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Looking for a good SMT entry Machine

Looking for a good SMT entry Machine

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Asking the great minds with experience for some advise. I a... - Jan 23, 2013 by davidb

For automated equipment under 20k you have to buy used. Dave... - Jan 24, 2013 by Evtimov

Thank you very much for the information. I will look into th... - Jan 24, 2013 by davidb

Less than 20K is going to be real tough. The issue with olde... - Jan 24, 2013 by Sr. Tech

Thank you Sr.Tech. I have a little experience with smt mach... - Jan 24, 2013 by davidb

David, Its real hard to find a quality machine for 20K. ... - Jan 31, 2013 by Larry Groves

You also could look at Europlacer's dependent on your types ... - Feb 04, 2013 by Simon UK

Thank you for the help and great advise. as of right now I ... - Feb 05, 2013 by davidb

I have been in this business for over 20 years and have deal... - Feb 06, 2013 by Sr. Tech

If you are looking for a more updated machine we can sell GS... - Feb 08, 2013 by CE-Exchange

davidb

#68000

Looking for a good SMT entry Machine | 23 January, 2013

Asking the great minds with experience for some advise. I am looking to go from placing components with a low quality machine to a low cost production machine. I am tired of inspecting after placement and spending hours aligning the parts with twezers and placing IC's by hand before baking. Can anyone recomend a machine that is easy to program and run and that produces good quality assemblies. I have been looking in Ebay and i found a couple universal GSM machines. they seem like a good machine and they are priced under 20,000 dollars. i called Universal to inquire about support and they said that they only support equipment for 7 years and that parts will be very limited. my questions to you are:

are there any machines under 20,000 that are worth buying? how likely am i to succed with an older machine? where can i look for a machine? what brands do you recomend?

thank you in advance for your help.

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Evtimov

#68005

Looking for a good SMT entry Machine | 24 January, 2013

For automated equipment under 20k you have to buy used. DaveF mantioned these companies in another post. Here is his post "Used equipment resellers that support SMTnet are: * IBE SMT Equipment , 318 Corporate Woods Dr, Magnolia, TX 77354; (800) 353-6942 (281)259-9660 F(281)259-8863 ibesmt.com * Capital Equipment Exchange Co; 2802 Barney Ct, McHenry, IL 60051; 815.363.0800 F815.363.0809 ce-exchange.com * Robo-Tek; 877-360-PCBA robo-tek.com * Precision Placement Machines, Inc.; 326 Main St, Unit 11, Fremont, NH 03044; (603)895-5112 F(603)895-5113 goppm.com * Cardinal Circuit, 7233 123rd Cir Largo, FL 33773; (614) 327-2601 cardinalcircuit.com * Adopt SMT Germany GmbH, Halberstädter Str. 85a, 33106 Paderborn (DE);+49 5251-68939-0 F+49 5251-68939-69 adoptsmt.com * JMW Inc jmw-inc.com Paul Leifeld, GM, 507-864-7477 C507-458-6785 paul@jmw-inc.com Brian Ebbinger, Sales, 507-864-7477 C507-459-0149 brian@jmw-inc.com * Xline Assets 1161 Ringwood Court, Suite 50, San Jose, CA 95131; 408.717.4538 F(270) 573-8797 xlineassets.com "

I would recommend any of the popular brands - Juki, Fuji, Pan, Siemens, Universal......etc. They all have very good equipment. However I don't know how likely is for you to succeed with old machines. They need maintenance and spare parts. Might be hard to keep them working.

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davidb

#68006

Looking for a good SMT entry Machine | 24 January, 2013

Thank you very much for the information. I will look into the companies you listed. i hope i find one that doesnt require a lot to keep going. I am very concern on providing my equipment preventive maintenance and i hope that once i find a machine that will be enough to keep it going until i can buy something newer.

thanks again

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Sr. Tech

#68007

Looking for a good SMT entry Machine | 24 January, 2013

Less than 20K is going to be real tough. The issue with older machines is part availability and support. Most machine manufacturers will require you to pay a lavish used equipment registration fee for them to even deal with you. Unless you have experience with SMT equipment, be very cautious of what you are buying. Never buy sight un-seen and have the seller demo the machine for you. If they are a stand up business they will offer you some type of warranty. I always include a clause in the purchase agreement that says something to the effect of: will pay in full upon acceptance. That means when it gets to your facility and it mysteriously doesn't work...you no pay...

Good luck.

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davidb

#68008

Looking for a good SMT entry Machine | 24 January, 2013

Thank you Sr.Tech. I have a little experience with smt machines. the machines were fuji xp series but they were brand new with warranty and service contract that i didnt have to worry about paying for. now i am on my own and trying. the information you provided is very valuable to me. I will ask questions and will ask for a demonstration. I didnt even think of that before, but yu are right a lot of the machines listed everywhere look like they are in the middle of a warehouse and all say removed from service in working condition. thanks for the help.

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Larry Groves

#68069

Looking for a good SMT entry Machine | 31 January, 2013

David,

Its real hard to find a quality machine for 20K. Keep in mind that a machine with many years on it will need parts at some point and it can cost a lot to fix them. My advice for what its worth is:

1.check with the companys selling new equipment and see if they have a machine that they took on trade for a new sale. likely you will be able to get an expert opinion of the machines condition and some kind of warranty. but you still might be over your budget.

2. Beware of machines in "referb" condition. make sure you know what has been done. sometimes referb means a scrub and a coat of paint...

3. Buy a machine that was sold in large quantites. if the company only ever built 100 of a model parts will be difficult

4. Make sure the company that built the machine is still in business.

5. Consider a new machine on lease.. ask your vendor about a demo or leftover machine. you should still get a warranty, installation and training and it could be pretty affordable.

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Simon UK

#68090

Looking for a good SMT entry Machine | 4 February, 2013

You also could look at Europlacer's dependent on your types of products and if you need a quick changeover between products.

We have 7 of these 4 Finesse and 3 EP600's - Easy to program, rarely break down and for the price have very good accurate placement. Support is available in the US and all parts are obtainable from the manufacturer.

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davidb

#68104

Looking for a good SMT entry Machine | 5 February, 2013

Thank you for the help and great advise. as of right now I am looking at a 2002 universal GSM2. its running UPS software Level 4.5 Supplement E, and it has updated heads. the machine is sold by PFI of florida. they will install, calibrate on site with 30 days warranty and 3 days training. I had to go over the $20,000 that I was planning on spending but i hope the machine is good to me.

thanks again for the great advise, thanks to you guys I look at several companies and asked plenty of questions. I will report back my experience with this company.,

David

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Sr. Tech

#68120

Looking for a good SMT entry Machine | 6 February, 2013

I have been in this business for over 20 years and have dealt with used equip sales during that time. Never heard of PFI. Not saying anything bad....just saying never heard of them.

I would ask PFI for a reference list of contacts they have sold used (PLACEMENT) equipment to.

Message me and I can provide you with a list of reputable used equipment guys if you would like.

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CE-Exchange

#68145

Looking for a good SMT entry Machine | 8 February, 2013

If you are looking for a more updated machine we can sell GSM's upgraded with windows, 42v interface, and precision pro feeder banks. Our machines will be calibrated and you will not be invoiced until after acceptance.

Gregg Bartosz, gbartosz@ce-exchange.com www.ce-exchange.com

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