Help, please: Tool Comparisons

[Wildwire]

I am new to this forum. I have been doing wood carving for many years with a high speed rotary that died recently. I had even done some "engraving" with the rotary on a couple of my own guns. The results were comparable to laser etching - looked good but not true engraving. I really love the three-dimensionality of the work I see on this site!
I am looking at the GRS Mach AT with palm/foot control since it also has the capacity for the rotary tool and the price in contrast to the Lindsay. I would like to know if anyone has used the Mach AT and their thoughts. I also want the tool capacity to engrave parts on my bike.
I appreciate any insight offered, as I need to make good choices due to the investment required. Thanks

 

[Andrew Biggs]

Hi Wildfire

Yes, the GraverMach AT is a very versatile and hi-tech piece of kit but at the same time a real work horse. I personally like the way it can switch from the airtact/palm control to foot control because it offers the best of both worlds at the turn of a knob. Or if you wish you can use one or the other exclusively. It just depends on your own personal preferences. It can be as sensitive as you want it to be and it also has the guts to really power into the work.

You also have the choice of several handpieces depending on what you want to do. All of the handpieces are very powerful and are capable of engraving the finest work through to the most demanding. Some engravers stick to just one handpiece and use that for everything, or they can choose between the range (Monarch, 901, Magnum)......depending on the work they want to do. The Magnum will cut through just about anything you can throw at it and is incredibly powerful. And yes, you can run an air powered rotary tool through it, or rig it up independently depending on your specific needs.



Cheers
Andrew

 

[KCSteve]

I can't say much about the AT. I did use one during the lettering class I took recently but I only tried the touch control briefly just to try it. Can't afford to upgrade right now so no sense getting tempted. It's what I'd get if buying new.

But I can speak on the handpiece issue.

The three main handpieces are the Monarch, the 901, and the Magnum.

You can do pretty much everything with any of them, but it may not be easy.

If you think of the potential power ranges as being 0 - 100, then the Monarch takes the low end of the range - say, 0 - 40 and lives there. The 901 would be about 20 - 70 or so, and the Magnum would be about 30 - 100. This is just a rough idea because you can do deep sculpting with a Monarch, if you're patient, and I routinely do fine shading lines with my Magnum - but it takes a delicate touch.

Think of the handpiece as having it's own 0 - 100 range. With the Monarch the 0 - 40 from the system gets mapped over the handpiece's 0 - 100 range so you have very fine control over the low end of the machine's power range. With the Magnum you have better access to the high end.

I started with just the Magnum, a recommendation from Lynda Schreck at GRS based in part on my rather large hands. The size and weight are pretty comfortable for me. I later added a Monarch to make delicate work easier.

For a lot of people all they need is the 901. Because I have the Magnum and Monarch I don't need a 901 (but if I had a third outlet...). For best control I do have to switch between my handpieces at times when a 901 user wouldn't though.

 

[Sam]

I have two GraverMach AT's. One on my bench and the other on my student bench. They work beautifully and allow my students to work gradually into Airtact operation while always having the convenience and security of the foot control when they need it.

My 901 handpiece is used for scrollwork, lettering, etc, and the Monarch is used for fine detail. I will say that I'm using the Monarch more and more for medium duty work lately.

~Sam

 

[Wildwire]

I want to thank Andrew, Steve & Sam for their input - it has helped confirm my research. Wildwire

 

[Mike Fennell]

I also tend to do much of the medium work, especially lettering, with the Monarch. With it, I seem to have better control with it and can use less lift than with the 901.

Mike Fennell