DATRON Neo: Our Thoughts after 6 months with this amazing CNC machine! 

I've always loved the radical design of Datron machines, and watching their videos. I've always assumed they were only for soft metal and plastics, and was surprised that you mentioned cutting stainless and other harder metals. Can't wait to learn more about that.

Datron. Where central lubrication for ways and ballscrews is not even an option. I run a M10pro at may dayjob, I use to run Datron machines for the better part of 10 years now - Its a nice machine, quick and rather precise. But it has its flaws. For me, the most significant: The 3d Probe on its swivel gets unreliable after some time. Not unprecise, just unreliable. I experienced that on a multitude of Datron machines and different design-iterations of the swivel-arm. Programming on the controller is a nightmare. Describing a complex contour and have it machined is arkward and slow. No good way to program a pocket that is not round or rectangular. Yes, I know, CAM makes parts, not the machine, yadayada. But sometimes I just need a quick contour, 3 holes and a pocket. Jogging the machine with the hand-pendand feels very laggy and disconnected from the machine - As far as I could tell, that has gotten better with the controller-iteration on the Neo. The MPG thats on the pendant of the M10 is not exactly nice. Its a 15mm knob with maybe 16 pulses per rotation. MQL with alcohol is nice, there is no doubt about it. But some places will not allow you to run it due to workpalce safety issues. I have to run a waterbased cooleant trough the MQL. I guess that voided the warranty in the first 5 minutes.. At least the M10, its precise. I have to push the machines into roles that it was not intended for. Hardmilling and machining ferrous metals and it holds up really well. First spindle crapped out after 10k hours. We do a ton of sheetmetal (Steel, Stainless, Toolsteel and copper) prototyping on the machine, short of having a laser. Thats where it shines, with small endmills and rather high feed.

Keep the hard work. Proven cut will help makers and small shops to hit chips the right way. Seeing what you are doing around titanium and steel with this machine is eye-opening.

Always loved the videos on RU-vid about Datron machines but only saw a Neo at EMO last year so far, no practical experience but these must be just awesome.

Hey NYC CNC! like the video! we have 2 old DATRON machines and 2 newer machines with the NEXT controller that we just exited our learing with the controller and looking forward to much faster milling then the older haha! fun to see the NEO :) Hopeing for some good videos with the NEO with differnt parts! if you guys will make some more ;) ;) ;)

We got a Neo in 2018 for our Machine Shop, Machine was around 90.000€ + tax including training for 6 people in their head quarters in Darmstadt, Germany. The Price includes nearly every soft- and hardware feature Datron offered at that time. Machine is superb in Aluminium and Plastics but they dit not recommend using it for Steel and harder materials. The Spindle is not really suitable for low rpm and the router cutters might wear off prematurely if you didn't switch to a Water/Oil mix emulsion for Cooling which would ultimately cover the machine in dirt. With Ethanol Cooling, you can simply vacuum the machine off or use the airhose.

And that 10 letter word would be... phenomenal 😉

Can’t wait to make the jump on one of these, beyond perfect for the work I do. Not to mention I’ve been beyond impressed with the customer service so far for the tooling.

i was literally just searching the datron neo ! Thanks John !

holy crap. I work in a cnc machine shop and I've never wanted one for myself so bad until this. that's my type of machine.

I’m in love this is really nice. The machines at work are old dinosaurs I’d love to use this or own one.

Great video, thank you for your feedback!

It looks like you have been getting great use out of your Datron machine. It was very interesting to see what you have been using it for.

People don't seem to understand the ROI on the capability of these machines because they sort of serve a niche, and if you fill that niche, plate plastics and nonferrous, rapid workholding setups, there is nothing better on the planet. I cant wait to get the neo in my shop in January!

