Excetek V12100

One figure explains the Excetek V12100: 1,000 mm (39.4 in) of Z travel. No other machine in the maker's standard wire EDM list comes close to that height; the V1280 stops at 800 mm (31.5 in) and only as an option. The V12100 takes a workpiece of 1,650 x 1,400 x 1,000 mm (65.0 x 55.1 x 39.4 in) weighing up to 5,500 kg (12,125 lb).

In plan the stroke is 1,200 mm (47.2 in) in X and 1,000 mm (39.4 in) in Y. The travel envelope is therefore close to a cube, which says what the machine is for: thick blocks, tall dies and large structural sections where the cut length through the part is measured in hundreds of millimetres. U and V travel 260 x 260 mm (10.2 x 10.2 in) and the taper row is ±30° over 100 mm (3.9 in) with the wide diamond guide and nozzle.

Cutting through a metre of steel puts unusual demands on the wire, and the listed diameter range is 0.2 to 0.33 mm. Threading matters just as much. Excetek's V series notes say that a water jet can be used on tall workpieces to help threading, and that the water jet function threads a thickness of 500 mm. That is half this machine's Z travel, so how a full-height part is threaded and re-threaded after a break is a question to settle with the supplier. AWT is an option in any case.

The building has to suit it. Machine size is 5,010 x 4,285 x 3,890 mm (197.2 x 168.7 x 153.1 in), machine weight 12,950 kg (28,549 lb) and water tank capacity 4,700 L. The W6 control and its industrial PC, 15-inch touch screen and remote control are the same as on the other V series machines.