xsTECH Router Mill

December 09, 2020
xsTECH Router Mill Provides Desktop CNC Capabilities

Tormach Inc., the industry’s leading supplier of affordable and compact CNC machines, now offers the xsTECH Router Mill, a ready-to-use tabletop system with full CNC capabilities. The xsTECH is small but features big capabilities for cutting plastics, wood, and aluminum.  

An ideal starter CNC system for students learning CNC fundamentals, the xsTECH comes ready to run and requires no assembly.  It plugs into a standard 120V wall outlet and for those outside of the US, a 230V version is available. The xsTECH comes complete with a wide variety of features including:

  • 10.4” Touchscreen PathPilot Controller
  • Keyboard, Mouse, and Jog Shuttle
  • WiFi Module
  • Electronic Tool Setter
  • 16-Piece Carbide Cutting Tool Set
  • ER11 Collets
  • See-Through Enclosure for Dust Control and Safe Use

 “The xsTECH is small and easy to use, and like all Tormach CNC machines, it uses our award-winning PathPilot control software,” said Andrew Grevstad, Business Development Director.  “PathPilot is intuitive and provides newcomers with the perfect entry into understanding CNC fundamentals.”

Remote Teaching and Learning with PathPilot HUB

Tormach’s PathPilot HUB is an incredibly useful tool for teachers and remote educators.  It provides a full software interface for any Tormach machine, including the xsTECH, and allows students to learn CNC programming from a virtual hub.  According to Tormach’s Marketing Director, Lori Morrison Bufalo, PathPilot HUB has been used extensively by teachers during the COVID pandemic.

“Teachers are using PathPilot HUB to teach students remotely,” she said.  “When they are able to come into school to use the Tormach mills, the students have already learned their programming skills and can make their proven parts.”

Ideal for teaching the basics of CNC, teachers and students can simply create their accounts on Tormach’s PathPilot HUB site.  This allows them to do anything they could do on the actual machine, only it’s a digital twin.  Best of all, PathPilot HUB is completely free to use.

Related Glossary Terms

  • computer numerical control ( CNC)

    computer numerical control ( CNC)

    Microprocessor-based controller dedicated to a machine tool that permits the creation or modification of parts. Programmed numerical control activates the machine’s servos and spindle drives and controls the various machining operations. See DNC, direct numerical control; NC, numerical control.

  • milling machine ( mill)

    milling machine ( mill)

    Runs endmills and arbor-mounted milling cutters. Features include a head with a spindle that drives the cutters; a column, knee and table that provide motion in the three Cartesian axes; and a base that supports the components and houses the cutting-fluid pump and reservoir. The work is mounted on the table and fed into the rotating cutter or endmill to accomplish the milling steps; vertical milling machines also feed endmills into the work by means of a spindle-mounted quill. Models range from small manual machines to big bed-type and duplex mills. All take one of three basic forms: vertical, horizontal or convertible horizontal/vertical. Vertical machines may be knee-type (the table is mounted on a knee that can be elevated) or bed-type (the table is securely supported and only moves horizontally). In general, horizontal machines are bigger and more powerful, while vertical machines are lighter but more versatile and easier to set up and operate.