Carver Feedback
Gerry Stark
Description
Collection
Title:
Carver Feedback
Creator:
Gerry Stark
Date:
3/5/2003
Text:
Dear List,
Thanks to everyone who replied to my inquiry. Listed below is the
responses. The names have been withheld to protect the innocent. Most
of the response was positive to all carvers and even mentioned two more:
BioSculptor and Seattle. We have not made our decision yet, but we
definitely feel more informed!
Thanks,
Gerry Stark, CP
>My experience with Vorum has been excellent! I purchased a StarScanner
from them a year ago. The tech support is #1. They are nice folks.
Having said all of that, travel at your own risk.
>In response to your request, I have used Dennis Clark's fab where Andy
Steele,CPO runs things as I am sure you are aware. They have done all of
my carving since l996. I called him to respond to your e-mail and left a
message for him to contact the list serve today. Maybe you could call
him at O&P1 at 800-408-3598. He has probably seen it all over the years.
>You know how I feel about the carvers (and I would take a hard look at
the OWW carver).
>I have an ART carver that has been updated and running hard for 12
years. The best return on my investment I can think of. The only
drawback is I can't do body jackets.
>We have a BioSculptor system and besides software features the
following reasons were also considered important in our selection:-1)
small footprint with the capacity to handle large work such as spinals
(alternative horizontal carvers have a very large footprint 2)
availability and range of foam plugs 3) sturdy construction, reliability
and ongoing technical support
>I noticed that you have not listed us as vendor for Carvers. We are
still in the business. We have actually developed an expanded Carver to
better handle the larger carve for Body jackets and spinals with carving
times that would blow you away. We have been using this carver
internally for years with out issue. The Seattle Carvers are still
running strong out in the field, when we do have a request for service
we are on it. Please don't leave us out of your decision making process
with out all of the facts.
>I understand that Seattle has a new carver in the works and I've heard
good things about it from a reliable source. If you're interested, let
me know and I'll point you in the right direction. You might just call
Seattle Systems and ask them about it, I don't think it is a big secret,
but really don't know. Their first carver was not that impressive, as I
understand it.
>I use an ART carver and if Benz copied their design, I can tell you
what to watch out for. I am in the process of reengineering the ART.
Here's what's wrong. The radial stepper motor (the ball mill driver) is
locked in place with a single set screw. Not good for a stepper motor
that is constantly reversing directions. I'm updating that with a
Trantorque adapter. There is a collar (shaft) that is wider than the
ball end mill and will crash into the foam unless you are using a
tapered cone that is in the right size range. To eliminate this problem,
I'm either going to replace the shaft with a shorter one or move the
entire radial assembly (might need longer rails) back 3-4. Once this
done, and a longer ball end mill is added, there will always be a
cutting surface inside the cutting compartment. As a result, it will not
matter what size or shape blank I choose for carving. The reason why I
am doing this is because I use a 2# density iso-polyurethane (or
something like that) foam that I purchase in large and various size
blocks. I have the cost of a typical BK down to about $3.50. However,
because of the cutter problem, I first have to rough-in the shape either
by hand or using a cylinder cutting program on the computer.Other than
that and the limitations for cutting 4th axis shapes, I think the ART
carver is a very sound machine, especially when fitted with a Centroid
controller. That makes me believe that the Benz might also be a good
machine.I've also retrofitted the ART with vacuum assistance, so
cleaning, etc., has been improved greatly. Hope it helps.
>I have had both good and bad feelings with my PDI large carver. It has
been a very dependable carver over the years. One electric motor burned
up and I was told by PDI that it was over $500.00 to replace it. I took
it to an electric motor shop close to me and it only cost $50.00 to
repair. It's only a 1/3 hp motor and I could not see that much to
replace it. The tech support and help I received over the years has
really been very good from PDI. They have been very responsive and quick
to get back to me when I had a problem. I also had the unfortunate
experience with dealing with Active Life Sciences. Shash Nagle was the
most unprofessional, unethical individual to deal with. He sold me a
carver, digitizer, and computer that never worked properly and then he
went belly up. It cost nearly $6000,00 to revamp the carver to servo
motors and make it functional. I also got to work on some carvers that
Ohio Willow Wood has now and they appear to be a very good generation of
machine. I think they might have a good thing going.
