[MRM RCModels]

Delivery
After a bit of a wait, my Torus Pro (TP) finally arrived via freight. The delivery was in three large crates. The creates were easily moved into place with a 1500lbs pallet jack. Should have taken pictures, but had a kid in a candy store moment.

Un-crating
First impression left me awestruck as this mill is gigantic. Completely different than the X3, Rf-45, G0702 retrofit kits that I am used to.
- Pros: Everything was packed very well. No visible damage to any of the components (Pics 1-7).
- Cons: Only drawback here is that the mill did not come with a manual.:stickpoke Novakon emailed me a copy of the V2 manual which has a very similar assembly process. Novakon is working on a manual for the TP and will send it when able.

Assembling the Stand
Modification (Mod) 1: Everything in my shop is on casters. This aids my frequent shop redesigns. The TP comes with 6 beefy leveling shoes which are more than capable for the task (Pic 8) <- BUT THEY AREN'T MOBILE. Time for an upgrade! I bought six 2.5 inch leveling casters from accesscasters.com. First step was to cut off 3 inches of threaded rod from the stock levelers. Next, drill out the center to accept the M12x1.75 insert from the leveling casters (Pic 9). Then, thread the rod (Pic 10). Finally, red locktite the sections together (Pic 11). Here are the results (Pics 12 & 13). Now we have a completely mobile Torus Pro! :banana:

Mod Cost:
Casters: $28.76 ea x 6 = $172.56 (Expensive? Maybe, but hey you just spent $10,000+ on a mill; no turning back now )

[ViperTX]

Congratulations Kevin.

Keep us updated.

Hey were you painting a checkerboard on your garage floor?

Paul

[AUSTINMACHINING]

Thanks MRM,

I'm looking at different machines, and like the work envelope over the other MFR's. Does the Pro come with a power draw bar ?. Couldn't tell from the website info.

Love you caster mods. I would need the same kind of mobility.

Matt

[Novakon]

The spindle assembly for the Torus PRO has a threaded cap on the spindle that will facilitate nicely a manual or power draw bar device.

The better draw bar designs use "pinching type" clamping meaning the pressure to open the QTC is NOT applied through the bearing causing damage. To install the new draw bar to the Torus PRO and the older NM-200's will much easier in this machine. At this point the bed mill does not have it, but we have been working on the design for it. With this said, the design will allow its addition without changing the spindle assembly...a big plus.

We know the need for this power draw bar and are finishing the design and will be building the first units for testing. We are considering providing a new Spindle Head top plate with pre-tapped holes with the draw bar assembly to make the installation easier.

This accessory will be available soon.

Regards,
Novakon Team

[MRM RCModels]

Congratulations Kevin.

Keep us updated.

Hey were you painting a checkerboard on your garage floor?

Paul

Sort of . Was painting panels for my new CNC lathe stand. Too lazy to hang them. I think it gives the place character!

__________________________________________________ ______________

The spindle assembly for the Torus PRO has a threaded cap on the spindle that will facilitate nicely a manual or power draw bar device.

The better draw bar designs use "pinching type" clamping meaning the pressure to open the QTC is NOT applied through the bearing causing damage. To install the new draw bar to the Torus PRO and the older NM-200's will much easier in this machine. At this point the bed mill does not have it, but we have been working on the design for it. With this said, the design will allow its addition without changing the spindle assembly...a big plus.

We know the need for this power draw bar and are finishing the design and will be building the first units for testing. We are considering providing a new Spindle Head top plate with pre-tapped holes with the draw bar assembly to make the installation easier.

This accessory will be available soon.

Regards,
Novakon Team

Funny you mention that. I was was CAD'ing a PDB myself. The race is on!

__________________________________________________ ______________

Assembling the Stand/Lifting the Mill

Installing the chip tray took longer than expected (fig 1). The spacers on my model were not pre-drilled/tapped (fig 2 and 3). Took 3 hours to to drill and tap 16 M6x1.0 holes (figs 4 and 5). Added a bead of silicone to under the spacers for coolant proofing prior to installation (figs 6 and 7).

Lifting the mill was a piece-of-cake (fig 8)! Only took 30 minutes. The sunbelt engine lift didn't sound happy due to the 1300lbs+ load, but it successfully completed the job.

My lifting configuration (figs 9-11):

1. Harbor-freight 2-ton load leveler ($39.00)
2. Sunbelt Rentals Engine Lift 1500lbs lift ($38.00/day)
3. Harbor-freight bucket of 1900lbs rated chain ($35.00)
3. 1.5 x 40in Black Pipe with flanges on the ends ($20.00)

Had more progress planned for this weekend, but lost half a day due to drilling and tapping so many holes. Not angry though.

[Novakon]

I'm sure you will beet me to the finish line. I still have shipping logistics to contend with. I will look forward to comparing designs and notes later!

Novakon Team

[leix_99]

Wow, that thing is...BIG!

