From the bench

Notes on CNC repair, live tooling, and the used machine market.

Practical posts from 22 years of fixing CNC machines across Quebec and Ontario. Specific failures, real costs, and what we'd actually do.

Live Tooling
5 signs your live tooling is failing (catch them early)
Live tooling fails slowly, not suddenly. Bearings start making noise, runout climbs, coolant leaks past a tired seal. Catch any of the first three signs and the rebuild is straightforward. Miss them for six weeks and you're looking at gear damage, scrapped parts, and a bill that doubles.
October 6, 2026
Live Tooling
Eppinger vs WTO vs Alberti: which live tool brand actually lasts longer
All three brands make solid live tooling. They fail differently. Eppinger has the longest service life when maintained, but parts ship from Germany. WTO has the best parts network in North America. Alberti is the value play — shorter service life but cheaper rebuilds and faster parts. Right answer depends on duty cycle, not on which brand someone tells you is best.
October 6, 2026