Sieg SX3L HiTorque Mill

Does anyone have any experience with this recent offering from Seig? Helping son to decide which one.

They look pretty decent, would they be considered one of the better machines of Asia?

Andrew

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I may be talking broken biscuits here. But I think the L designation means it has a longer table than the standard one.

I do know that ARC provide a longer table for these as an option. Have a chat to Ketan who owns the company. (he's on this site) And he will give you far better information than I can about any other differences that may exist with the L variant.

The SX3 is a well respected machine as is ARC as a company. One was my prima choice when I was looking for a milling machine until I got distracted.

Nick

Andrew I bought a Sieg Super X3 from ArcEuro about 18 months ago. I found Ketan to be exceedingly helpful during the decision making process. He gave freely of his time to go through all aspects of the machine and his company's services.

I am very pleased with the machine and have not had a single problem with it at all. You must remember that it is a hobby mill of course, and is not as substantial as a Bridgeport. Having said that I use mine to make parts for classic motorcycles, and some parts for friends who have small company's and need something turned and /or milled usually at short notice. Much of my own parts are made in stainless and it copes well with this.

As Nick says the L denotes a longer than standard table, and assume that if you are buying a new machine that Ketan has some long tables in stock.

If you are close to Leicester then I would highly recommend that you visit Ketan and talk to him. HTH.

Thanks guys, I'm Brisbane based and this machine is an offering from a local supplier. Yes Nick , long table. Seems like it's very suitable for the machining being asked of it.

Hello Andrew,

L does stand for long table. I think about 6" longer.

This was introduced about four years ago as a way to compete vs the other competitor - such as Optimum offerings in this size. You guys are just seeing it now.

At that time, there was a big debate between myself, the chief engineer at SIEG and the management. Many of the importers wanted an even longer table than the L you see. The chief engineer and I insisted on keeping to the standard, but if the other importers and management wanted a longer table, it needed to be in proportion with the column, in terms of 'look'. The chief engineer and I did not want it to look like an 'un-balanced' machine. So, 6" longer was 'settled' on as a compromise. The label 'L' was chosen by me. . This was to fall in line with the SX1L and the SX2LP (P was just to signify brushless motor fixed column - no other reason)

The key reason why the chief engineer and I didn't want to increase the table length, even by 6" was that we were not a 100% happy about how well the table with longer length could be supported on the saddle, without bowing on each end. To this day, we question the logic of small mills with longer tables, even if we are proved wrong. Before anyone says anything, even the respected Bridgeport/clones can suffer from this, depending on very factors. I have this on authority from respected users of Bridgports.

With the 6" longer length, in my opinion you will be at the maximum limits of suitability. We ARC sold the L version for just under two years. Sales were poor due to many of our customers in U.K. having limited space in their workshops. If you have more space, then you may want to consider the 'L' version.

The key difference between the SX3/SX3L and the alternative competitor machines in your market is that the SX3/SX3L has a brushless motor with HiTorque programming on the control board. The competitors have brushed motors, and some of the competitors in your market are incorrectly specifying 'input' wattage in their marketing to suggest that they are offering a more powerful machine in comparison to the SX3L. Other then this key difference, machine builds for competitor models in this size range are broadly similar. The final choice is really yours.

Ketan at ARC

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There are NO respected users of Bridgeports.

Hi Andrew,

I have an SX3 and am very happy with it although an extra 150mm table would have been useful at times. But as pointed out in a previous post, support for heavy objects at the end of the table could be a problem. The support guides for the table are only 180mm wide. When I bought my mill, it was only available with a 3MT spindle. I would prefer a R8 spindle.

My recent post in "What did you do today" shows a photo of me milling holes in a 900mm length of 273 OD pipe. Supporting a job of this size on the table would have caused damage to the mill, so I supported the pipe with a chain block at each end.

Paul.

Good advice all and many thanks Ketan for your very detailed comments

have you thought of opening up a business in Brisbane?!

cheers

Andrew

Oh how I wish I had the room to be "Un-respected"

Ausee is the next best thing

Edited By JasonB on 08/02/2015 13:25:34

Jason beat me to it.

Steven at Ausee trained with us for a few months to understand our way of business operations, before starting in Melbourne. If you are considering and SX3L, he will be able to help you.

If you speak with him, tell him that his commission account is building up!

Ketan at ARC

And tell him he still owes me four quid, which incidentally is the same amount Ketan still owes.

How can a poor peasant hope to manage the books with this amount of national debt outstanding ?

Also wondering about an original Emco F2B? They seem to be pretty rare, are they worth acquiring?

Hello Moderator,

It seems that ARC are aware of my post yesterday re: accuracy of SX3 table & spindle; however I can't find it, or any replies.

Would you be kind enough to point me to them, please.

Regards,

Euan

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Edited By JasonB on 18/02/2015 07:28:27