I have owned three Datron Machines, seven CR Onsrud Routers and one Fanuc Robodrill. I have been very happy with my Datron Machines. However, people have to understand these are not the same as a VF2 or even a VF4SS. These machine are amazing at what they do and have a purpose. If you are just running standard “mill” parts, these machines are not for you. If you want to do something different than everyone else with a Haas mill, then it is the right machine. I use the machines for very high end wood, plastic, and non-ferrous parts. I believe the Neo is worth the price. So your homework and learn about this style of vacuum. It is more like you run a router than a mill.

Whatever about that machine. Man, that enthusiasm is just incredible. If you could bottle it and sell it, you would be one wealthy fellow! Good job!!

Have used a Datron M8 Cube. These machines mow through plastic and aluminum especially if you use their 4 in 1 bits.

What an amazing machine!

*Datron NEO* - _"The machine for when you didn't know you needed the part to be finished yesterday."_

We have 2 datrons at work M8 and M10. Machine is a beast for aluminium to 8mm of material. Anything other HAAS kicks it ass bad.

Nice machine - we used DATRON along time :)

Powerful little machine, at least in capabilities.

That denatured ethanol for coolant is awesome.

What a machine!

I got a quote on one of these to replace my Tormach. The Neo starts around $98k US.

You could actually capture that ethanol if you build a condenser into the exhaust system. basically run the exhaust air through a big 18 wheeler radiator and use a fan to blow air over it. Could even add a water mist to the radiator to increase cooling capacity. The ethanol will condense and run out the bottom.

Guessing Datron doesn't sell their interface. It'd be nice to be able to interface older machines with the same or similar

Man that thing rips

Dream machine

Dayton are on the top of my wish list.

Astonishing

NYC CnC, are You going to make some more videos about the Datron? U promissed more to come but so far nothing was released. Would love to get more information and your thoughts on this machine.

Damn it now I want one

Never seen a milling machine mill in a paint shaker before!

I'm an old fart,71 ,and this stuff is all over my head. But I still love it!

I made most of the parts for my M134 with this Babe!

Really nice video John! Ićm glad to see that there are other materials than aluminium cut with the Datron... Do you know what price range that machine is at with included probing?

Interesting that it uses sacrificial ethanol for cooling and chip clearing. What’s the possibility of flash over?

I wonder if they have a deal on a slightly used Neo now? :)

If you like the speed you should look up the DMG Mori HSC Mills

Muito bom parabéns

Nice! ATB, Robin

this is cooler than a Lamborghini ... and even more expensive too

I thought that this Datron was only for use on soft metals. Yet you mentioned titanium and stainless steel. What will it cut and what is the optimum material to get this use this machine for?

I normally watch all my videos in 2x but just couldn't handle it with the speeds and feeds! haha

i have the same one, have you another solution of Datron to buy the tools ? thank you

For this price you can get a full sized 50 taper haas. This is only for use in an office for companies who love tiny parts and spending crazy money on tech. This is well over $120k.

I should NEVER see this video. Now I'll be sad for the rest of my life.

Fuking love it

Could you make a video showing the machine some more? How the frame is setup; the servos, etc? This video seems to suggest it’s kinda light in comparison to the big cast-iron behemoths that are often used to get rigidity... 🤔

The 40,000 RPM spindle is _________ Awesome.

3:22 ethanol is literally alcohol, both in the trivial and scientific way. Denatured just means it's bitter.

So wait, is this thing a steel construction or is it an epoxy granite structure like they use on the m8 cube?

For 30K less you can get a nicely equipped VF-2SS from Haas and buy tooling from almost any tooling source.

Hey Saunders, do you think Pierson pallets would be an appropriate fit for this mill?

How is the smell in the shop from the ethanol coolant? I once sprayed isopropyl alcohol and the fumes were terrible. I'm also curious if it's safe to use ethanol when milling steel due to sparks and fire risk?

hey, where is the machinist relay project at?

Most Datron machines are for light metals. Mainly aluminum.

Precision... compared to a router? If it is running 24/7 no problem... but if it is not, where is the value? In small size? Not needing a "shop environment"?

