Hey Melvin, how's it going mate? Yes I agree, so excited to get my CNC machining up and running at home. Hope you're doing well out on work placement. Make sure keep busy and keep your head down working buddy. Good luck with it and I'll see you at school when you return ;-)
Thank you, I appreciate your support. This was a huge step for me (home shop) and hopefully it will just keep getting better and better with use. Cheers mate, Aaron.
Well Aaron you just cost me a lot of money. I've been watching Skyfire for about a year but could not find a real person to really give an unbiased opinion on their VMC. After seeing you and the machine running in your shed and your excitement I just pulled the trigger on a SVM-2VMC with 5 axis controller and the 6 inch 4th axis harmonic drive. No worries, if it does function as well as yours and / or I have issues I will not blame you and say it's all your fault. Hahaha. I went though Jan Bos USA distributor. Says 45 to 55 days to build and ship. They are 13 behind right now. So now I have to find a new home for my Charter Oaks CNC conversion. Probably going to be the longest 2 months I've ever had. Keep up the good work and some more Skyfire vids would really help me keep sane now.
G'day mate, I'm really sorry about that ha ha ha. But jokes aside, congratulations. I'm bloody stoked for you ;-). The SVM2 has a bigger work envelope and I'm sure it will be a good machine for you. I've had a couple of issues, but hopefully Defeng can help me tweak the settings to fix them. Sometimes on initial boot up, the machine won't tool change and it comes up with an error. I switch the machine on and off again and then it works faultlessly for the rest of the day. Another problem is that the spindle brake is very aggressive when running at 8000rpm. Sometime it will trip and alarm out when stopping at that RPM. I've got a few coolant leaks here and there. I've been talking to Jan Boss over Instagram. He's a good guy. Cheers, Aaron.
Looks and sounds fantastic Aaron. That spindle is super smooth. And you are going to love that tool changer. Interesting that even at the TM25 feeds and speeds you are still getting a good looking chip. Will be interesting to see how fast it can go when you fine tune it? Great value for $22K AUD. Especially when a Tormach 770 retails in Australia for the same money, and that is just the mill - no enclosure, no tool changer, no tooling, no nothing... the Part Maker package goes for a whopping $39K AUD. The Tormach 1100 is even more expensive at $43K for the Part Maker package. Can't wait to see the Skyfire in person!!! BUT...NO MORE TISSUE JOKES...!!!
Hey Jeff, thanks buddy I'm really stocked to have this little machine in my shop. Agreed, the Tormach retail price over here in Australia is way out of my league. Plus, I believe the SkyfireCNC to have better specs (in my personal opionion). For example, servo motors on all axis, servo spindle that can index and rigid tap, BT30 spindle, tool changer, higher rapids etc... Oh, as for the tissues joke. Luckily I didn't do the whole "warm apple pie scene" out of the movie American Pie lmao ;-)
Hi Gerald good to hear back from you mate. Thanks man, I'm really excited to have this little ripper. It is such a huge step up from my DIY machine that I made all those years ago. Some better videos to come soon. Cheers, Aaron.
Hi Aaron, I love Fusion 360. I am no expert in it but I use the CAD side in some of our videos. It is one of the most user friendly CAD programs I have ever used. Steve
Hi Steve. Yes mate I agree with you. Fusion 360 is the "best". I started out using parametric PTC CAD back in 2001. Since then I went to SolidWorks and now Fusion 360 and I'm in love with. Can't believe we have such powerful CAM CAM software at our very finger tips. I'll check out your channel now. Cheers mate, Aaron.
Hey Steve, I believe the generic Fanuc post will work with the Adtech Controller. However, I had Scott Moyse from CADPro in NZ to adjust it to suit my milling machine. I'm sure Scott would be happy to share the post processor ;-)
Nice looking machine. Sounds like the electronics are a step above Tormach's. I have owned a Tormach 770 for a year now. I use it just about every day and have had no issues with it.
