Power Draw Bar Beta Testers Needed
One of the first posts on the blog this summer was a sneak peak of our Power Draw Bar prototype for use with the PCNC. If you’ve been to a workshop here, you’ve probably played around with the first protoype as well — the power draw bar machine is everybody’s favorite machine to use, no question about it.
We are now starting the early adoption/beta testing period and are looking for several PCNC owners who would like to participate. Please email us at info@tormach.com if you are interested. We will begin contacting people with information about the program, pricing, etc. around the middle of next week. We have limited amount of slots available, but will accommodate as many as we can.
PS.
Minimum Requirement for Beta Sites: Air Compressor that can hold pressure at 120psi. Must be TTS user. Ideally, we’d like to find a few people who use the machine on a daily basis. *UPDATE 11/15/2009* 120 psi is just for the beta versions. We’ve already made a design change for the production version so you can use with a more typical household compressor.
The First Winners in Our User Suggested Video Contest are…
Co– winners, actually…
John S. from NYCNC (great blog, btw) and Willy. We’re going to put together a short video on 2.5D workholding. Stay tuned!
John and Willy will both recieve a one year subscription to Digital Machinist, courtesy of Village Press. I’ll be in touch with you both early next week.
The contest remains open, so keep your suggestions coming. Here’s what its about.
TOPS Beta Testing: Update 1
I’d like to share some images I’ve received from the TOPS Beta Testers (Thanks guys!). Not sure what TOPS is? Then read this.
The first image is a cross section of a Tubine Blade in a jet engine. The 2 – 4 images are parts from a KTM dirt bike. Enjoy! I’ll post more as I get them.
Introducing the Duality Lathe 4th Axis
Something new for the Duality… the Duality Lathe 4th Axis. This lets you do both lathe and 4th axis work on a single setup — perfect for keyways, engraving, etc. on small turned pieces. Here’s Matt taking about the design.

And a fun demo video making chess pieces

If your wondering about Zero Backlash Harmonic Drives, this is how they work. This is a very cool technology that lets you achieve much greater gear reductions in a compact space than more conventional planetary systems. In addition, the unique tooth engagement between the gears means Zero Backlash in the drive.
Here’s an animation of how the drive works:
and a model of a typical harmonic drive:
Free Subscriptions to Digital Machinist!
Nothing’s for free, right? Well, this is pretty close…We’re giving away Free Subscriptions to Digital Machinist!

Here’s the small catch… We want some ideas for videos you’d like to see about CNC. Education is a big part of our mission at Tormach, and we’re going to release some new video tutorials — we even got some new A/V club toys to play around with, so this should be fun. But we want to know what you’d like to see. So reply back to this post with your ideas, and keep them coming.
If we select your idea for a video topic, you’ll be rewarded with a free 1 year subscription to Digital Machinist, courtesy of Village Press. I’ve got a few of these subscriptions to hand out, and we will keep this offer open until we run out.
If you haven’t seen Digital Machinist, stop by the newstand and pick up a copy. There’s always neat projects and great ideas. I’m even thinking about tackling building the Orrery featured on the cover. I think that would look fantastic on the desk.
Thanks again to George and the rest of the team at Village Press for your support
BTW, George has just announced the relaunching of the Digital Machinist CNC Workshop for 2010. It will be held a Washtenaw Community College in Ann Arbor, Michigan from June 22 – 25, 2010. I’ve never been before, but am very much looking forward to the trip as I’ve heard great things about previous workshops from many of our friends and customers.







