Strong 1212ds - any advice greatly appreciated!

**MrWiz73** · 29-03-2011

Hello

I am looking at an ad on Ebay for the STRONG 1212DS CNC Router (imported from China via SignsTech) and was wondering if anyone has any experience with this machine? Also, any advice on importing stuff would also be appreciated. thanks!

**AdCNC** · 30-03-2011

Whats the asking price for that machine... looks ok tho, is it servo or stepper motor powered?

**MrWiz73** · 30-03-2011

The price on Ebay is $4,990 USD (£3,123) with $200 (£125) for shipping. There will also be the importing costs/delivery costs to add on (i have no idea what these incur. any help would be appreciated). I have been reading posts on other worldwide CNC forums regarding chinese machines. The general opinion is that there are some great ones amongst quite a few dodgy ones. I dont think i could afford a european made machine with the same bed size. Not a new one anyway. It has stepper motors as standard but it also has the option to upgrade to all servo. It also comes with a 1500w inverter spindle (?) with the option upgrade to either 2200w or 3000w. Any opinions on these modifications would be hugely appreciated also.

**AdCNC** · 30-03-2011

Like you say some chines machines are indeed very good, if you were to get one then i would say go for the option with a 2.2kw spindle or even 3kw as this will allow for better cutting speeds and feeds of materials.

I suppose if you did go for steppers then you could always upgrade to servos at a later date if you felt the need to.

**M250cnc** · 30-03-2011

MrWiz

Downside if there is a problem getting help can be difficult due to the language barrier

Downside they reduce the value for shipping but what if its damaged in transit

Downside VAT and import charges unknown

Downside the machine weighs nearly 650Kg before packing/shipping that is NEARLY 3/4 OF A TON will you easily get it in its home location given its size.

Phil

**AdCNC** · 30-03-2011

lol i take you it would not buy one Phil :D

**MrWiz73** · 30-03-2011

Thanks for comments guys. Some good points there Phil, but the weight comment would apply to any machine i bought. Am assuming that they all come roughly the same size/weight. The comments you made though are the main reasons i am hesitating to buy one. I have emailed some of the people who they list as having bought one already to get some feedback. So far no replies!

**M250cnc** · 30-03-2011

Originally Posted by AdCNC

lol i take you it would not buy one Phil :D

Probably not.

Phil

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**M250cnc** · 30-03-2011

Originally Posted by MrWiz73

Thanks for comments guys. Some good points there Phil, but the weight comment would apply to any machine i bought. Am assuming that they all come roughly the same size/weight. The comments you made though are the main reasons i am hesitating to buy one. I have emailed some of the people who they list as having bought one already to get some feedback. So far no replies!

Well self builders tend to make them lighter than that.

If those company's don't exist you will have your answer.

Phil

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**Jonathan** · 30-03-2011

School bought an 80W fairly big laser cutter from eBay in china. As far as I know it arrived without problems.

If they quote less on the customs form I think that's good since firstly what are the chances of it breaking, and what are the chances of that damage costing more to fix than what you saved from low customs charges (effectively it makes the VAT only a few %, not 20%)? Both quite low I think...