Cheap Dro's From China

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Garyg

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I would like to get a DRO for my mill. Since I live in Canada the selection is poor. To get a Dropro 3 axis glass scale from the U.S.would cost me $1020 for the cheapest one. The exchange rate today was 1.46 . Shooting star in Canada sells one but it costs even more. . Someone at work showed me a web site called Aliexpress. Most of it is from China. As an example there was a similar looking kit as the Dropro one. It was Shenzhen STTEC 3 axis glass. It was $324 Canadian . Many of the units sold had free shipping to Canada. Question is has anyone dealt with this Chinese companies and what is the quality like?
 
Talk to Matt at PM he is not as cheap as aliexpress, but he speaks your language and stands behind his stuff.

michael
 
+1 to what D-Boy suggests.
Here's a (5) page thread on the same subject -=- HERE -=-
 
I would think in today's world, All DROs are made in china. and if they say they are made in the US then all parts are from china and they are assembled in the US.

That being said I bought a 2 axis for my mill from a eBay seller for around $300 and I have been happy with it.
 
I've been looking at probably the same 3 axis set for my shaper. Im thinking its the same equipment sold here without the middle man doubling or tripling the price. Service may be an issue but at that price they're almost disposable. A number of years ago I bought a DRO Pro's one, worked great for a few years then the buttons on the head got flakey, work some times then not, was told the unit was obsolete and couldn't be serviced. So much for paying extra for english service. If this one works out of the box I think you'd be as well off and save a bunch.

Greg
 
f350ca said:
I've been looking at probably the same 3 axis set for my shaper. Im thinking its the same equipment sold here without the middle man doubling or tripling the price. Service may be an issue but at that price they're almost disposable. A number of years ago I bought a DRO Pro's one, worked great for a few years then the buttons on the head got flakey, work some times then not, was told the unit was obsolete and couldn't be serviced. So much for paying extra for english service. If this one works out of the box I think you'd be as well off and save a bunch.

Greg
Click to expand...
Check out Fagor buys on ebay.

Jim
 
Hmmm...maybe I should have looked closer at the Aliexpress options. Thought this info might be useful to have here in this thread, as someon looking at the Aliexpress options may be considered the iGauging units due to the price point.

I've opted to go with an android-powered DRO setup, as I can do the financial outlay in two stages (which, having bought a mill and tooling last week was an important consideration!):

Stage One: iGauging remote DRO units - 36", 12" & 6" - $165 (through busy bee tools). Worth reading up on them for issues, etc.
Stage Two:
- Arduino Controller unit (self-build-project) - $93 in components (Amazon)
- Cheap RCA Android Tablet - $68, Walmart
- Yuri's Toys Free Android DRO Software

Total cost - $326 plus tax, and the end result is a fully functional DRO with the following features:
  • Display for up to three* axes
  • Support for metric an imperial units (mm and inch)
  • Support for standard DRO functions:
    • Tool Offset
    • Preset Dimension
    • “1/2” Function
    • Hole Circle (Arch)
    • Hole Grid
  • Unlimited** point memory
  • Multiple workspaces
  • Worskpace preview
BUT, it uses the iGauging readers, which go into an Arduino controller and then bluetooth to a Tablet...so while it has added features and upgradability, it's a bit hokey in comparison to the DRO's suggested above. The iGauging readers have some issue too, but these two links are quite helpful:
http://www.yuriystoys.com/2013/07/reliability-issues-with-igaging-digital.html#more
http://www.yuriystoys.com/2013/07/three-ways-to-make-igaging-dro-scales.html

When I was looking at AliExpress, most of the options were in the $450-550 Canadian for the features I desired, so I thought the setup above was a better option for me at the moment. Plus, down the road I can upgrade to glass or magnetic scales if I desire. If the Aliexpress options are down to $325ish for a 3-axis setup, they may indeed be a better option.

-Dave
 
I've been using a Meister Top 10 3-axis DRO I bought off Ebay around 2002/2003 IIRC on one of my Bridgeports. It was about $400 shipped from Hong Kong with custom scale lengths. Back then I was worried about service and replacement parts etc. just like you guys are now. A dozen worry free years later I feel I can say if you don't have problems immediately, you probably never will. In all those years I've barely scratch the surface of all the functions it will perform so don't put too much stock in the bells and whistles you may never use.

I had an ancient Sony two axis readout on another Bridgeport that's so old it still uses glowing wires to create the numbers. I'd guess it was from the early 70's and it finally gave up the ghost last year. I stupidly replaced it with the cheap I-gauging stuff sold on Ebay and discovered that the inaccuracy got exponentially worse per inch of travel. Just shows that there are no fast/easy/cheap solutions.
 
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