I have a question.... do you get payed to used this machines?. Do Tormach, Datron or Kern pay you?. I do think it should be disclosed.

As per proven cut chart u displayed, MRR is O for anything but plastic and aluminum.

The footprint, interface, tool changer, alcohol mist coolant system, and vacuum system this has would be amazing for a hobbyist machine, if the price just wasn't so damn high. I really wish some of these companies would see the potential that the hobbyist and small shop market has, nobody at the low end has the money for a machine like this, yet this machine should be the baseline standard for what hobbyists and small shops need; the vacuum work holding is a bit extra, but I think vacuum on a machine this small has it's benefits, especially if you look at the hobbyist and small shop market where these people don't necessarily want to invest even more money into an ecosystem of work holding parts. It's too bad the potential lower end of the market is severely neglected by these companies. I'd be curious what actually goes into that $120k price tag for a machine this size.

I've heard from Datron owners that the spindles only last around 500 hours. One shop showed us the repair records for 8 spindles in 3 years. Anyone have input based on personal experience? We looked into buying a Datron a few years ago, and the sales guy wouldn't give us a quote. After a bit of confusing conversation, he explained that we "can't afford" one of his machines. A year later, a sales manager called and asked why we decided against buying a Datron M8, and I told him what happened with his sales team. He still did not give us a quote. Our Hurco has an 80k spindle, so we're doing fine without this machine, but I do wonder how this company gets away with these serious issues on both the sales and support sides.

Datrons are similar price to drilltaps?? I thought they started over 200k for some reason

Wow

_Love_ people and _use_ things. Because the opposite never works. Joshua Fields Millburn

is this model available in India?

Datron is very interesting machine, but i heard that spindel life is just half a year or so (if it runs 8hours a day). New one is obviosly very expensive, can somebody, who used datron, comment on that fact?

How do you get away machining stainless steel (or any ferrous material) using ethanol as coolant?

~$100k, in case you were wondering.

Datron......? The only company that ignored sales calls and quote requests....

how much?

Is there no risk of explosion hazards when using ethanol as a coolant?

I've been saying for ten years, why don't ALL machines nowadays have camera systems inside to speed up setup.

An interesting machine...... and interesting that SMW are not choosing to keep it. They seem to me to be very specialised machines which are excellent if you have the work that suits them......but then the pricing quoted here in the comments - Yikes!

Cool machine but i will spend the $$ on a HAAS VF4-SS instead.

This is really a nice machine! Not this fancy, but I built a CNC Milling Machine from scratch myself - you might like it :)

what is the price of that machine?

Price?

please name a price range of the machines

Whats the price tag on it?

Can the machine carve out a dog statue for example with proper programming and image data?

I love this masterpiece of german engineering. Datron always made the best and innovative CNC Products, but they are a bit pricy.

ou fk :D next lvl shit in controling cncs :D like that ^^

how mach？

Adding a camera and using it to zero a machine has been around for years, I do it on my router.

Wish was cheap so i could get one hah

I wonder if Datron knew they weren't going to film any videos with it, would they still have sent it? They filmed half a video with it and this one over 6 months.

What does dog do there on 1:15? Is it service engineer ? :3

price range please

"amazing" -- or should I say "amaaaazing"?

Bro make some chips on it.... and make some tutorial videos and details on interface of that machine....

How much?????!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! An answer would be nice.

$100k, it better be nice.

whats the price .... ?

WHICH MODEL IS THIS? IS THIS AVAILABLE IN INDIA

I got a quote for this machine (Datron Neo) and it was 70.000€. Not worth it.

E85 is denatured ethanol and it would have cost way less.

hi, bacteria breeds on the tramp oil and book and crannies, ours is a redox system which is a system incorporating multimedia metals and once the coolant passes through it the bacteria and fungi are 100% eliminated and the killing process just goes on forever, you just have to add good water for topping up and concentrates to maintain the concentration, if not inconvenient send me your email address I would send you the details of the system.

120K for that machine....yeah right lol