Hi Bret, thanks for watching mate. Thank you, I'm very happy with my little machine. Cool, the 770 is nice machine also. My friend Otto over on the USA west coast has one also. Cheers, Aaron.
Hi Aaron love the new machine, got mine up and running but still learning, getting there broke a few bits but that's all to do with my speeds and feeds too much material too quick. I have a large engineering company near me, and i get to get some material out there scrap bin lol so its all practice, But find its getting very addictive, i work as a Mechanical engineer off shore in the oil and gas sector, why couldn't we of had these machines 30 years ago when i was serving my time, Great Video keep them coming.
Hi Dave, great news you got your machine up and running. I agree, I wish I had all this tech when I was an apprentice. Imagine the stuff I / we could've built. Great you get heaps of stock out of a scrap bin. I have to pay all my stock as I don't have or know any companies close to me. I'm sick with the flu at the moment, so hopefully I'll get back out to shed to play real soon. Cheers, Aaron.
I couldn't' stop grinning watching this video. I'm in my 50's and it was like watching a kid opening up the ultimate gift at 12:00:01 AM on Christmas Day. Watching your previous unboxing of the SkyFire was almost scary as I thought it was going to tip over in the lorry. Seems you enjoy some of the same hobbies I do. I've had a few R/C airplanes in my day and now into the bigger stuff, stock cars (on my RU-vid Channel) and want to have a home CNC machine one day. Oh how I wish I could machine my own blocks and aluminum cylinder heads (porting). But like you, I can't afford a 5 Axis Centroid or Haas VF4 SS, let alone, able to get 408 / 600 V 3 Phase in the country (Ontario Canada). I used to have Sunnen Machines for engines when I was on the westcoast. Looks like a decent machine that could possibly support 5 Axis and be rigid enough to be accurate to hold decent tolerance. Maybe one day SkyFire will make a tad heavier table that could mount a Small Block Ford cylinder head for porting. I like that your machine can run on 220/240V single phase. I have family in Australia (Aubury - Woodonga) and now maybe I have an excuse to come back and see all the rellies! Nice to know that you have good support between Fusion and the machine's OEM controller. I've read good things about the Siemen's but you stated the cost and yikes, before you know it, you'd be as you stated with all the other options, into some serious money. Like Australia, our Canadian dollar has declined from par to pretty bad US exchange rate. But our import taxes for products made in China are not as high as yours are, so I suspect our cost of the machine might be a bit lower but perhaps offset with higher shipping costs. I'll be following along as you discover all the challenges with your new machine (as you found with the rigid tapping and fixed) and post feedback. Glad you enjoy your new machine. Now all you have to do is CNC an automatic baby feeding station for grandkids :-)
Hey Doug, yes it was very exciting I can assure you. I'm like a fat kid standing in line at KFC waiting for his bucket of Fried Chicken LMAO. For the money, it's a great little machine and fantastic bang for buck. However, it's no HAAS or DMG Mori that's for sure. The machine does have some little quirks that I've covered in the Q&A video, but for home I'm willing to put up with them. Yes Albury-Wodonga isn't that far away from me, approximately 4hours drive. For sure, if you're ever in Australia make sure you look me up please. Cheers, Aaron.
Machine looks great Aaron. I also think it probably is a good idea to stick to softer metals on small machines.I am sure you and that mill will produce great work
Neil Smith Hey Neil. Thanks mate. Although the little machine is capable of milling steel, I'm really not that interested for home. Apart from an odd job here and there. I will predominantly machine the other though. Cheers Aaron
Hi Peter, thanks mate. Yes I'm doing ok these days. Have to get another check out at the end of the year and maybe do another stint in the "hotel isolation with a dose of radiation". But hey, anyway above ground is a good one ;-). Cheers, Aaron.
