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Auto Tool Changer for an ER32 Mill Spindle

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Fergus OMore:
I'm sorry but if this is based on the 1A machine, I simply believe that it will not have sufficient rigidity.
I had a converted  one years ago and it literally flopped about.  You may be luckier than me.


Meantime

My best wishes


Norman

philf:

--- Quote from: Fergus OMore on January 22, 2016, 03:40:44 PM ---I'm sorry but if this is based on the 1A machine, I simply believe that it will not have sufficient rigidity.
I had a converted  one years ago and it literally flopped about.  You may be luckier than me.

Meantime

My best wishes

Norman

--- End quote ---

Hi Norman,

I think mine was a 2a which is not as rigid a setup as the 1a due to its swan neck support for the spindle to give clearance for big workpieces. (I have plans to bridge the swan neck to increase rigidity. This would be removable in case I need the space.)

So far, I've not seen any problems with rigidity but then I'm not using 25mm cutters with a huge depth of cut. With a 6mm cutter it works very well in mild steel giving a superb finish. It's a hobby machine after all.

It works far better than a Warco Major mill drill I have used

I do have a 1a as well - I would have used that but the table is much smaller (OK I could have swapped it with the 2a table) and the Z axis tightened as you lowered the table. I thought the dovetail had tapered with wear but it turned out that it was just a 'bruise' on the point of the dovetail which was easily filed and stoned off. By the time I discovered this I'd already finished the 2a conversion.

Cheers.

Phil.

Fergus OMore:
Thanks, Phil. Glad you are aware of the situation.

I look forward to following your progress



Cheers


Norman

PK:
Apart from being larger...and better thought out.... Your design is identical to mine.
See the bottom half of: http://www.caswa.com/cncathome/spindles.html

Tips based on my experiences (ie YMMV):
Oversize the pneumatic cylinder
Add some feature that stops the collet spinning in the spindle, unscrewing and destroying itself :-(

Re compressor starting and unwanted bowel movements; for a long time I had one of those compressors and a second one I built from an old fridge compressor connected tot he same air circuit. The little one was set to kick in 10-20PSI before the big one and was whisper quiet.  The idea is that, if you are using small amounts of air, only the little one cycles. If you start using a lot of air, the big one kicks in.

Hope you find this useful.

philf:

--- Quote from: PK on January 22, 2016, 08:07:47 PM ---Apart from being larger...and better thought out.... Your design is identical to mine.
See the bottom half of: http://www.caswa.com/cncathome/spindles.html

Tips based on my experiences (ie YMMV):
Oversize the pneumatic cylinder
Add some feature that stops the collet spinning in the spindle, unscrewing and destroying itself :-(

Re compressor starting and unwanted bowel movements; for a long time I had one of those compressors and a second one I built from an old fridge compressor connected tot he same air circuit. The little one was set to kick in 10-20PSI before the big one and was whisper quiet.  The idea is that, if you are using small amounts of air, only the little one cycles. If you start using a lot of air, the big one kicks in.

Hope you find this useful.

--- End quote ---

Hi Paul,

Thanks - your system looks very good and that's exactly what I hope to achieve.

I was already thinking that I'd turn the outside of the collet and the internal drawbar thread in the lathe and then finish the bore in the CNC mill. I was going to do this for the ER32 taper but it didn't need it. I just need to find a decent bit of material for the collet now.

By coincidence I was only looking at 'whisper quiet' compressors on eBay last night but my thought was to replace my noisy one. Your idea of using a smaller, quieter compressor to keep the tank topped up is appealing. My mate got a Bambi at his local council tip just as someone was about to throw it into the skip!

I've just ordered a plug in timer for the compressor. You press a button and it powers the socket for 30 minutes then turns off so there's no chance of the compressor kicking in in the middle of the night.

I do have a small diaphragm compressor which is quiet but it can only manage about 30 psi. I use this on the CNC for blowing chips out of the way and cooling the tool.

Cheers.

Phil.

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