# Camaster Stinger or Legacy Maverick



## rondaugh

About to the pull the plug on a CNC machine and looking for some reviews on the Legacy Maverick. I have followed the Camaster site for about a year, so think I have somewhat of a handle on that machine and was honestly about to order one before the end of the year.

I ran across a used Legacy Maverick near me that might be worth a look. It's priced a little higher right now, so would need to come down for me to give serious consideration. What should I look for in a used machine? Is getting the Gen 2 that big a deal? When did they start making the Gen 2?

Anything else to look for, anyone have experience with them?

The machine will be used for sign, medallions, and occasional cabinet building for our business. Due to space constraints, I am having to look at 4 X 4 machines and smaller.


----------



## Phil32

You probably have more knowledge & experience with CNC machines than most of us. Go with your logic, and remember than technology progresses rapidly. Be prepared for possible upgrades.


----------



## 3020

I enjoyed my CaMaster Stinger and my Panther. They are a great company and the Camheads forum is great.


----------



## JohnMcClure

They look like awesome machines. I've operated on the extreme low end of CNC, with a Shapeoko 3, for the past 3 years now. It's funded my woodworking hobby, which these days is pretty well divorced from CNC. I intend to upgrade in January to something a bit better, looking at Axiom's offerings. Anything has to be better than the rubber bands (almost literally) that keep my Shapeoko lined up.


----------



## Dark_Lightning

Look carefully into post-purchase support with Legacy. I sold my Legacy 900 recently. That's all I'm going to say about it.


----------



## rondaugh

Thanks guys, at this point I am heavily leaning towards the camaster. For exactly the reason you mention Dark Lightning. I called them the other day, salesman was quick to talk to me and said he was sending me information in the next 10 minutes. That was 2 days ago. If that's what you get before you buy, what happens after sale?

The camaster forum is really making think that is the way I will end up going. Also, their sales guy Grant has been quick to answer any questions. He even suggested I pick up the machine from the factory over shipping because they will give me free training on my machine. Everything has been top notch with them.


----------



## copythat

> Thanks guys, at this point I am heavily leaning towards the camaster. For exactly the reason you mention Dark Lightning. I called them the other day, salesman was quick to talk to me and said he was sending me information in the next 10 minutes. That was 2 days ago. If that s what you get before you buy, what happens after sale?
> 
> The camaster forum is really making think that is the way I will end up going. Also, their sales guy Grant has been quick to answer any questions. He even suggested I pick up the machine from the factory over shipping because they will give me free training on my machine. Everything has been top notch with them.
> 
> - rondaugh


What did you decide? I own the Legacy Maverick 4×8.


----------



## ArtMann

Here is why I bought a Camaster. I am fortunate enough to live within driving distance of the Camaster shop. When I was first looking, I called them up and they invited me to the shop to see the machines for myself. When I got there, the salesman met me and introduced me to an engineer responsible for the design of the machine. He took the time to give me a 30 minute demo of a machine similar to what I was interested in. He gave me his office number in case I ever needed to consult on technical issues. I went over to the area where they were making the Stingers and I talked at length to one of the guys who assembles and calibrates the machines. His commitment to the company and attention to detail and quality were obvious. After that, I got a tour of their entire production process for all Camaster machines. I noticed they were using one of their own machines as a key element in the process. All in all, I was there for over two hours and could not have been treated more nicely. I ordered one on the spot.


----------



## Balloonengineer

Legacy also has a forum you can look at. I do not own one, but I know quite a few Legacy owners and have seen several mavericks (3×5 and 4×8) in person and in use. I am not impressed. Semi-supported rails (like SBR type, but not continuous). Most users have discovered support rails for stock are not straight (looks like they get bent strapping them down when sent out for powder coating). Tied to Legacy - customized mach3 (which has been having issues with windows updates). All those I know have discovered a resonance when cutting along X-axis at around 200ipm.