Hey Aaron, I just kept on watching the tools being changed again and again, very nice machine and so happy to see you working on your dream machine, good luck and I can already see some great videos coming up on the machine. I know you have a lot of people now being jealous, INCLUDING ME :)
Hey J to the A to the G. Thanks buddy, I'm so freaking happy to have this little machine. She truly is a little ripper mate. Hopefully I can start uploading some better videos once I get the speeds and feeds dialed in LOL. cheers, Aaron.
Hi Andy, thanks bud. Yes mate for sure, this was only at 50% and she's still got more in her. The machine is still on its castor wheels. I need to jack her up and level it before I push too hard. Oh, this was only my 2nd part ever. I just had to grab the video and get it out there. Cheers Aaron.
Hi Aaron and thanks for your reply.With regard to the Seimens controller as opposed to the Adtech what benefits do you think it would have.I also use Fusion 360 for CAD CAM and program in ISO.As there is not a lot of information about the Adtech control i would be interested in your comments.Thanks Ian.
Hi Ian. I have never used a Siemens controller, but I think there is a lot more information out there and support for this controller. Fusion 360 / HSM cam also have post processors for Siemens so that means it should be right to go. My advice, I should have paid the extra money and got the Siemens.
Thank you very much. I will try my very best to push this little machine to her limits and to see what finish, speeds and feeds we can get out of her. Cheers, Aaron.
Hi Glenn, yeah I'm just taking it easy mate. The machine is capable of some very fast rapids. However, remember spindle RPM and feed rate go hand in hand ;-). My spindle will only go to 7K. Supposed to be 8K but it hunts like SOB at that rpm. Cheers, Aaron.
Hi Aaron congratulations on your new mill.I am considering purchasing the sky fire mill and was wondering how much memory storage it has and what method do you use for program upload to machine.
Hello Ian. Thank you for reaching out to me. I'm not sure how much memory the Adtech 4650 Controller has. I use Fusion 360 for al my CAD CAM work and post process the code. I upload the code to the controller via a USB flash drive stick. I'm very happy with my machine and I like the controller. However, in hindsight I should have got the Seimens controller. Cheers, Aaron.
That website GrabCAD, should be where the machinists upload there designs, like the 3d printers do. I'm telling you it's the way to mars, I have many designs that are impossible for one man to build, in the future people start to build for themselves, and the milling machine is the answer, it is the machine that builds machines, that skyfire looks promising, impressive
Thank you Christian. Let me know if you're around my area and pop in sometime. I think you're not far from me. Plus I think Rick (coffee machinist) was also trying to get in contact with you. Cheers, Aaron.
I have a few questions. Why did you choose the industrial controller vs the linux cnc controller? Will you share the post processor you got for fusion 360?
Hi Jason. Thanks for watching my video. My main reason for purchasing the machine with an industrial controller is for convenience and reliability. I got so sick of the computer attached to my DIY mill and constant program glitches or gremlins that would come and go. I use an industrial controller at school and just seemed to makes sense. The post isn’t mine to share. This belongs to Scott Moyse at CADPro. Apparently the generic Fanuc post in Fusion works fine, but I’ve never tested it. Thank you, Aaron.
Hi Aaron, I was going to pull the trigger on the Masso based on your enthusiasm, but you've slipped us a side-step by going to a turnkey option. Why so?
Hi Bernard. I bought a Masso and installed to my own CNC machine back in January 2017. I was very happy with the Masso and it worked very well for me the time that I had it. The reason I purchased the Masso was because of the support I got from Jatinder. Furthermore, I liked how it was so easy to wire up, set up and use. I sold that machine to fund the "turn-key" skyfire. Knowing what I know now, I wished I had purchase a Syil X7 Combo. My skyfire machine has had it's moments, but it has had 4 or 5 break downs over the past year. Cheers, Aaron.
Verniers for measuring ?? They are good for a here or there measurement ? But good to see that you are with your limits. On a positive happy to see you happy with your new machine all the best Aaron. Regards Peter.
