Question: Ref. micro motors

[Paul Russell]

Hello there folks,
I have been looking on e-bay for micro motors, and come across a Marathon n7, that spins up to 35k rpm.
Question is, is this tool appropriate for engraving ( re. Background removal, minor shaping, and de- buring ) and general bench duties ?

Any help and or advice will be greatly appreciated .

Cheers, Paul.

 

[Gemsetterchris]

Any micromotor will work, but you get what you pay for..if a cheapo one burns out in 6 months you`ll know why.

I`d rather go for a known make like NSK, Foredom or something via a tool store to be on the safe side.

 

[GTJC460]

I got a cheap one from eBay that was a Chinese make. Total garbage. It worked for one job then died. I paid $80 for it. Worst $80 I ever wasted.

 

[Paul Russell]

I guess, you get what you pay for with all tools. Buy it once and buy it right , I suppose ......

Cheers , Paul.

 

[JJ Roberts]

Paul,I would suggest you use a single point graver to remove any background when engraving, 90 degree or a flat works,a rotory tool well get you in trouble.One slip and your spending valuable time correcting your mistake. J.J.

 

[Paul Russell]

Thanks JJ, I do my background removal with V's and flats.
I was looking at trying a bit of stone setting and that type of thing,to compliment some of the engravings. Maybe just go with a flex-shaft instead.
Thanks again, Paul.

 

[Doc Mark]

Well, I don't know anything about stone setting, but I carve wooden birds for wildfowl carving competions and I use a Foredom for gross wood reduction and a RAM micromotor for all the details. I also use the RAM for all my cameo carving until I need to get into the tiny detail hand work. I've had this unit for about 12 years and have only had to replace the cord and the brushes once. These units are very reasonably priced and hold up well under heavy use. The NSK are wonderful tools but are far more expensive.

Edit: The 45,000 rpm RAM costs around $250.00 at most woodworking supply websites.

 

[GTJC460]

For stone setting, you really only need a foredom. I have some motors and foot pedals that are 25+ years old and still going! Yes they have runout in the handpieces but it's nothing you can't deal with.

The micromotors are very fine tools and I certainly would like to have one, but I'm not compelled to shell out $800-1300 for the priviledge to use one.

I suppose if you want to do really high end setting like Jura or Alexandre Sidorov it would be a necessity. But I would bet that most wholesale setters in New York city are using foredoms. That say volumes right there. They are great tools.

 

[Gemsetterchris]

I'll just add, I've been using a foredom over 5 years & worn out one handpiece..that's fixable.
I much prefer micromotors over pendant drills.

 

[Red Green]

The 'Marathon' on ebay is not a real "Marathon" the Chinese use marathon as a generic term for micro motors. Marathon comes from Korea, is not cheap junk but you must buy it from a reputable dealer, it is about one third of the price of an NSK. For background removal you would be better served with a high speed air rotary like the NSK Presto. I cannot imagine using a pendent grinder or even a well made micro motor for background removal, sounds like a nightmare.

Bob