Hi guys,
Long story short as possible, I want DRO's on my lathe and mill. I "need" 24" to cover mill Z and Lathe bed. However, this is of course the most expensive one. Also as a single unit, discontinued. So, I bought a 3pc set, 6, 12, and 24" to get the 24" I wanted (originally for the mill). I was gonna do the lathe later. But, I don't "need" the 6" and 12" for the mill. No problem, the lathe needs DRO. Perfect! Except I don't need 12", and it sure seems like a waste to cut it down! Then I still need to buy another 24" for the lathe.
So, here's where I start thinking (bad idea).
I never have a lathe or mill project (yet!) where i need more than 12" of Z on the mill, or more than 12" travel on the lathe bed. So, if I had a way to move the scale on the 12", I could, technically, temporarily fasten the 12" scale to the frame as a part of my operation setup. Then I just plan to move the scale as needed to put the carriage (lathe or mill) where it needs to be before fastening that axis slide.
If I do that, I don't need to buy any more DRO, and I am setup.
But because it's not a permanent mount, I set myself up for failure if the scale moves during an operation.
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So, what do you think? use the 12" on the lathe or mill Z (I'm thinking mill Z could be perfectly servicable for this) even though I have way more travel than that, and move the scale as needed? Or just buckle under and buy the darn 24" scale (even if it means buying another 6-12-24 set) and outfit it "right".
SEIG tools, we aren't talking bridgeports here.
What say you?