Peter CCR ENG Hi Peter and thanks mate. Oh yeah I agree totally bud. If I'm chasing accuracy I use the micrometer. I was just so keen and excited to show you guys out there in RU-vid land ;-) cheers Aaron
Hey bud. I'm very sorry as I totally forgot about it. I have just emailed Adtech now in China and am waiting for their reply. Sorry about that. Cheers, Aaron.
Your calipers seem to be spot on in most of your axis but one. I would check the accuracy of your machine in that axis and retune if necessary. It would be interesting to know if you machined several of the same parts like your test part if they all have the same oos (out of spec) dimension in the same axis.
Hi Brian. I've been machining many parts over the weekend and the little machine is very consistant at hitting the size. I'm getting + or _ 0.01mm. Got to be happy with that ;-). Thanks for watching and commenting. Aaron.
Congrats on an awesome very capable little home machine. Hopefully it will force the comepetition to step up their game too. I started reading up on the controller today, since I saw what model it is in your former video. Personally I cant imagine living without probing capability on a cnc, it's so versatile and easy to use. So my question for an upcoming Q&A is are there a possibility to add renishaw probes or maybe passive probes to the controller. For me personally that can be a make or break point when considering a buy. Keep up the videos and slinging those chips. :-)
Hi Patrik. Thanks mate I'm really excited to have this little machine. I agree, probing with the Reneshaw system is fantastic. Especially the tool offsetter as this helps to hit the size every time. Not sure if I could afford a Reneshaw probe system. The one on the HAAS cost us approx $10K, but this was through the dealer. I need to read or contact to Adtech to see if the controller is capable of probing. I know it can automatically probe the tool length, but unsure of anything else. Cheers mate, Aaron.
DCTTeacher1 Since there is a tool setter available which almost certainly is a passive contact or induktion switch. There shouldn't be a problem using something like the passive probe that Tormach has, it should be plenty good enough for hobby use. Plus it can be adjusted with a dial gauge to be centered.
Hey Mike grat to hear from you. Thanks bud, I'm so freaking happy with this little machine. It's not as big as yours (machine that is), but it's very capable for the size and money mate. Cheers, Aaron.
Hi Ubel and welcome to my channel. I've had a few comments from Brasil over the years. I live in Melbouren Australia mate. Thank you for watching and commenting. Cheers Aaron.
Great cutting... Sure your going to love the finish even more when you add air or flood coolant.. Any chance you guys would open source that Post Processor on like Github or something?
Hi Josh. I'm very sorry mate, but I'm not allowed to give out the post processer. Would you mind reaching out to Scott at CADPro to ask him? On a different note, great channel by the way. I like your presentation style. If anyone is reading my comments please subscribe to Josh ;-) Cheers, Aaron.
DCTTeacher1 no worries. I'm a software dev for a living, I understand the IP concerns. I'll reach out and see if he would be so kind :). Thanks for the videos on the Skyfire. And the complement on my channel :).
Hey Josh, thanks for understanding buddy. Scott did this as a personal favour for me and I would feel wrong to share it without his concent. Oh, my pleasure. I like what you're doing so please keep it up. Cheers, Aaron.
Looks great mate, that tool changer is worth the price of admission heh. We still get 0.01 variation on the VMC's at work and my mitutoyos are shit so you're doing well. How's the vibration in the spindle? This is the first video I've seen that didn't seem to suffer too much?
Hey Manny, yeah god bless that little tool changer. Mate I had a robot chubby that wouldn't go down for hours after operating it ha ha ha. So far so good with the vibration and other stuff. I need to adjust the settings in the VFD and servo motor drivers. I'll do this over the weekend. Cheers mate, Aaron.
Hi mate, i'm seriously thinking about buying one of these machines I cant wait to hear your feedback after using it more. thanks for sharing the Vid, looks like a great machine. the lead time worries me a bit though. one question the guy Chris where you get your cutters, do you have a link please :) also id love to chat about your experience with and the purchase of the VM1 if ever you have the time.