>I have a Medico unit if you would like to call me feel free
>The Ortho Carve is a state-of-the-art, 3-axis carver that is capable of
producing a wide range of shapes needed with O&P care within extremely
short carving times. Whether it is a BK, AK, Spinal or AFO shape, this
dynamic unit can handle these carvings with ease of use and time
efficiency. The Ortho Carve has been designed specifically with the
Tracer software in mind, so it is especially efficient in managing the
Tracer files.
>We here a Prosthetic Energy Inc. have had a Autoformer carver from
Medico for approximately 4 years now. We decided to buy from Medico at
the time because we had dealt with Larry and Terry Bloom with our
purchase of TRACER software a year previously and were pleased with
their support. I think that we were one of the first Autoformer
installations and we were given a bit of a discount at the time so price
was also a factor. We have been very pleased with the support that
Medico has provided. Our initial carver was damaged by the shipper and
we had some erratic problems with it but it was replaced by a new,
upgraded machine by Medico at no extra cost to us. We only are doing
Tracer prosthetic carvings on it using foam blanks but have been very
pleased with the quality and speed of the carver. We have not needed to
do any maintenance on our carver as yet. I believe that Medico has now
installed at least 16 units around North America and have established
themselves as a good reliable carving system.
We have been well looked after as far as any trouble shooting that
needed to be done and just recently needed help upgrading our computer
to comply with Tracer software upgrades and spent most of a Sunday
afternoon on the phone with Terry Bloom as he guided us through the
installation.Carvers are a very big investment and I can say that our
experience with Medico has been really quite good with reliable support.
Gerry Stark, CP, FAAOP
Director of Education & Technical Support
Fillauer, Inc.
********************
To unsubscribe, send a message to: <Email Address Redacted> with
the words UNSUB OANDP-L in the body of the
message.
If you have a problem unsubscribing,or have other
questions, send e-mail to the moderator
Paul E. Prusakowski,CPO at <Email Address Redacted>
OANDP-L is a forum for the discussion of topics
related to Orthotics and Prosthetics.
Public commercial postings are forbidden. Responses to inquiries
should not be sent to the entire oandp-l list. Professional credentials
or affilliations should be used in all communications.
Thanks to everyone who replied to my inquiry. Listed below is the
responses. The names have been withheld to protect the innocent. Most
of the response was positive to all carvers and even mentioned two more:
BioSculptor and Seattle. We have not made our decision yet, but we
definitely feel more informed!
Thanks,
Gerry Stark, CP
>My experience with Vorum has been excellent! I purchased a StarScanner
from them a year ago. The tech support is #1. They are nice folks.
Having said all of that, travel at your own risk.
>In response to your request, I have used Dennis Clark's fab where Andy
Steele,CPO runs things as I am sure you are aware. They have done all of
my carving since l996. I called him to respond to your e-mail and left a
message for him to contact the list serve today. Maybe you could call
him at O&P1 at 800-408-3598. He has probably seen it all over the years.
>You know how I feel about the carvers (and I would take a hard look at
the OWW carver).
>I have an ART carver that has been updated and running hard for 12
years. The best return on my investment I can think of. The only
drawback is I can't do body jackets.
>We have a BioSculptor system and besides software features the
following reasons were also considered important in our selection:-1)
small footprint with the capacity to handle large work such as spinals
(alternative horizontal carvers have a very large footprint 2)
availability and range of foam plugs 3) sturdy construction, reliability
and ongoing technical support
>I noticed that you have not listed us as vendor for Carvers. We are
still in the business. We have actually developed an expanded Carver to
better handle the larger carve for Body jackets and spinals with carving
times that would blow you away. We have been using this carver
internally for years with out issue. The Seattle Carvers are still
running strong out in the field, when we do have a request for service
we are on it. Please don't leave us out of your decision making process
with out all of the facts.
>I understand that Seattle has a new carver in the works and I've heard
good things about it from a reliable source. If you're interested, let
me know and I'll point you in the right direction. You might just call
Seattle Systems and ask them about it, I don't think it is a big secret,
but really don't know. Their first carver was not that impressive, as I
understand it.
>I use an ART carver and if Benz copied their design, I can tell you
what to watch out for. I am in the process of reengineering the ART.
