Laguna Swift CNC

I am looking at the 4’x8’ Laguna Swift and wanted to get opinions on it. For its class it seems to be priced very well. I currently run a small desktop CNC that I built called the OX. It runs on open source software which is both cool and not. It has some limitations that really hold back the capability of the machine. I am seriously wanting to get my own business going and am also planning to purchase an 80watt laser cutter soon. I’ve been looking at the Laguna Swift and it seems pretty impressive. I would really appreciate any feedback or experience you guys here may have with one. I am currently working in California not far from Irvine which is where the Laguna showroom is. I’m hoping to make it there to see the machine in person before I fly back home. Anyone have any experience with their CNC machines? Would you recommend them ? Thanks!

Looks like a chinese machine with a laguna logo and pricetag on it? The controller is a really cheap chinese "DSP Controller" thats worth all of $200-300 depending on the vendor. They probably do quite a bit of extra setup/calibration/validation on the machines when they come in however.

That being said, the Laguna support is likely worth something, especially if you're near their showroom.

For the same money, if you feel have enough CNC experience (especially building having built your own), you can buy a chinese one with a 5-9kW italian auto tool changing spindle, japanese 750w servos, and an industrial controller (or the exact same dsp controller). For half the money, you can have essentially the same machine. But I wouldn't do that unless you're pretty confident with CNC and feel you can fix any issues on the machine and make any adjustments that need making. Likewise, if you're running a production shop, the time you spend on it after it arrives might make it cheaper and easier to just buy the Laguna.

PM David Bon. He posts here and will give you an honest assessment. He has two and is quite pleased.

Mark can you give me any recommendations for a reputable Chinese manufacturer. I am going the same route with my laser cutter. Boss laser for instance is basically a G.weiki laser cutter with US upgrades and support. I feel very confident I can fix issues with a CNC they are simple machines really. Motor controllers with precise motors and a pc board to control them. What makes me nervous is a Chinese manual telling me what adjustments do what, but even then I think I could figure it out.

I havent bought one, so I can't speak personally.

Blue Elephant and AccTek have seemed the best so far from my research, with OmniCNC looking good, but being hard to get hold of (even their sales folks).

The way I see buying a router from china is the same as when I bought my laser cutter - for these routers, it's a 1.5ton pre-fabbed CNC kit. Its cheaper to buy all the parts from them. They will probably assembled correctly if not "best practice" - if it's total rubbish I'm still way ahead of doing it all from scratch, and I can buy 3 of them for the same price as a US/EU model... so if the success rate is 34% I'm ahead haha (not that I have the cash for that sort of thing!) I changed a lot on my lasers when I got them (greatly improved grounding, vastly improved the bed as the most important ones) and in the end I was really happy with them. The company I bought it from was totally useless at after-sales support, but I knew enough to "git er dun". There's enough Chinese routers out there in use by first time cnc users that they can't be toooo bad. I've read that with some manufacturers you pretty much need to go through and replace all the bolts, as they just use whatever fits in the hole - obviously I'd try to avoid those sorts of companies, but if I happen to get "that guy" as the assembler of my machine I know I'm capable (both experience and equipment wise) of fixing their mistakes.

There's a guy in New Zealand who does how to videos for the Syntec industrial controllers, you can find his videos in one of the syntec threads on CNC Zone. If you're worried about the very chinglish manuals, or lack of manual, you can always opt to have them put in a Siemens SINUMERIK 840D advanced cnc controller for a couple of thousand dollars more. They have great manuals and are a *huge* european company.

I'm planning to buy the controller I'll use for the big router, and convert my small router to it if I get time in my production schedule so I can learn how it works in and and out before I drop the big bucks. We'll see how that works out though ;)


Andy Liu |Branch Manager
Mob&Whatsapp&wechat: +86-15254150505| Skype:andylasers
Office:+86-531-86160023| E: export06@acctekcnc.com | W: http://www.acctekcnc.com
Jinan AccTek Machinery Co.,Ltd

Jenny | Sales Manager
Jinan Blue Elephant CNC Machinery Co,.Ltd
Email:dx-jenny@jndexian.com.cn Skype：dexian010
Mobile/Whatsapp: 0086-18615679773 Website: www.elephant-cnc.com


Again, I've only spoken to these folks via whatsapp/email, so I can't say whether they are any good or not.

I would recommend them for sure. We have two of there smartsop 2s and they run none stop, true work horses.
The price of the machines are great and the fact that you can get support on the phone on the first try is a true life saver when you have a job deadline.
Couldn't be happier, I only wish I would have went with 5'x12' tables instead of 4'x8'.
Visit there showroom and you can see how well these machines are made.

Thanks guys! Been so swamped at work haven’t had a chance to get back here till now.
I contacted OMNI CNC but got no response yet. That was about 4 days ago, doesn’t give a warm fuzzy about sending thousands to them overseas. Another Chinese company Rotec got back to me but there machine was 20k. It did have ATC but that’s 5k more then the Swift. I’ve read some mixed reviews on Laguna but it is nice to have US support.
Now I just heard back from another US seller “Industrial CNC”
Anyone ever hear of them or have experience with them and their CNCs? They quoted a good price compared to the other two companies Ive heard from. Supposedly they have a great customer track record according to their website. I don’t see a whole lot of videos on YouTube but I haven’t really searched the forums yet. The Artisian model is basic with no ATC but for someone starting off it seems like a decent option...any thoughts?

Have you considered Camaster? Made in USA. Built like a tank.

They look great but way out of my price range. Trying to stay under 15k.

Got in touch with blue elephant last night. The price is very good for the machine I’m looking at. Even with upgrades it’s way below the US market. I wish I could afford to support a US supplier but the price is almost double. Trying now to do my research on the company to see if they are reputable. So far they seem legit.

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Originally Posted by Matthew Herrera

Got in touch with blue elephant last night. The price is very good for the machine I’m looking at. Even with upgrades it’s way below the US market. I wish I could afford to support a US supplier but the price is almost double. Trying now to do my research on the company to see if they are reputable. So far they seem legit.

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So did you get one and how is it working for you??