What our customers are telling us

This is what our customers have to say about Elrod Machine's products and support

Hi Dwayne
I am very pleased with your Z axis conversion. It ran excellently from day one with no outstanding issues.

I fitted a rapid powered drive to the knee operated by push button, taking the back ache out when I need the extra distance.

I think complements your CNC Z drive.

To summarise your conversion is is a quality product that I would recommend to anyone.

Regards
Peter

Ken Son E Mail kenson@gmail.com

HI Dwayne... thought I'd drop by a progress report photo...

The thing went in like a charm. Only thing I had to do myself was
drill and tap a new hole in the upper mount for that quill feed
selector bracket...
I've never actually had a kit drop in like that before! I honestly
spent more time making the "installation tool" than getting the rest
of it going!

I did have to noodle out that those two small pieces of sheet metal
were the splash guards that went in behind the unit... luckily there
weren't
many free screw holes left by the time I got to them.

Dave Nugent Nugent Patterns E Mail dave@nugentpatterns.com www.nugentpatterns.com

When you buy something from Elrod Machine you are also getting Dwayne Elrod's extremely competent help as part of the deal.

Dwayne gave me loads of advice over the phone and by email even before I bought anything, helping me to decide if my Bridgeport was in good enough shape to upgrade, then helping me with more expert advice when I was fixing what needed repair, still before I had decided to buy anything.

Then after I got his excellently designed quill feed and upgraded my Centroid control, he helped me to tune everything in for optimum performance. Also gave me tips to cusomize the machine and get the most out of the software. This is the way Grandpa used to say business was conducted in this country back when they did things right. Too bad companies like Elrod Machine are such a rare thing these days!

Gordon Long E Mail gwlong@newton.berkeley.edu

Hi Dwayne,
Regarding the Centroid M400 retrofit we purchased from you, it has been a big asset for our shop. It's great to have the versatility of a mill that can be a manual machine, 2 axis mill, and a 3 axis mill. We have used it as a CMM by using the digitizing touch probe. This has allowed us to output complex geometries as CAD files that can then be used in Solidworks for analysis and construction of assemblies. Using the Millwrite software has allowed us to do some engraving projects that would have been impossible on our other 2 axis mills. The components of the retrofit are great. The installation went smoothly and the performance has been basically trouble free. When I was first setting up the machine, you were a great support and returned my calls promptly. Your first hand working knowledge of your products is a huge plus. The only thing that I would consider a drawback is that I can't have just any student run the machine. I have to limit access to the students who have spent enough time with me developing basic machining skills. Not many of our students are with us long enough to have the skills to operate the control safely. Our students are typically very smart theoretically but with limited hands on skills. I had one grad student push the wrong button and jog the spindle down suddenly with an edgefinder in the drill chuck. He had been running in 2 axis mode and luckily he didn't clamp the ball nut tight enough when returning to the 3 axis mode. The ball nut came out of the clamp when he ran the edgefinder into the part instead of something else breaking from the impact. This kind of thing doesn't happen very often but does illustrate the need for constant supervision. The students who do have good machining experience are very pleased with the control and I enjoy showing them what it can do. Thanks again for your support and quality of products.
Cheers,
Gordon Long
Student Shop Manager
UC Berkeley Mechanical Engineering

Greg Brott Gregs Machine E mail flyfishr36@verizon.net

Dwayne

DWAYNE, I THINK THE MILL IS AWESOME , COMPARED TO MY OLD ONE THE MOTOR IS SO QUIET AND SMOOTH. EVERY THING WORKS FLAWLESS. I HAVE HAD NO PROBLEMS WITH THE MILL . I DO SMALL PRODUCTION JOBS FOR A RACE CAR COMPANY AND ROBOT PARTS FOR THE HANFORD NUCLEAR COMPANY AREVA NC. EVERYTHING THAT IS MADE LOOKS GREAT. EVERYONE IS HAPPY WITH THE QUALITY. SO, I AM TO. CANT SAY MY CAD SKILLS ARE TOP OF THE LINE, BUT THATS NOT THE MILLS FAULT. MY FRIEND SAYS GARBAGE IN GARBAGE OUT. BUT WHAT REALLY MAKES THE MILL EVEN BETTER IS SUPPORT FROM YOU WITH ALL MY LITTLE GLITCHES THAT COME UP EVERY ONCE IN A WHILE. I AM 100% HAPPY WITH THE MILL. DO THEY MAKE A LIFT MOTOR FOR THE KNEE THAT IS CONTROLLED BY THE CONSOLE? THANKS GREG

Mohonasen High School

Builder / Instructor Ken McDermith

E Mail kmcdermith@mohonasen.org

Ken McDermith

Dwayne,

First of all I want to thank you for the tremendous amount of support that
you have given us. We surely wouldn't have been able to pull this project
off without you. I know we took a lot more of your time than a typical
client. I left you a voice mail the other day telling you that we are off
and running. We cut a few parts on Weds. The control package is
exceptional in ease of use and function. I can't believe how easy it is to
run this machine. In addition to cutting parts we have also already used
the TT1 and the digital proble. I know we will enjoy this machine for many
years.
Please accept my sincere thanks for your
continued support, you are true professional.

Sincerely,

Ken McDermith
Mohonasen High School.

Larry Gutshall Williams Unified School District

E Mail lgutshall@wusd2.org

Mr. Dwayne Elrod

Elrod Machine

The Williams High School CTE department purchased a Rt. 66 Taskmaster 3 from you last year.

The Taskmaster has fulfilled or expectations for my Precision Metals Program. My students have been able to use this machine to produce many fully machined parts for our engineering projects. We have found the machine to be accurate and very serviceable. The technical support from Elrod Machine Tools has been very timely and extremely helpful.

We build and fight remote controlled vehicles for competition in the Arizona Tooling & Manufacturing, Battle bots competition affiliated with the North American Robotics League Educational Experience. Your machine has helped us meet competencies for CNC and CAM for our Arizona Career and Technical Education Precision Metals Program.

Thank You

Larry Gutshall, Instructor, Precision Metals, Williams High School, Williams Arizona