Aspiring Machinist Needs Advice

[Tjames]

Hey guys, I'm new to this whole thing so I apologize if I seem naive. I am an 18 year old student at Iowa State University. I have already taken the Tool and Die program through NIACC. I am now using the website www.kickstarter.com to try to raise enough money for some CNC equipment to machine a Stirling Cycle engine designed by Jerry Howell. The idea was accepted, so before I actually post my project online for donations, I would like to prepare my budget in the event I raise enough money.

I have decided that my priorities were benchtop CNC machinery. Both a mill, and a lathe. I could make almost all necessary parts with these machines. But I do not know enough about the machines to make my own conversion, nor do I have enough money to purchase a HAAS mini-mill. Assuming you had a budget of $20,000, which machines would you be interested in? I would like a mill able to cut steel, same as the lathe, both benchtop size (keep in mind I would need to purchase SolidWorks and MasterCAM, even though I get a student discount they aren't cheap), and a general tooling set for each. I have listed here a few options I was looking at. If you have any advice, please let me know. I need all the information I can get.

http://www.cncmasters.com/index.php?page=cnc-jr-table-top-mill
http://www.syilamerica.com/machine_c6.php?view=ts
http://www.syilamerica.com/machine_x4st.php

Like I said any advice is welcome.
Please and Thank you

 

[Tin Falcon]

First of all make sure the Howell prints include commercial production rights.
the first link is s round column mill not my first choice to cnc.
Converting ones own machines are not that hard and you can learn a lot and save a lump of money.
Getting started in cnc thread
http://www.homemodelenginemachinist.com/index.php?topic=9787.0
Lathe conversion
http://www.homemodelenginemachinist.com/index.php?topic=8452.0
x-2 mill conversion
http://www.homemodelenginemachinist.com/index.php?topic=4054.0

Tin

 

[Tjames]

Thank you, I will take a look at these links tonight. I have been in contact with Howell since the beginning of this idea. I keep them updated with my process, but thank you for the advice.

 

[Tin Falcon]

Good to hear. good luck with your project.
Tin

 

[AlfJones]

I would make a few suggestions:

- From what I have seen, raising $20,000 from Kickstarter is going to be a tall order, and if you DO manage it, it will mean that you have a lot of stirling engines to make to cover that investment, it will take a lot of time away from you.

- Do you have a Plan B for if you don't reach the $20k limit, and have you got enough time with your studies to produce all the engines you will need to make to cover the costs? You might be looking at 500 or more, depending on how you price them, and that would also mean a significant investment in materials as well. If you spend a lot of your budget on machines, then you may end up making a real loss.

- From what I understand from my lad, you don't get the money until all the pledges are in place, so if it takes you a year to build up the pledges, then your waiting a year to get machining.

- I agree with Tin, going down your own conversion route should save you a lot of money, which will also mean you can lower your kickstarter request.
However, you need access to machines in order to make a conversion. My guess is that you should have a machine shop in your University?

- Can you access Solidworks via your university? This would save you some money, at least initially.

 

[student_Machinist]

$20,000 USD?
Im 18 myself but when I was 15 I was given $4000 NZD from a scholarship to buy an import mill and lathe which i have been doing just fine with. It is true that you will need more on top of that to completely fit them out with tooling but really $4000 is a good number to aim for with regards to the basic machines themselves.

If you think that manual machines will limit you too much with what you can do just take a look at some of the brilliant projects the guys on here have made/making without CNC. Dont get me wrong Id kill for a CNC mill but it is quite excessive for someone our age and is the kind of thing that you need to work up to. If your desperate to go for CNC your best option which has already been suggested is to convert a manual machine to cnc. Im making a Rapid prototyping machine (basically CNC) at the moment so I fully understand the benefits of CNC

I personally feel that you should start out with manual machines as you will learn a lot more by making your own mistakes as apposed to letting a computer do a lot of the work for you.

All the best with your project but I hope that you will at least consider what I've said.
Feel free to PM me if you have any specific questions