Inexpensive DRO from Grizzly

[Powder keg]

Could the scale on thses be shortened? The travel on my mill's spindle is three inches I think.

Thanks,

 

[Twmaster]

Should be not a huge issue to shorten. You'll need a cut off wheel to do a quick clean job.

 

[websterz]

I got a shipping confirmation on my two today. Supposed to be here early next week. ;D

 

[SAM in LA]

Grizzly sent me an email saying they just received a shipment today and I should get mine early next week.

 

[black85vette]

With a quick google of the company, their website lists one that is 10" long. Another quick google turned up only one other vendor, Eagle America, who sells the 6 but no listing for the 10.

Not sure if we can actually influence this or not. I went over to Grizzly's website and sent an email to their customer service department asking if they could carry the 10" scale also. Got a reply that the suggestion was forwarded. How about EVERYONE send them a note and ask for it?

See update

 

[black85vette]

Here is the deal with the 10" scale directly from iGaging the distributor;

Hi Rick,

Thanks for the email.
1. For 10", it is still under development and it will not be avaiable for at least another 3 months.


So, it is on its way but not available yet.

 

[websterz]

Can't wait for that one to hit the shelf. That will be just about perfect for the x2's z-axis.

 

[black85vette]

I have been emailing the distributor and may have an option. He says he can have the rails (with no display) cut to order and would consider a minimum order to produce them. I have no price yet but my first question is "how long"? I know the 10" would work on my x2 just fine. That is 10" of measured TRAVEL, the scale is longer than that by 4 inches to allow for the sliding part and end mounts. So for this to be useful for the most people what is the longest scale (travel) needed for X3 or other import mills?

Biggest question: is there even any interest in longer scales to bother with this? Let me know what you think.

 

[Seanol]

I have a 6 x 26 and would be interested in something longer for the x axis, maybe 20".

10" for the y is more than enough.


Thank you for hunting down this information. This may be a way to get a DRO past SWMBO!

Sean

 

[cfellows]

I could use a 20" length. I wonder if we could cut these to length ourselves, if we bulk ordered on standard size? That brings up another question.

Is one end any different than the other? How does the electronics in the slider know which end is which?

Chuck

 

[websterz]

I have been emailing the distributor and may have an option. He says he can have the rails (with no display) cut to order and would consider a minimum order to produce them. I have no price yet but my first question is "how long"? I know the 10" would work on my x2 just fine. That is 10" of measured TRAVEL, the scale is longer than that by 4 inches to allow for the sliding part and end mounts. So for this to be useful for the most people what is the longest scale (travel) needed for X3 or other import mills?

Biggest question: is there even any interest in longer scales to bother with this? Let me know what you think.

I'd love to have a 10 or 12 inch rail for my mil column!

 

[Powder keg]

I ordered one yesterday. I'm planing on shortening it for the quill on my mill. I'll take pictures\o/

 

[black85vette]

I ordered one yesterday. I'm planing on shortening it for the quill on my mill. I'll take pictures\o/

Give us an update when you shorten it. Should be no issue but it will be nice to hear from some one with first hand knowledge.

 

[black85vette]

Is one end any different than the other? How does the electronics in the slider know which end is which?
Chuck

Chuck you got me curious so I pulled the scale out and stuck it in the other way. Does not make a difference. Works the same either way.

 

[cfellows]

I tried reading through this website which describes how the chinese scales work...

http://www.yadro.de/digital-scale/working.html

I have to confess, I haven't a clue how these things work. If one end of the scale is just like the other, how does the slider know where it is when you turn it off, then back on? Even if you move the slider while the unit is off.

Chuck

 

[black85vette]

Easy so far. Got the first scale mounted without any great effort. Ended up just mounting it to the frame of the X2. Then put a vertical bracket on the back of the sensor and made a spacer to fill the gap to the table. I cut the end off the rear scale mount to let the rail stick through. The frame gets kind of rounded towards the back so I wanted the mount closer to the front. Since I have not cut the rail I drilled a new mounting hole near the bottom where I could get to it. Ran it the table back and forth a couple of times to adjust the height of the mounts and eliminate any binding. Appears to work well.

One note of caution if someone else mounts like this. The top screw securing the sensor to the bed is fairly low and you run the risk of drilling right into the dovetail if you aren't watching. You can use a longer bracket on the back of the sensor and put the screw higher or you can just be careful.

 

[Troutsqueezer]

black85vette,

Glad to see you're paving the way for this. Thanks for taking the trouble to document. As soon as you get the X axis done, I'll probably put in my order for a couple, or three.

My thanks to Chuck as well.

-Trout

 

[shred]

I got mine yesterday and it looks like it'll be a good fit on the 12x36 tailstock. The reader head was a little looser fit than I'd like, so there may be some backlash and error in there, but for things like tailstock use it should be fine.

 

[Noitoen]

How does the slider know where it is when you turn it off, then back on? Even if you move the slider while the unit is off.

It doesn't "loose" position because when you turn it off the only part that goes off is the display. The sensor is made off little strips that make one plate of a capacitor and read the other plates that's in the scale. If you make a long circuit board with the pattern shown you could get a much longer scale (the problem would be the precision of such board's dimensions)

To prove the power issue, remove the battery, move the scale and put the battery back on. You will see that it didn't change the reading.

 

[websterz]

The 2 I ordered last week came in today. I want to like them, I really do, but they just aren't working out for the X axis on my x2. I figured by utilizing the center of the table more than the ends I could get acceptable travel for the kind of work I do. The scale really needs to be mounted on the front of the table, otherwise it eats up precious Y axis travel and there's not any to spare. The problems with the front of the table are many, and I have gotten past nearly all of them, except for the locking lever. There's just no way I can see to work around it and leaving it off is not an option. I am going to shelve the units for now and wait for the 10" scale to be made available. I'll be happy then.