Nice stand though, keep posting pics, the setup looks really nice!

[MRM RCModels]

The Home Stretch

Spent a lot of time getting the coolant system hooked up (figs 1-3). I used the Series 3 instructions to wire it up, but the connector is different.

Novakon, please check this (fig 3).


Making the power cable was easy enough although a bit tight (fig 4). The 90 degree connector comes with the machine. Just use 14ga insulated wire from home depot.

Smoke test went well. Each axis moves silky smooth. Noticed the color changing limit switches on each axis after an over-travel (figs 5 & 6). They change to red when triggered. Max travel of the machine with limits enabled is 21.5" x 12.5" (X & Y). Here's a few shots of the completed machine (figs 7 & 8).

[MRM RCModels]

Leveling the Mill

The instructions have you level the base before mounting the mill. I did not level the mill as my caster mod allowed me to move the machine around to find the best place for it. Leveling after-the-fact required a flow jack to relieve the machine weight in order to extend the rubber feet (figs 1 & 2). I placed two levels on the mill table aligned with each axis to get everything right (figs 3 & 4). Took 1.5 hours by myself. I would recommend getting help if possible.


Initial Tramming

I used the Edge Technologies Tram Pro for tramming (this is well worth the money IMHO). The X Axis wasn't too bad; only needed a few taps after loosening the two head bolts (figs 5 & 6). The Y Axis was a whole nother story (fig 7) (nuts). It was "nodding" about 0.015in and required 0.022in of shim stock to get true. I used stacked 3-4-5 blocks to relieve the weight of the head while loosening the bolts and adding the shim (fig 8 & 9). All better now (fig 10). How did I come up with 0.022in of shim; Math! (fig 11).

[MRM RCModels]

Shars Vise

Bought a Shars 690 vise for $275. Was apprehensive about the huge price difference for their competitors, but the vise looks every bit as good as my Glacern (fig 1). The keyways are made for 11/16 slots, so I had to mill them down to 5/8 (fig 2). Here's the vise on the table (fig 3). This thing is a monster with a max inside opening of 8.5 in! It weights 85lbs so it's not moving anytime soon. Might buy another for some of my really big fixtures. Here's a shot of her first facing (fig 4). You can barely feel bumps between tool passes, but there are no ridges. Definitely passes the fingernail test.


Modification 2: Chip Enclosure

Here's a shot of my chip enclosure design (fig 5). The stock chip bin did a good job of keeping the chip off the floor, but I plan on upgrading the coolant system and that will get everywhere. Placed a large order 8020 with Teco Pneumatic. Here's the thing about 8020; the extrusions are dirt cheap, but they make their money on the accessories. Most cost > $2.50ea no matter how small or insignificant. Make them yourself whenever possible and you'll save $$$. 30 joiner plates (fig 6) will be used for the enclosure and I will make them with the Torus Pro; 1st Project!

I'll start this weekend on the light production. More to come.

[MRM RCModels]

CAM Programming

CAM Programming is done (figs 1 & 2). Will do a short run of 30 plates; six at a time. GWizard says I can cut 0.1875in AL in a single pass with a 0.25in 3-Flute Carbide end mill at 30 IPM. That's an 80% increase in DOC and a 300% increase in feed rate from my X3 Mill :banana:. Still have a few hours of dialing in the precision for each axis, but the hard part is done. I'll post vids and pics this weekend of the process.

Also, big thanks to John at Novakon for outstanding support. He sent me a pic of how to wire the coolant pump (figs 3 & 4). I had it backwards and thus narrowly avoided a magic smoke moment :nono:. Now that I think of it, John has answered each of my emails within 1-2 hours. Nice.

[azam1959]

CAM Programming

Also, big thanks to John at Novakon for outstanding support. He sent me a pic of how to wire the coolant pump (figs 3 & 4). I had it backwards and thus narrowly avoided a magic smoke moment :nono:. Now that I think of it, John has answered each of my emails within 1-2 hours. Nice.

I have similar experience with Novakon tech support so far. In my case, John is pushing me to move fast :-)

Nice thread. Thanks for sharing the experience. I also spent lot of time on connecting to the plug came with the machine and gave feed back to John. Will be tramming my mill after installing Xbox controller driver (hopefully tomorrow) and your write up is scaring me ... I was hopping that tramming will just be the formality but now I am ready for some hard work here.j

Edit: I moved Xbox controller from router to mill and also installed the plug-in. I can see that Windows did install the controller driver but Mach3 is having some issue with the plug-in. Will not spend too much time here, will just get a wireless keyboard for now and move forward.

[neilw20]

If you want a perfect surface finish in the bottom of pockets, the time spent tramming makes all the difference.
And do put some forces on the table, pushing and pulling, with a clock, to make sure the gibs are nice and firm.

