Thread: H&F AL-54B lathe special

I'M going to look at one of these on the weekend in the hope of fitting a PROMICA cnc kit to it.

The got the pamphlet for 3 day sale from the 31st March to the 2nd of April.
Here are some of the prices
Lathes
AL50GA $979
AL320G $1969
AL335 $2959
AL336 $3179 DRO model $3949
AL335 package $3245
AL340 $4235 with DRO $4994
Mills
HM32 $1375
HM36 $1595
HM46 $1815
HM48 $3135 3 axis DRO $3949
HM50 $3729
HM32 mill drill package $1980 upgrade to HM46 $440 extra

I notice the are selling out the HM52's for $4270 but they have dropped the vise, which wasn't great anyway.

Also the BS4A band saw is down to $297 if anyone is after one.

Dave

Cool Dave!
was it a mailed printed pamphlet?
Has anyone found a downloadable pamphlet?

It was mailed out yesterday. They had it up on their site last time but I looked last night and it wasn't there. Give them a ring and ask them to send you one. It has been mentioned here before that they will sell them at the same price before the sale, but I went a few days after last sale and they would no honor it and where pricks about it to say the least.

Dave

Originally Posted by aussiejoeblow

I'M going to look at one of these on the weekend in the hope of fitting a PROMICA cnc kit to it.

I looked at that CNC kit you posted. Looks very interesting. I'd be interested in hearing if you think the AL54B is suitable after you've seen it.

Did you have a look at the prices
PROMiCA - CNCKits Request for Quote
I am only up for around $3000 to convert my HM52 doing it myself.

Dave

I'm after a bolt on kit. I don't have time to make brackets etc. The quote I recieved from them for the lathe is very reasonable considering what you get in the kit.

Fair enough, I read CNC zone and just thought the prices where high.
Not sure of the all up price of the lathe and kit your looking at, but have you seen this 12 x 36 CNC lathe, I know someone here imported a mill not long ago and was under $2000 to get it delivered.
CNC Lathe Model 1236 - lathe, lathes, turning machine, turning machines -

Also I notice the US prices are cheaper, are they a US based company?

Dave

I went out to H&F again today to look at their lathes. The store has 3 day sale pamphlets everywhere. I asked a sales guy if I could get the sale price on a lathe and a crane now and he said yes.

Well.........I bought an AL54B.


And yes, the motors are toast! The Promica kit won't suit this lathe so I have had to work out what I need in the way of electronics and ball screws etc. The ordering of bits begins tonight.

I will have to start a new thread when I convert this lathe............even though this is an unfamiliar arear for me. One question though. Will Mach 3 run a 3 phase motor that runs off a VFD?


I will post some pics of the condition I got it in tonight some time.

The Mach 3 will run the VFD.

Dave

Just wondering would it be feasable to repair the motor than to replace it with a new motor and VFD?

Or were you originally after the ability to interface with mach 3 more so than a simple on/off switch?

Thanks Dave. I want Mach 3 to control spindle speeds as well as on/off. I have found a nice little 3 phase motor which will sit nicely in place of the current motor.


Here are some pics.





In the crate it had the splash guard sitting on top of the lathe damaging the cover panel as can be seen and also breaking the tool post guard

Ch4iS: when I talked to the H&F guys they said the motor was poorly rated, produced a lot more heat than useful power, and burnt itself out often within the warranty period. Personally, I'd rather be spending time/money on a new motor rather than on the one it came with. If you get one that works for a while out of the box I'd just count it as a bonus.

Aussie: Good luck on your project, I'd like to follow your progress. I very nearly walked out of H&F with one of these lathes. That's a shame about the scratches, but the unit cleans up much nicer than I expected. Did your motor work at all?