Hey buddy how are you? Thanks for watching my SkyfireCNC video. I've been meaning to do a follow up video titled "SkyfireCNC Q&A", but I got sick with the flu. Hopefully will do it soon. The end mills come from Chris at www.carbideendmills.com.au and are very reasonably priced. At school we have 2 x Haas machines a super mini mill 2 and an ST10 lathe. Cheers, Aaron.
Hi Mate, I dont know if you still monitor these videos but if you do I have a question if you dont mind. Why did you buy ready made machine over building your own machine? Your videos are very good information. Thank you so much. Good on you.
Hi Thomas. Thanks for watching and thanks for posting a comment. TBH I did originally convert my own machine some time back. I used it extensively at home, but just got so sick and tired of constantly tweaking it. I opted for a turn key machine that has linear rails, servos on all axis, toothed drive servo spindle motor, BT30 spindle with ATC and PDB. I just want to machine parts and not be a machine builder. My next machine will be a Syil X7 Combo. Check them out on Instagram CNSyil. Cheers, Aaron.
Hi Joe thanks for watching. Yes mate I'm sure she could easily cut steel and stainless material with the correct cutters installed. Running a good CAD CAM system such as Fusion360 with modern machining strategies also helps ;-) Cheers, Aaron.
Hey mate, how you doing? This little machine is running BT30 tooling with ER32 collets. For sure, if you have some I won't say no ;-) What I'm after is some of that pink cimcool coolant that Craig was selling through Iscar. I need to contact them. Cheers mate.
Hi Brett. Thanks buddy I'm so happy she's up and running. It really quite stressfull importing a machine, learning the controller and running your first parts. Sugar, it just might turn a man to drink LOL :-)
Hi Aaron Get info/reviews being in Australia my self I'm extremely interesting in your progress and opinion :) I just got the quote for a fully optioned up SVM-2. I think this will be my next step pending a bit more research and how your experience goes in the coming months. Eagerly waiting your next vid :) Cheers Charlie
Hi Charlie, I think the SVM2 was going to cost me an extra $2-3K USD when I was originally qouted. Don't forget shipping, insurance, and GST will add another 3-4K to your bill. I used Alibaba dot com with my sale and used trade assurance. I'll upload the Q&A video sometime over the weekend. Cheers, Aaron.
ah dang foggy glasses, they will get you every time! lol Seriously though I didn't realize this was only 16k USD. I didn't actually do the math on it. Straight up that's a great deal for a servo-driven machine with industrial taper. Can't wait to see more!
Hi Andrew. Glad you got my "aussie" humour ha ha ha. Yes mate I totally agree. It truly is great bang for buck. As there are no distributors currenlty in Australia, I'm not sure if I paid retail or importer prices. The Aussie dollar is weak against your greenback, but I still paid 10K less for this then I can get the other for (if you know what I mean)?
Hi Mark. I did some machining with the skyfire on the weekend. Tried to film it, but my action cam was totally dead. I'm actually still trying to tweak the feeds and speeds and accustomise it for my machine. Not sure if you have Instagram, but if you do look me up on it (same user name) as I post stuff throughout the week. Cheers, Aaron.
Hello Pouya, these milling operations where my very first cuts on my SkyfireCNC machine and they were not optimised. I was only runing 4000rpm and my machine is capable of 8000rpm. Cheers, Aaron.
Thanks Azz. I still have to optimise all the feeds and speeds for my cutting tools, but I'll get there in the long run. She's no where the size, capability or rigidity of your big girl (Fadal) but I'm still excited to have one at home. Looking forward to your visit to Aus at the end of the year. Cheers, Aaron.
Hey man, for sure consider it done. Just waiting on my ball nose cutters to arrive from Chris at carbideendmills dot com to arrive and I'lll give it a whirl. Cheers, Aaron.