Here's what's wrong. The radial stepper motor (the ball mill driver) is
locked in place with a single set screw. Not good for a stepper motor
that is constantly reversing directions. I'm updating that with a
Trantorque adapter. There is a collar (shaft) that is wider than the
ball end mill and will crash into the foam unless you are using a
tapered cone that is in the right size range. To eliminate this problem,
I'm either going to replace the shaft with a shorter one or move the
entire radial assembly (might need longer rails) back 3-4. Once this
done, and a longer ball end mill is added, there will always be a
cutting surface inside the cutting compartment. As a result, it will not
matter what size or shape blank I choose for carving. The reason why I
am doing this is because I use a 2# density iso-polyurethane (or
something like that) foam that I purchase in large and various size
blocks. I have the cost of a typical BK down to about $3.50. However,
because of the cutter problem, I first have to rough-in the shape either
by hand or using a cylinder cutting program on the computer.Other than
that and the limitations for cutting 4th axis shapes, I think the ART
carver is a very sound machine, especially when fitted with a Centroid
controller. That makes me believe that the Benz might also be a good
machine.I've also retrofitted the ART with vacuum assistance, so
cleaning, etc., has been improved greatly. Hope it helps.
>I have had both good and bad feelings with my PDI large carver. It has
been a very dependable carver over the years. One electric motor burned
up and I was told by PDI that it was over $500.00 to replace it. I took
it to an electric motor shop close to me and it only cost $50.00 to
repair. It's only a 1/3 hp motor and I could not see that much to
replace it. The tech support and help I received over the years has
really been very good from PDI. They have been very responsive and quick
to get back to me when I had a problem. I also had the unfortunate
experience with dealing with Active Life Sciences. Shash Nagle was the
most unprofessional, unethical individual to deal with. He sold me a
carver, digitizer, and computer that never worked properly and then he
went belly up. It cost nearly $6000,00 to revamp the carver to servo
motors and make it functional. I also got to work on some carvers that
Ohio Willow Wood has now and they appear to be a very good generation of
machine. I think they might have a good thing going.
>I have a Medico unit if you would like to call me feel free
>The Ortho Carve is a state-of-the-art, 3-axis carver that is capable of
producing a wide range of shapes needed with O&P care within extremely
short carving times. Whether it is a BK, AK, Spinal or AFO shape, this
dynamic unit can handle these carvings with ease of use and time
efficiency. The Ortho Carve has been designed specifically with the
Tracer software in mind, so it is especially efficient in managing the
Tracer files.
>We here a Prosthetic Energy Inc. have had a Autoformer carver from
Medico for approximately 4 years now. We decided to buy from Medico at
the time because we had dealt with Larry and Terry Bloom with our
purchase of TRACER software a year previously and were pleased with
their support. I think that we were one of the first Autoformer
installations and we were given a bit of a discount at the time so price
was also a factor. We have been very pleased with the support that
Medico has provided. Our initial carver was damaged by the shipper and
we had some erratic problems with it but it was replaced by a new,
upgraded machine by Medico at no extra cost to us. We only are doing
Tracer prosthetic carvings on it using foam blanks but have been very
pleased with the quality and speed of the carver. We have not needed to
do any maintenance on our carver as yet. I believe that Medico has now
installed at least 16 units around North America and have established
themselves as a good reliable carving system.
We have been well looked after as far as any trouble shooting that
needed to be done and just recently needed help upgrading our computer
to comply with Tracer software upgrades and spent most of a Sunday
afternoon on the phone with Terry Bloom as he guided us through the
installation.Carvers are a very big investment and I can say that our
experience with Medico has been really quite good with reliable support.
Gerry Stark, CP, FAAOP
Director of Education & Technical Support
Fillauer, Inc.
********************
To unsubscribe, send a message to: <Email Address Redacted> with
the words UNSUB OANDP-L in the body of the
message.
If you have a problem unsubscribing,or have other
questions, send e-mail to the moderator
Paul E. Prusakowski,CPO at <Email Address Redacted>
OANDP-L is a forum for the discussion of topics
related to Orthotics and Prosthetics.
Public commercial postings are forbidden. Responses to inquiries
should not be sent to the entire oandp-l list. Professional credentials
or affilliations should be used in all communications.
Citation
Gerry Stark, “Carver Feedback,” Digital Resource Foundation for Orthotics and Prosthetics, accessed November 24, 2024, https://library.drfop.org/items/show/220786.
