When Is Guide Machining Higher Than CNC?
Let me begin out by going on report as saying I don’t think guide is ever better than CNC besides in certain particular circumstances which are really not a test of guide vs CNC, but of other elements. I’ll stroll by the three special circumstances in a moment.
I’ll be the first to admit it is a controversial viewpoint. Machinists will spend hours debating the entire guide versus CNC thing and every related problem. For example, they will debate whether or not you will be a good CNC machinist without having trained extensively on manual machines first. I’m not going to try to reply that one here, however fairly, I wish to give attention to when or whether or not guide machining is a better reply than CNC for a selected job. As a backdrop, there seems to be a big viewers that may say there’s no level in CNC if you solely must make one part and it is a straightforward part. I disagree, and here's a paraphrasing of the answer I gave on the LinkedIn forum when the same matter came up:
If you know MDI, CNC is only a manual machine with energy feeds and DRO’s on all axes. For those who argue in opposition to the CNC, in many ways you’re also arguing that the DRO or energy feed on the handbook machine doesn’t assist.
In fact, the CNC is best than any manual machine I ever noticed because it will possibly do arcs without having to arrange a rotary desk and it has canned cycles that do all types of different things that should be done manually on a handbook machine. If in case you have conversational CNC on your management or as separate software program, it might probably do much more. For a lot of elements you possibly can simply name out the coordinates from the print into the conversational CNC and go. There isn't any need to return to the design office and fire up the CAD/CAM. Plus, simply consider all of the tooling you’ll never need on the CNC-I mentioned the rotab, but taper attachments and all types of different things have no purpose with CNC.
You are able to do all of the stuff on the CNC you would on manual, together with rework like chasing threads. BTW, the article on chasing threads utilizing CNC was extremely popular on my CNCCookbook blog.
That’s really the gist of it. You are able to do all of the issues on a CNC you are able to do on a guide machine (plus loads you can’t), and they are quicker on the CNC. Once they argue you can’t just bounce on a CNC and make a fast part, I think too many machinists are desirous about having to do a CAD drawing, then hearth up a complicated CAM program, and finally put up a g-code program earlier than they may even get began. But when you understand g-code properly enough to get by with MDI (Manual Knowledge Input, where you type in an individual g-code and the machine does that one g-code immediately), you really do have a very fancy guide machine with DRO’s and power feeds on all axes as described. BTW, when you don’t know the g-code well enough to make use of MDI, you’re missing out on all kinds of convenience. Check out our g-code tutorial and you’ll be there very quickly.
What I discover disqualifies the CNC versus the manual machine a number of the time are issues that fall into three main classes:
1. The CNC machine is busy
Probably the primary reason to use a manual over a CNC is that the CNC machine is too busy creating wealth on some manufacturing run, so that you return to the old manual machine to do the easy jobs or second ops. In this case, the handbook machine is free money. Sure, you would possibly do the job better or faster on the CNC (or possibly not if the opposite two reasons disqualify it), however you can’t even get started because the CNC is busy.
2. The Manual machine is cheaper and we can’t afford Toolroom CNC
Manual is cheaper, there’s no doubt about that. Heck, you’ve most likely acquired an previous Le Blonde lathe or Bridgie mill within the again that’s been there eternally and was paid for a very long time ago. But putting that apart (in any case, that’s hardly the fault of CNC or the manual), I don’t see how you can really do the job quicker on the previous machines if you also have a brand new CNC toolroom lathe (Haas TL series or a Romi, for instance) able to go. I just lately made an R8 tightening fixture that required an R8 taper. It was a one off (foolish things are exhausting to find in R8 and important to get a collet chuck correctly torqued), and it took almost no time to punch up the taper on a Romi CNC Toolroom lathe and crank it out. Blued up near perfectly and I was very happy. I could’ve accomplished similar on a handbook lathe, but there’s no way the Romi wasn’t faster.
3. My CNC doesn’t have the proper options to compete with my manual machine
This one comes up lots too. The easiest way to think about it is to consider the average manufacturing slant mattress CNC lathe versus a correct toolroom lathe. Your slant bed is just a little gang instrument or different manufacturing oriented machine. It doesn’t have as big a spindle bore as your manual lathe or maybe there’s no 4-jaw chuck and no tailstock. That’s not a CNC downside, that’s a alternative of machine drawback. You can buy CNC Toolroom lathes which might be set up the identical as any manual lathe and they’re a marvel to use.
One in all the reasons I obtained into CNC was I had a good machinist buddy who encouraged me to put all of my manual machining exercise aside and focus on getting my CNC mill up and working. His argument was that I can be so far more productive with the CNC that it was the most important productiveness thing I may do for my shop. It didn’t take me lengthy after getting the mill up and working to understand that he was exactly proper. Probably the most compelling argument for me in favor of manual is the price argument. CNC Machining Services , and I’ve obtained a bit of nostalgia for amazing outdated handbook machines just like the Monarch 10EE I've pictured. But when finances was no object, I’d set up a shop completely with CNC machines. In actual fact, even when finances was an object, relying on the type of labor I wanted to do and the volume, CNC would still be my first choice.
Gentle readers, I’d love to hear your tales. Is there a case where guide beats the heck out of CNC that doesn’t match one in all my 3 classes? Inform us more about that case so we can perceive. Possibly there’s more to the guide than power feeds and DROs on all axes of a CNC can fulfill.