Hey, does anyone know if the 8L will rigid tap and if so how well it works? I see it in conversational but that doesn’t mean it works. I have an 1100 mill which needs a tapping head to work.
It would depend on how well the timing of the fwd and rev works so the tap doesn’t break when held rigidly.
Given that the spindle has an encoder. I suspect rigid tapping is functional though I don’t have an 8L myself and haven’t been able to find anything that specifically states it’s possible.
Only the MX series mills have a spindle encoder. The M, M+, and earlier series I, II, and III machines assume spindle speed based on the signal to the VFD and the VFD’s programming which is why a tapping head is necessary to take up the difference in commanded speed/position vs. actual. On my 1100MX with the encoder, rigid tapping works great.
thanks Ian. I guess now I need to just try it.
@Tom_Carr and @Ian_Vivero : welcome to the Tormach user forums - thank you for posting!
Yes, the 8L is capable of rigid tapping (and, of course, threading, both OD and ID, LH and RH, plus NPT). It has a nearly identical control to our larger 15L.
I was surprised to see we didn’t mention rigid tapping on our specifications page. We will add that shortly, thank you for pointing out that omission on our product documentation.
@Rogge Thanks for the reply. I was just setting up for a 1/4-20 NC tap to make it or break it experience.
Just a quick note to tell you how impressed I am with the conversational programing. I have 18 years experience in a very large jobbing shop and I am in year 33 teaching machining & welding grade 9 to 12 - all of which I have had CNC lathes and mills. (Some overlap, worked summers machining while teaching) I had students with zero experience on the lathe the 2nd day it was here and it has been used almost every class. I use MasterCAM for the Mill and for pre-Tormach equipment. I love PathPilot.
One request - OD turning it would be nice to be able to do LH turning. I have some projects that have shoulder to shoulder turning with rads in both end, it would be nice to do RH cutting from 1 inch to .500 inch at 1 degree less that tool end clearance angle, then stick in a LH tool and finish the right side of the cut out. I can visualize many applications with a LH/RH turning toggle. Same for rads and chamfers.
If I try to turn with a LH tool, I get a Z start must be larger than Z end error.
If attachments works, you should be able to see the handle I plan on turning.
Tom,
For your request for LH turning, I’d encourage you to submit a feature request to the Pathpilot team here: Report a PathPilot Bug or Request a New Feature
There is no guarantee that every request will be implemented, but they will consider it.
Thank you,
Norman
