Pulled the trigger on a DRO.

T

toolman

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Welp, I just bought a DRO for the lathe so I guess I just created even more work for myself! :rofl: Anyway, this is the one that I picked:
http://dropros.com/DRO_PROS_Lathe_Digital_Readout.htm#DRO_PROS_2L

Anyone have any tips for a DRO newbie? FWIW, it's going on a 14x40 Vectrax/Turnpro generic Tiawanese lathe. If this one works out well enough, I'll stick another one on my mill. My plan was to go with the iGaging units from DavidH, but I was concerned about the accuracy and also the display size since I'm so stinkin' blind. I looked at a bunch of different options including China-based companies and used displays, but 90+% of the used ones don't have scales, and if they do, they're the wrong size or damaged, and the Chinese companies just give me a bad feeling. thedrostore.com took two days to answer my email concerning scale sizing so I hate to think about a warranty issue.
Installation pics and a review to follow...:thinking:
 
We have one looks just like that at school. Seems to been working well for years. You wont miss counting tics
 
I put a very similar 3 axis DROPROS setup on my RF45 clone mill a few years ago. Money well spent. Don't count on all those brackets and screws they send for mounting the scales though. Sounds good in theory though. I ended up milling various chunks of aluminum angle/bar to suit my needs. No big deal though.

The challenge, for me was getting the scales parallel,to travel directions within a few thousandths over the scales entire length when the machines casting wanders all over the place. On the one for the quill I first mounted a appropriate length of ½"x1-½" aluminum bar that had a 'jacking screw' in each of its four corners that rested against the mill's casting. One mounting screw in the middle of each end of the bar held it to the mill casting.

That way I was able to play with the jacking screws and dial indicator and get the bar mounted so it was positioned correctly ( up, down, sideways, in/out, no twist, etc) so all I had to do was 'slap' the scale on it with one mounting screw in each end. Trying to do that with the supplied, infinitely adjustable, slotted pieces of aluminum angle iron would have been a frustrating experience otherwise.

Been meaning to put scales on my 14x40 Takisawa lathe but other hobby things seem to steal the money before I get to the buying point. That's what happens when you have at least 3 other money grabbing hobbies. Somebody loses.
 
DaveD said:
I put a very similar 3 axis DROPROS setup on my RF45 clone mill a few years ago. Money well spent. Don't count on all those brackets and screws they send for mounting the scales though. Sounds good in theory though. I ended up milling various chunks of aluminum angle/bar to suit my needs. No big deal though.

The challenge, for me was getting the scales parallel,to travel directions within a few thousandths over the scales entire length when the machines casting wanders all over the place. On the one for the quill I first mounted a appropriate length of ½"x1-½" aluminum bar that had a 'jacking screw' in each of its four corners that rested against the mill's casting. One mounting screw in the middle of each end of the bar held it to the mill casting.

That way I was able to play with the jacking screws and dial indicator and get the bar mounted so it was positioned correctly ( up, down, sideways, in/out, no twist, etc) so all I had to do was 'slap' the scale on it with one mounting screw in each end. Trying to do that with the supplied, infinitely adjustable, slotted pieces of aluminum angle iron would have been a frustrating experience otherwise.

Been meaning to put scales on my 14x40 Takisawa lathe but other hobby things seem to steal the money before I get to the buying point. That's what happens when you have at least 3 other money grabbing hobbies. Somebody loses.
Click to expand...

LOL. I fully understand! Between running the gun shop, hunting, my four boats, and six cars and trucks to play with, it's hard to decide what money goes where, but it's a safe bet that it's going! :rofl:
 
I'm in the process of installing a DROPros unit on my Wells Index. (It's going very slow as I haven't had a lot of time to work on it.) So far I've got the X-axis installed but I'm still working out some issues on the Y-axis (attaching the head to the underside of the table). The Z-axis is still a distant dream. :rolleyes: :biggrin: I had to cut down both scales to fit on my machine but I doubt you'll have to worry about that.

Here's how I installed the scale on the X-axis:

I made an "L" shaped fixture for drilling/tapping and clamped it to the table. One set of holes is for the scale, the other set for one of the hold down clamps.

droinstall01.JPG


Once I had the holes drilled and tapped I made sure the scale was parallel to the table.

droinstall04.JPG

droinstall03.JPG


The "clamps/supports" in the center of the long scale.
droinstall05.JPG


The instructions didn't mention that you had to notch out the cover for the clamps/supports but here it is.
droinstall06.JPG

droinstall07.JPG

The X-axis is ready to go.

-Ron
 
That's a clean notch in your cover. I had an interesting time milling on my covers. Turned out nice though. What a tool they are, wow.
 
LEEQ said:
That's a clean notch in your cover. I had an interesting time milling on my covers. Turned out nice though. What a tool they are, wow.
Click to expand...

Thanks, that aluminum bracket is soft and gooey but I used a small three flute endmill and a light spray of WD-40 to get a decent cut.

-Ron
 
Thanks for the tips. It MAY help on the mill that it used to have a DRO and some of the mounting hardware is still there, but the lathe will be a fresh install. I'm a bit concerned that I've sent DroPros three emails since I bought it Fri. night and haven't received a response yet, but I'm hoping that it's just due to the holiday-I know they have a good reputation.
 
Well, I was correct that DroPros was just closed for the weekend. I got an order confirmation this morning and a tracking number this afternoon, the new toy is supposed to be here Friday.
 
My wife called around 2:30 to let me know the new DRO had arrived, so I shut the shop down and came home to grab it. As soon as I got it unpacked, I knew I'd made a good purchase. I don't have it installed yet (need a few more nuts and bolts), but everything is quality, even the paint finish. The manuals are very nice with color illustrations showing actual installation on a real lathe, a laminated operations chart,and best of all...NO CHINGLISH! :rofl::rofl::rofl:
Now, all is not rainbows and roses though, there is a little effort to be made on the installer's part because none of the hardware sizes are listed and some of the capscrews are too short for anything but a textbook perfect install, but these are very minor grievances and very easily remedied.
 
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