Hi Jack (I think that's your name), I'm doing really well thanks bud. I'm very sorry for not posting a video for some weeks now, but I've just been snowed under at work and I've had the flu to boot. I'm still using my little SkyfireCNC and she's working a treat. I've been busy machining parts for a little Kickstarter that I want to launch. Cheers from Australia mate. Aaron ;-)
Sehr schöne Maschine . Aber habt ihr alle Sicherheitsschalter überbrückt ? Das ist sehr leichtsinnig und gefährlich . Ebenfalls hätte ich mir schon lang was gebastelt womit ich die Luft am Fräskopf befestigen kann , und dann diese mit einem Fußpedal oder Schalter bedienen kann . So bleibt die Schutztüre zu . Aber man sollte eh nie mit Luft in einer CNC Maschine blasen , damit die Spähne nicht irgendwo reingedrückt werden. Aber sonst sieht es top aus . Weiter so und viel Spaß mit der Fräsmaschine das Ergebnis sieht super aus . MFG .
Hi Norman. Thank you for watching and commenting on my video. I appreciate your feedback. Yes this machine came without safety interlocks which can be dangerous in a manufacturing environment. I have since sold this machine and now have a Syil X7 CNC mill: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-HleNB29lTd8.html Thanks for stopping by Norman. Have a lovely day. Regards, Aaron
Hi Manny. Yes mate my little skyfire cnc is working a treat. I've been busy milling parts for an upcoming kickstarter I'm trying to launch. Not sure if you have instagram, but follow me on it (dctteacher1) as I just posted a live video today. Cheers, Aaron.
HI Iits rob in the uk i was wondering if you could give the lenths of ballscrew and dimensions because i can get some parts and i,ll make the rest hope you can help thanks stu mate Rob uk
Hi Rob. I'm sorry mate, but don't have the lengths of the ball screws anymore. They were saved on my iPhone, but I've sine upgraded and didn't keep the notes. May I suggest that you download all the files that I have listed in the description section in that original video you commented on. If you lived in Australia, I would give you the original plates that I manually made when I first converted my TM20 milling machine.
Hi Dray, you are very welcome my friend. Thanks for taking the time to watch and comment on my video. Hopefully some more SkyfireCNC videos to come soon. Cheers, Aaron.
Robert Bowles Hi Robert my name is Aaron not Stuart ha ha. Can you send me an email mate. Go to the about section on my RU-vid channel and you'll find my email address there. Cheers Aaron
Olfoundryman Hi Martin it's great to hear from you. I'm so sorry, asI've been meaning to catch up with you but I just keep getting hammered. Want to introduce you to my old mate Peter Pilbeam too. Cheers Aaron
Yes I agree, but unfortunately that's just the way it is with CNC machines. If you would like to get into CNC, I suggest converting a manual machine first with stepper motors. This is how most of us started out :-). Cheers, Aaron.
Hi Julius, yes mate I couldn't agree more. In my opinion I can run double that (speed & feed) as the spindle is rated to 8K and the mahcine is capable of high speed rapids. I need to jack her up and level her yet. It's still on the caster wheels ;-)
Lars Moeller Hi Lars, and thanks for your feedback. My machine is capable of running flood coolant, but I don't have any at the moment. This was a one off to get the video out tonight. Cheers Aaron
It was a corrosion inhibitor. Water Displacement, 40th attempt of a formula. CO2, Mineral Oil and Varsol (Stoddard Solvent). No acetone. Here is the MSDS www.wd40company.com/files/pdf/sds/mup/wd-40-multi-use-product-aerosol-sds-us-ghs-7-20-14.pdf
Hi Andrew, yes I watched Pieter from greedsead's video and spoke with him over instagram. I have cleaned my cabinet with Metho and sealed it with clear silicon. I left if for 48hrs to cure before filling with coolant. Cheers, Aaron
