Need Help Proxxon PD 400/E

Hi, I have a PD400 from Proxxon and I am very happy with it. I have cut threads on it many times with great succsess.
The machine is very precise and my feeling is that the quality is excellent.
However I would buy absolutely everything you can think of as extras for it if you do not have a proxxon dealer near you. Especially quick change tool holders. Most of the parts seem to be proprietary to proxxon.
If I where buying again now I would consider a machine with a larger spindle bore and a quick change gear box as I find the change gears a bit of a faff to change for threading, and I am not able to use, nor do I need the very high precision of the machine.
You get what you pay for, And the pd400 is expensive, but a very high quality machine.


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Hello, thank you for the feed back. Last week i found a dealer in Vietnam. They offer me 59 millions VND (~$2600) for the PD400 and 29 millions VND (~$1270). I think it's a great deal. Due to if i buy it oversea, i would have to ship it to Vietnam, and the shipping cost will cost like half of the machine.
I found on Youtube, the PD400 can only cut 0,4mm depth of steel. So i'm a little worry. I think i need something a little bit stronger than that. Maybe 2-3mm depth per cut?
I'm looking for some Chinese machine, they offer me RMB6300 (~$910). 10"x20" lathe. Also with the gearbox. Weight about 150kgs. 750w motor. As a starter lathe, i think it would be ok.
 
Hi, the chineese lathe will probly be fine :) it depends on what you need. Why would you need such a big depth of cut in steel? You could just take several cuts.
In any case feel free to ask if you have any other questions :)


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Hi, thank you for the help. I usually cut stainless steel, 304 to be exact. Most of my part are made of stainless steel, i need a machine that strong enough to cut it. The Wabeco lathe suit my need, but it's way off my budget :(.
 
Hi Quy, the RMB6300 10"x20" sounds like a better choice for cutting stainless steel, and less cost too.
MS
ps check the speed ranges however, the lowest speed may not be low enough for easy threading.
 
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Quy -

I looked at the specifications on both lathes. It was a bit difficult because they don't specify the same items/dimensions on the two pages.

In any case, if I were to choose for myself, I'd go with the gearbox lathe (CJM250). (1) It's heavier, so it is likely to be a lot sturdier. (2) It has a larger motor, thus more power. (3) It has more metric threads available**. (4) It appears to have powered cross feed.

** It doesn't specify the ability to do inch threads. Definitely a disadvantage if you plan to thread in inches.

PS - If it turns out that 80 RPM is still too fast for you, you can always add a crank to the spindle and turn it that way instead of using the motor. Here are photos of a crank I made for my Grizzly G4000. The "trick" is to turn a piece of pipe to a diameter that will just fit through the spindle, then cut it at a shallow angle. Using a screw to pull the pieces together jams it tightly in the spindle, so that the crank will turn it. Just be sure to unplug the lathe, so there's no chance of turning on the motor when the crank is in place!
kHPIM3235.jpg
kHPIM3236.jpg
 
Quy -

I looked at the specifications on both lathes. It was a bit difficult because they don't specify the same items/dimensions on the two pages.

In any case, if I were to choose for myself, I'd go with the gearbox lathe (CJM250). (1) It's heavier, so it is likely to be a lot sturdier. (2) It has a larger motor, thus more power. (3) It has more metric threads available**. (4) It appears to have powered cross feed.

** It doesn't specify the ability to do inch threads. Definitely a disadvantage if you plan to thread in inches.

PS - If it turns out that 80 RPM is still too fast for you, you can always add a crank to the spindle and turn it that way instead of using the motor. Here are photos of a crank I made for my Grizzly G4000. The "trick" is to turn a piece of pipe to a diameter that will just fit through the spindle, then cut it at a shallow angle. Using a screw to pull the pieces together jams it tightly in the spindle, so that the crank will turn it. Just be sure to unplug the lathe, so there's no chance of turning on the motor when the crank is in place!
View attachment 233130 View attachment 233131

Wow, what a great ideal! I'll try it in the future.

Is that a Igaging DRO? How do they work out? I plan to buy one of them soon.
 
Wow, what a great ideal! I'll try it in the future.
Easy enough to do. Glad you like it.
Is that a Igaging DRO? How do they work out? I plan to buy one of them soon.
Yes. It's a pair of iGaging "Absolute DRO Plus" units. They have magnetic backs, so I just mounted a piece of sheet metal on the cross slide to hold them. iGaging "Accuremote" units are similar. Not quite as nice (slightly smaller display, etc), but fully functional and a bit less expensive.

Any DRO is better than no DRO, in my opinion. If for no other reason than that it removes the problem of backlash in the cranks. And on a lathe, it especially helps in the Z direction (toward and away from the chuck), because that is usually a very coarse adjustment.
kHPIM4952.jpg
 
Easy enough to do. Glad you like it.

Yes. It's a pair of iGaging "Absolute DRO Plus" units. They have magnetic backs, so I just mounted a piece of sheet metal on the cross slide to hold them. iGaging "Accuremote" units are similar. Not quite as nice (slightly smaller display, etc), but fully functional and a bit less expensive.

Any DRO is better than no DRO, in my opinion. If for no other reason than that it removes the problem of backlash in the cranks. And on a lathe, it especially helps in the Z direction (toward and away from the chuck), because that is usually a very coarse adjustment.
View attachment 233260
Interesting set up, is it just reading the cross slide on top, or the whole carriage movement, looking to up grade my medium sized lathe,

But like to use carriage and top slide to get tool movement
 
The one marked "Z" (upper display) reads the motion of the carriage along the ways. The one marked "X" (lower display) reads the position of the cross slide. There's nothing on the compound (which I think you refer to as the top slide). Couldn't figure out how to mount a DRO on there - way too little space :(
 
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