How to buy a Studer grinder?  

All machines in the market are not equal. How to test a Studer?

Ways -Foremost is the ways. The machine made in the last 15 years have a type of plastic poured which keeps the oil on the ways. If they are worn out, it takes 320,000 USD to fix them. The machine is pretty much not worth anything. Also find out how much is the wear so that you know the life of the machine at the highest level.

Granitan Cracks- Make sure there was no crash and the base is not broken anywhere. Though I have personally repaired a few cracks, some of them the cost 320,000 to repair. It has to go to Switzerland for repair.

B axis -There are a few machines which were made without a curvic coupling and is never going to accurate. The  price of a new B axis is about 40,000. So make sure you have the proper B axis.

Scales - Make sure your scales are enabled. The machine can have a ton of back lash. People can turn the scales off and sell it to you. It will not have the same accuracy. Cost could be 15,000 Per axis.

Check the backlash on all the axes. Cost could be 15,000 per axis

Check the play on the work head bearings. Cost could be as high as 25,000.

Wheel head - Check the spindle play. Cost could be 15,000

Tail stock - Check the play - Cost could be 8,000

Electronics , though it is easy to replace, make sure you know what you are getting into. Some components are obsolete.

Communicator - Make sure it works - Cost could be 18,000

Sensitron - Make sure it works - Cost could be 8,000

Gauging - If you are going to use it test it and make sure it is not obsolete. Call the gauge maker and give the model number. They are ultra expensive to change. Could be 25,000.

Monitor- Make sure it is good enough - Cost could be 4,000

Coolant tank - Make sure it is the right tank - Cost could be 8,000

Id Spindle - Run it for full speed. Make sure oil drips from the front. Coolant lines are not clogged.- Cost could be 22,000.

Cables and hoses - Sometime the type of coolant can eat it so bad, machine becomes un reliable. The fixing cost could be 20,000.

Carbide - Depending on what was run on the machine the corrosion could be really bad. I have seen in occasion customer has rebuilt the whole machine after 12 years.

Also watch out for machines which comes out of auction. Some have sit in water for a while. Make sure you find out who owned the machine last. When was the last time it ran good parts. You might see some machines sitting on the market for a long time. There is always a reason for that.

The cheapest CNC Studer is 300K. This is entry level Luxury. Mid level machine like  a S33 with OD and ID feature could be 700K. S31 well appointed could run you into 1 million. S40 well appointed to 1.3 million. Fully loaded into 1.6 million. Options are plenty. Different work heads, center line height, quickset, non round grinding, Thread grinding and many more can tip the price by 100K. Getting any used Studer is a bargain. You can find one. The questions is, did you get what you paid for.

When you buy from us, we give you a report card. You know what you are getting. We will give you a prediction of how long every component will last and a risk mitigation plan of parts for your electronics. You are buying a Ferrari and know what you are getting. Peace of mind comes with knowing what you are getting.

We sell only known good machines; buy from us with peace of mind !

Here is  how evaluate a machine. We go into the details of the machine. Our inspection Routine is 10 hours. This includes a detailed report of the machine. This report includes what your machine is worth. What is the maximum, you can pay for that machine of the year. What expenses you can expect in the next 5 years. Here is a sample of the machine we are selling.

 

Machine		Studer S40		Hours	16400
Serial No		43		Year	1997
	Mechanical	Function	Best Used Condition of this age	Worth	condition	This machine
1	Hydarulic	8000	1	8000	0.9	7200
2	Ways	55000	1	55000	0.8	44000
3	X axis	8000	1	8000	0.8	6400
4	Z axis	12000	1	12000	0.8	9600
5	C axis	6000	1	6000	0.8	4800
6	B axis	20000	1	20000	0.8	16000
7	Tail stock	10000	1	10000	0.8	8000
8	Table	15000	1	15000	0.8	12000
9	Casting	15000	1	15000	1	15000
10	Paint and condition	20000	1	20000	0.6	12000
11	Way Covers	10000	1	10000	0.9	9000
Mechanical Value			11	179000	9	144000
	Electricals
1	Control 16TB	10000	1	10000	0.83	8300
2	X axis	2500	1	2500	0.83	2075
3	Z axis	2500	1	2500	0.83	2075
4	C axis - Workhead	2500	1	2500	0.83	2075
5	B axis	5000	1	5000	0.83	4150
6	5 Degree	5000	1	5000	0.83	4150
7	1 Degree	3000	1	3000	0.83	2490
8	B2 Axis	5000	0	0	0.83	0
9	Spindle OD1	2500	1	2500	0.83	2075
10	Spindle OD2	5000	1	5000	0.83	4150
11	Spindle ID	15000	0	0	0.83	0
12	Varaible OD Drive 1	2500	1	2500	0.83	2075
13	Varaible OD Drive 2	2500	1	2500	0.83	2075
14	Variable ID Drive	5000	0	0	0.83	0
15	Mist collector	400	1	400	0.83	332
16	Coolant Tank	3000	1	3000	0.83	2490
17	Balancer	2500	0	0	0.83	0
Control Value				46400	0.83	38512
	Ways adjustment For the wear					-11000
	Way Covers adjusrtment					-1000
	Expenses in the next 5 years towards Repair					0
	Misc Deduction					0
	Machine Value Adjustment Due to mechanicals					-21000
Final Value of the machine				225400		161512
FINAL REPORT
	Mechanical Value		82%	V good
	Control Value		83%	V good
	Next 5 years Repairs		0	Excellent
Mechaine value deduction Structurally			21000	V good
Rating System	90 plus	Excellent			5 year expense details
	80 to 90	v good			Monitor	0
	70 to 80	Good			Ball Screws	0
	60 to 70	Moderate Risk			C axis	0
	Below 60	Risky			Tailstock	0

We buy and sell used Studer Id Grinders. We refurbish Studer grinder. Only original parts. Our mechanical rebuilds are about 120K and 3 months. Electrical Rebuilds are about 12 weeks and approximately 120K. We have a shop. We are building a museum like atmosphere getting every control ever used on Studers. Our goal is to have all controls working on simulators. You can see how Studer evolved. Yes grinding is an art. We are fans of Studer Grinders. We are glad to be in the front row of CNC evolution of grinding.

We specialize in Cylindrical grinders, internal grinders, external grinders, universal grinders, angle head grinders, plunge grinders, cam grinders, crush grinders.

We deal with every Studer grinder including the following.

Studer S12, Studer 20, Studer S21, Studer 22, Studer S30, Studer S31, Studer S32, Studer S33, Studer 36, Studer S40, Studer S40-4, Studer S41, Studer S45-4, Studer S140, Studer S145, Studer S151, Studer S650, Studer Favorit, Studer Eco, Studer Leanpro.

We are service guys, selling good solid machines. We stand by you every step of the way.