I want to purchase a VMC in the next month or 2 and am curious what sort of ancillary equipment i may need. I know i will need a larger air compressor, and some storage cabinets for the collets/end mills but im sure there is alot of other little stuff that will be helpful.

1. Larger air compressor
2. Tooling cabinet and cart
3. Granite Machinist Slab and height gauge
4. Nice kurt or glacern vice

I should probably just start looking through the enco catalog as well.

 

make friends with MSC direct

which VMC are you thinking about?

 

How large are the parts are you machining? If your not doing big big runs or high production runs I think a Prototrak is a perfect cnc mill. And you can bang out some quick programs.

 

I have been doing a lot of research on the Fadal 4020 from the mid to late 90's. And it seems like a good fit for what I want to do. Some of the smaller machines look nice but I'm just worried about rigidity and poor surface finishes people have reported on Cnc-zone.

 

if you want a cheap throw away machine, look into some older haas. im not a fan of them myself but they are good for the price. if you dont need something with automatic tool changes and just want cnc capabilitys i would deffinatly look into proto traks as said before. you can get a basic 2axis or the 3 axis bedmills are really nice. or if you really want to save money, pick up an old bridgeport that has a good head and table (lead screw slop doesnt matter) and have proto track retrofit it with there cnc system. the programing is easy conversational. If your looking for something super nice, DMG/mori seki all the way. as far as what you will need, your gonna need

collets/tool holders. depending on what you get R8,cat 40,cat 50. you will need ER collets for smaller tooling
a drill chuck for versatility
vise
step clamp set
keep in mind your gonna need coolant,way lube,hydraulic oil.
then tooling, like endmills,drills,boring head? rotary table?

there is alot of stuff. but mainly it depends on the part your making, and how fast and how many you need to make.
good luck

 

Not really looking for anything throw away. Its either between a quality used machine or something new that i can finance.

Thanks for the input so far. Here are some other things i have seen that i may also need.

Boeshield T-9
parallels
v blocks
coax indicator
3d electronic edge finder
Step clamps

But im sure there are other things i need

 

The machine and software are going to be the big expenses. Everything past that will more or less come on as needed basis but they can nickel and dime you out of thousands of dollars.