New To CNC

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Permalink Reply by Mark Pueschel on April 15, 2009 at 4:02pm

Hi Tom,

I'm a dealer that sells cnc here in New England and Techno being a line we offer.

In this class of router, I think the most important attributes to look for in a decent router are:

AC servo drives( vs. stepper motors) for best cut quality and strength
Name brand spindles, like Columbo or HSD, that are fully suported here in the states
Mfg with a large quantity of parts on the shelf with qualified technical support on staff.
Brand name vacuum pump like a Becker etc. It will need service at some point.

Having a local dealer for additional support is a nice safety net as well. ; )

Anyhow, drop a line if you have questions come up .... Mark

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Permalink Reply by Richard Baynes on April 19, 2009 at 3:16pm

Hi Tom,
I would urge you to take a close look at ShopBot...their recent hook up with Thermwood and eCabinet software is awesome! If you are not familiar with eCabinet... until now you could design with it but only cut cabinets with a Thermwood CNC...now you can on a ShopBot. This software has all the features and benefits of software costing $20K. ShopBot machines will cut with the $40K+ units all day long. They also just announced a Automatic Tool Changer...so they have something for everyone. Although I do not have hands on experience with Legacy Ornamental CNC machines, their OM 5 is an incredible machine.

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Permalink Reply by Mike Hogan on May 16, 2009 at 7:56am

Tom
I am 63 years old, have a 13 man shop, and until last fall, did everything manually. One of my sons left my business 4 years ago and went into the cabinet business on his own. His first purchase was a Komo router. He could do as much cutting, boring and dadooing with his Komo as we could with 4 people and 3 dedicated machines. I purchased a Thermwood 45-510 router last fall hoping to use it to free up 2 of my most capable people to do more speciality work. Since then, my son has closed his business, come back to work for me and we are fully CNC'ed. We already had CabinetVision and we upgraded to Screen to Machine. We also purchased AlphaCam Essentials and a link from Router Cim (Komo) to the Thermwood. We are doing all of our box parts, all specialty items, one piece doors and many other things on the Thermwood. If I had to go back to the no CNC phase, I would retire. Every day, we learn to do more and more on the router. The sky (or your imagination) is the limit. We are also cutting parts for another shop on the router, and that alone pays the monthly payment.

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Permalink Reply by Alain Albert on June 9, 2009 at 12:12pm

Hi Tom

If you want to learn all about the technology involved with CNC routers, we have published a book called "Understanding CNC Routers". As we are an independent research organization dedicated to wood products, you can be assured that the information in the book is unbiased. To learn more about this publication please visit the website www.solutionsforwood.ca/news/html . Remember that CNC routers are not just a move to automation; they are a whole new way of manufacturing with wood. It is true they will replace a number of traditional woodworking machines but mostly they will be a substitute for hard-to-find skilled labor. I have never met anyone who regretted the move to digital manufacturing.

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Permalink Reply by DAVID F on September 24, 2009 at 6:26pm

James ,you are so right , If you have lots of time / money and most of all a hole lot of Patience ... maybe! ask me

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Permalink Reply by james mcgrew on November 10, 2009 at 10:21am

tom thanks for inviting me to this forum, the look and members seem very sincere and professional, you have visited my shop and seen my machines and output so there is little i can add here, look forward to seeing you again soon, i am headed to dallas for the asoire user group meeting there, will be back sunday give me a call

jim mcgrew

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tCrEJ2Ud5YU

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