Great Thread BuMach, Look forward to the many updates!
How do you like your elsa boring machines? I do similar work (although not as big machinery) I have a Sir meccania boring machine. Good machine but it did give some bother. Have been thinking of updating soon!
Aiden
Hello Aiden,
good to hear you're in the same ball park!
i've worked a few times a little bit with the sir mecanicca and seen the machine so i can not Judge like you can, but what i thought where plus points at the elsa machine for me are:
- simple, no rpm display, just 2 knops
- the machine hangs on a tapered bushing system instead off the straight bushing at the SIR, though this tapered idea would be steardier then the sir type. also the new ones (same as mine) have some sort of tooth system on this tapered bushing that prevents the machine from turning when applied a high torque, so it hangs in the bushing and that tooth systems takes the stress of keeping the machine stationary.
- the mechanical weld connection/gear is a big plus. No hassle of getting the turning rpm and feed lined up, just pull a little lever and you can start your weld. I see a lot of guys with a Sir weld-in by hand just cause its faster, but i can garranty its so easy and fast with the elsa!
- the belly off the machine is very tight, so i can sometimes put my machine at spots (bucket ears) where a SIR just wont fit because its a bit bigger at the belly, so i can bore a hole which is closer to a plate.
- manual feed, just like with a lade you can manual feed the machine and then pull the turning knob and you can automatic feed, its nice when you want to measure the bore and it moves quick by hand. the electrical feed is already a bit faster then the SIR at max rpm.
The minus point i found out:
- the feed on a SIR has a much finer POT-meter then the Elsa, so when i want to start my feed it starts moving at nr 2,2 instead of 0, the plus point is that you don't need to turn the feed knob 10 times before its on max rpm (thats why SIR has that max rpm button).
But LBW usely put different pot-meters in there for this reason.
but i still got a few months of warranty and after that i'm going to switch too.
- i've got a SC40 easy which only has 2 gears, good enough for when you do a bit off line boring but i might go for a 4 gear machine or have mine rebuild to a 4 gear in the future. with the 4 gear you're able to match the bar speed with a higher torque to the bore you're making.
sometimes when i make holes off 160-200mm the machine might go in over-heat,
cause i need to go lower with the rpm do to the size off the bore, then the fan on the drive motor goes down in rpm too and the amp go up a bit too. but i'm gonna try a different fan when the machine goes out off waranty.
i bought my machine at a dutch importer, but i order my parts at LBW Machines in the UK, he is your importer for Elsa too,
A very good guy with a lot off knowledge on these machines!
pricing on the Elsa and Sir Mecannica are pretty much the same at least on my quotes.
i just bought the Elsa based on my little experience with the SIR.
I do think i will be buying another elsa when i would chose next time. but then i would like to see how much differece the 60mm version will have compared to my 40mm.
I have looked at Climax machines, but i think they are a bit to expensive for the bores i make.. but i do see some plus points with them too, which im going to have a look at to see if i can make those plus point by my self.
the simple fact is not one machine will be 100% perfect for your needs and you will Always be looking for ways to make it easier/better to adapt to your working methode.
well it's pretty much a whole story but i hope you have some info from my point of view now