[MRM RCModels]

I have similar experience with Novakon tech support so far. In my case, John is pushing me to move fast :-)

Nice thread. Thanks for sharing the experience. I also spent lot of time on connecting to the plug came with the machine and gave feed back to John. Will be tramming my mill after installing Xbox controller driver (hopefully tomorrow) and your write up is scaring me ... I was hopping that tramming will just be the formality but now I am ready for some hard work here.j

Edit: I moved Xbox controller from router to mill and also installed the plug-in. I can see that Windows did install the controller driver but Mach3 is having some issue with the plug-in. Will not spend too much time here, will just get a wireless keyboard for now and move forward.

Thanks for the compliment. I used to have an X-Box Controller for my X3. Configure Key-Grabber (it comes with Mach3). Have each of the buttons emulate keyboard keys; no driver needed. Also, I would highly recommend a wired keyboard as you really want a jam-proof UI.

[azam1959]

Thanks for the compliment. I used to have an X-Box Controller for my X3. Configure Key-Grabber (it comes with Mach3). Have each of the buttons emulate keyboard keys; no driver needed. Also, I would highly recommend a wired keyboard as you really want a jam-proof UI.

Thanks. I did see light briefly coming on the controller when I disable and enable the driver. I do suspect that controller may be out dated. I do have another controller in shipping and will spend five minutes at the most to get it going otherwise I do have plan B. I do understand the limitations and risk of wireless user interface devices especially with my lack of experience. With router table, controller is valuable doing z zero and wireless keyboard will be used only for this purpose. May be I should get usb wire extension instead not sure if usb extension wires do exist though.

Did Y axis tramming adjustment needed lot of muscles?

[kvom]

One small issue I have with my series I is the location/orientation of the 1-shot oiler. With the enclosure installed it's awkward to reach/activate the lever. Anyone needing to position the mill near a wall on the left side will have an issue.

It's also awkward to clean out swarf if you don't have access to front and both sides.

I also have a question. Since my limit switches haven't worked since before I installed the enclosure, I wonder if the table will hit the front enclosure before the Y limit? I know I can jog it to contact the two vertical bars on either side of the door.

[MRM RCModels]

One small issue I have with my series I is the location/orientation of the 1-shot oiler. With the enclosure installed it's awkward to reach/activate the lever. Anyone needing to position the mill near a wall on the left side will have an issue.

It's also awkward to clean out swarf if you don't have access to front and both sides.

I also have a question. Since my limit switches haven't worked since before I installed the enclosure, I wonder if the table will hit the front enclosure before the Y limit? I know I can jog it to contact the two vertical bars on either side of the door.

Agreed. I added doors in the rear of my enclosure for this very reason. Do you guys have problems with coolant pooling at the bottom of the chip pan? I leveled the mill table, but I'm sure that doesn't mean the chip pan is level. Might add some sheet metal at the bottom of the pan to divert the coolant towards the drain.

[MRM RCModels]

I also have a question. Since my limit switches haven't worked since before I installed the enclosure, I wonder if the table will hit the front enclosure before the Y limit? I know I can jog it to contact the two vertical bars on either side of the door.

Missed your question. On the series 3, I can't get the table to contact any part of the enclosure with limits activated. Haven't tried it without.

Have you contacted John about the switches? Seems like something you could replace easily with OEM parts.

[azam1959]

Agreed. I added doors in the rear of my enclosure for this very reason. Do you guys have problems with coolant pooling at the bottom of the chip pan? I leveled the mill table, but I'm sure that doesn't mean the chip pan is level. Might add some sheet metal at the bottom of the pan to divert the coolant towards the drain.

What is the good source to get coolant? Are there different type of coolants? if there are more then one type of coolant, any suggestion on which type I should buy to get started? Is coolant on and off is programmed via cam/g code or is there any button on mach3 user interface which start the coolant?

For oil ... I guess we can use regular motor oil in mill oiler, right?

As for enclosure ... is there any reason to invest time on creating the mill enclosure and reduce access to machine? Will a shower curton (sp?) or ply wood (or more waterproof material) partition do the same job?

Thanks

[MRM RCModels]

What is the good source to get coolant? Are there different type of coolants? if there are more then one type of coolant, any suggestion on which type I should buy to get started? Is coolant on and off is programmed via cam/g code or is there any button on mach3 user interface which start the coolant?

For oil ... I guess we can use regular motor oil in mill oiler, right?

As for enclosure ... is there any reason to invest time on creating the mill enclosure and reduce access to machine? Will a shower curton (sp?) or ply wood (or more waterproof material) partition do the same job?

Thanks

I use this coolant Koolmist 77

I use this way oil Vectra No.2

An enclosure doesn't have to be fancy, just need to keep chips off the floor. The stock tray does a good job of keeping them in the tray WHILE CUTTING. The problem comes when you clear the chips and coolant with compressed air.

I'll be upgrading the coolant system as well in the near future. Trust me you guys will love it . No more aiming coolant lines.