describe.

This is a bracket for mounting a dry sump pump to a high perf car engine. It started out as a 8 x 6 x 4" piece of aluminum.
The engineer gave me a Solid Model to work with. When I programmed this, I was using I&J incremental arcs. Now I'm using radius arcs which has not changed the surface finish in arcs, but makes it easier for me to read the G code.
These surfaces were cut using a fresh 1/2" carbide, 2 flute, high helix end mill.
The speed was 3500 RPM, the feed 15 IPM, and radial depth was .010".

This operation was done with the 'dogleg' mounted with it's long length along the Y axis (the holes at Y+ or -).

So the the 45 degree shows the facetting while the X and Y axis are moving at pretty much the same IPM. The 20 degree shows how the facetting changed while the Y axis is moving faster than X to get the programmed linear IPM.

I add the NURBS spline picture to show the effect that I believe philbur mentioned.

By the way, I also use a boring head for a precision holes if too large for a reamer.

Barry

PS. I hope MBG does not feel his thread has been hijacked but I think we're staying on subject.

[btu44]

Try climb-milling rather than conventional cutting. You fight the ballscrews with conventional cutting on a CNC mill, the cutting forces try to backdrive the ballscrew.

Climb-milling will never produce those waterline marks...looks like the finish a rougher leaves on a manual mill.

This is a climb cut...

[Tormachmaster]

This is a climb cut...

Do us a favor and show your program it looks like a programming or cutter issue to me and you did use coolant right? What type of coolant