On Sat, 21 Aug 2010 10:45:46 -0500, Karl Townsend
wrote:


Karl, maybe next year, I still have a lot to do. So tell me, those
Hardinge HNCs, which I also saw selling for $1k, can be refitted with
a new control easily? (easily, to me, means, not harder than my
Bridgeport). Docs available? Do they have an indexable turret?

Hardinge has great docs, and gunner has forgot more about them than
you'll ever need to know.

FWIW, I'd start looking now. You get better deals with a long time
frame. And machinery is on fire sale now.

Look at gunner's video. That's called gang tooling, no turret. For an
omni refit of a hardinge they pull the turret off. Refitting a
hardinge to gang tool would be a smaller job than your mill.

To do a full retrofit, from an unstripped machine to a fully functional
machine ready to make parts...is about 8-10 hours. About 4 hours
stripping the machine, pulling the 1.5hp motor and sticking in a 5hp,
adding the control, coolant pump controls etc etc..is about 5-6 hours.

Course Ive only done a couple hundred...shrug.


If you want to keep the turret, you'll have to learn how to handle
more I/O and PLC type logic in EMC. Its a sure bet somebody has
already done a hardinge. I like having the turret, all the tools I use
are all set up and ready to go, up to 16 is not a problem. You can
quickly swap entire turrets out You also can more easily make long
parts with a turret.

P.S. Gunner's right, its time for you to eat crow on your words about
never needing another machine. Don't feel bad, I'm addicted too. I
REALLY want another lathe, got my heart set on a Leblond servo shift

Karl

Not "needing" another machine..but "wanting" another machine.....snerk
G!

Id love to have a decent Lablond.


Gunner



I am the Sword of my Family
and the Shield of my Nation.
If sent, I will crush everything you have built,
burn everything you love,
and kill every one of you.
(Hebrew quote)