Any suggestions on a budget DRO for a Bridgeport?

modela

modela

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I am looking to add a reasonably priced DRO. I have looked at brands like Grizzly, Fagor, Easson, Newall and others.

I would appreciate any input you have on these or other brands. Also, I am wondering about glass versus magnetic scales.

Thanks in advance.
 
Hi
For the low priced DRO I went with the SINO brand, also sold under other names as Im told. Its a glass scale deal, and have been trouble free so far. I bought the 2- axis for my lathe about 2 yrs ago. Low price is why I chose it.

On my Mill, I have a Newall 3- axis. its the older C-80 model thats been on the machine now for a number of yrs. Nice , reliable DRO, but I really paid the price for it.

The SINO has been good so far, but with only 2 yrs on it, I dont know if it would be in service as long as the Newall has been. The Newall has the scales with the balls inside, so cant say anything about the magnetic jobs.
 
I'd stay away from the I-gauging units The precision and repeatability are pretty weak for machining. I have used Shooting Star and DROPro units. Both are good but the DROPro is better. For the money I'd go with DROPro. Excellent documentation and service. I have also heard good things about Sino too.

Randy
 
I installed a dro-pro unit on my Cincinnati Toolmaster mill about 3 years ago. I'm just a hobby machinist so I don't use it everyday, but I have not had any problems with it. I don't recall the guy's name that I bought it from, but he was very patient with me answering all of my silly questions. Nice people there.
 
I see a lot of good comments about Dro Pros. I am thinking about getting one of the magnetic scale units.

There are some cheap ones out there but one wonders about the support, warantee and the ease of use.

Jim
 
I would NOT recommend Shooting Star. My friend has one,and it uses rack and pinion like a dial caliper. Not really as accurate as a glass scale,and subject to mechanical wear.
 
Question?

Is DRO Pro, a brand of DRO, or is it the name of a outfit that sells many brands of DRO,s?

Just wondering, as that name keeps on coming up.
 
george wilson said:
I would NOT recommend Shooting Star. My friend has one,and it uses rack and pinion like a dial caliper. Not really as accurate as a glass scale,and subject to mechanical wear.
Click to expand...

I'd disagree on the Shooting star. I had one of their 3 axis units for about 7 years. I sold it along with my Sharp mill. I never had any problems with it until the 5th year when one of the axises went out. The warranty period had expired and I approached Shooting Star about purchasing a replacement axis. They sent me a new for free. You can't get much better service. I never had any problems with accuracy , repeatability or wear. Granted glass is more accurate, but their mechanical system is very durable and forgiving. It is an excellent unit for the home shop.

Randy
 
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