Hi Jim

I can't really help you much with the use of a Chinese machine yet but I have ordered one that will be with me in a couple of weeks. The machine will be used in a production environment however. There are good machines to be had from China but sorting out the wheat from the chaff is quite difficult.

The main problem I could see was the availability of spares and support. The spares issue was addressed by ordering some spare parts with the machine, an extra spindle and a couple of drivers. Support may be an issue but I tested this to some degree by talking to the supplier to judge whether language would be a problem. There was no problem there and any email queries I sent were answered quickly.

My choice regarding the Chinese machine was of course finance led, a machine sourced from the UK to a similar (in some cases lesser) spec would have cost me £24k plus. The machine form China cat me under half of that including import duties and taxes.

A quick spec of the machine I ordered is.

1325 model, will take a full 8x4 sheet with room to spare.
Leadshine drivers and hybrid servo motors.
Hiwin rails.
Helical rack and pinion on x and y axis with anti-backlash gearboxes
4kw water cooled spindle.
T slot bed
Anti-backlash gearboxes
Heavy gauge Steel construction throughout (weighs 1600kg)
Lubrication system
4 chamber dust extractor included.

The control options for the machines from China tend to be either NC Studio, DSP or Syntec although Mach controllers are starting to become more common.

During the build of the machine I was kept updated with pictures and videos of the progress, which was reassuring.

Don't know if this helps you at all.

Cheers

Alan