That said, all those I know with them like them, and all praise the free weekly training, etc. They also all have needed customer support and know the support people on a first name basis. I will allow you to draw your own conclusions.

http://legacycncforum.com/


----------



## PatL

I am in the same position right now, trying to decide on the right CNC router for me. I am less concerned with the $ and more with the features and precision. I will be doing work from signs, precision inlays (VCArved male/female), to basic panel work. Tormach has a new offering in their 24R but it is brand new to the market so no experienced users yet to share their experience. I do own a Tormach CNC Mill for >10 years now and they are great from a support perspective. I am considering the Legacy Maverick 3×5, Laguna IQ ATC, Camaster Panther, (and maybe should be looking at others??). I am concerned with the precision of the rack and pinion accuracy vs. ball screws. I talked to the Lagacy sales guy and he said they can only promise +/- .005". Wow!. The ball screws are .001 or better. Other things I care about is a size of minimum 2'x3', a PC based controller, 4 axis expand ability, a Z of minimum of 6" and preferably more, and the ability to trigger tool changes during the program with an electronic tool setter. I would really appreciate any feedback on this from anyone with direct experience.


----------



## ArtMann

The issue of CNC router accuracy is much, much more complex than you would expect if you are not familiar with the machines. You absolutely must get the manufacturer to explain precisely what they mean when they say "0.005" or "0.001" accuracy. 0.005 could be better than average and 0.001 could be deficient depending on what you mean.


----------



## PatL

Yes, that's what I am finding and it has been difficult to get the sales people to explain it without all the salesman speech and bragging about their machine over the competition. While I understand the need to "sell" their product, the technically useful information is surrounded by hype. Being an engineer myself, I understand the mechanisms involved and the pros and cons of each, however, I realize the various manufacturers employ various techniques to deal with the inherent backlash and rigidity problems. By the way, I am leaning toward the CAMaster Stinger II currently. Any thoughts?


----------



## rondaugh

> What did you decide? I own the Legacy Maverick 4×8.
> 
> - copythat


Completely missed this. I ended up buying a Shopsabre Pro series and can't be any more happy with the machine and the after sales support. They even through in 4k in upgrades when they couldn't get the machine to produce the speed advertised with the servo's I requested. Top notch company for sure.

I was going to buy the Camaster and would definitely recommend them. I ended up with a Shopsabre by a weird twist of fate. I hadn't made my mind up until last minute and had to buy a machine before the end of the year to take advantage of tax credits. As luck would have it, that was the week of Christmas and I couldn't get the Camaster salesman to call me back, not his fault. He was out for the holiday. The shopsabre salesman was there and got everything to me 2 days after Christmas. Otherwise, I would own a Camaster. Give Shopsabre a try, I think they have a little more industrial machine where the Camaster is better for the hobbyist. That's my impression anyway.


----------



## rondaugh

I have to laugh at my first post. Shows how green I was at the time. I "thought" I was going to use the machine for signs and occasional cabinet building. Once I received the machine and got acclimated to it, I have made maybe 5 signs with it. It runs non stop building cabinets. I had no idea there was as much demand as there was in my area. Once word got out that I had that capability, it hasn't stopped since. The whole thing took me completely by surprise.


----------



## rondaugh

> Yes, that s what I am finding and it has been difficult to get the sales people to explain it without all the salesman speech and bragging about their machine over the competition. While I understand the need to "sell" their product, the technically useful information is surrounded by hype. Being an engineer myself, I understand the mechanisms involved and the pros and cons of each, however, I realize the various manufacturers employ various techniques to deal with the inherent backlash and rigidity problems. By the way, I am leaning toward the CAMaster Stinger II currently. Any thoughts?
> 
> - PatL


Pat, if you decide to consider the Shopsabre. Call and ask for Steve in Production. He will be able to answer any technical questions you have. He has saved me more than once and won't try to sell you something you don't need. He talked me OUT of a few accessory purchases. Awesome guy, when you call to buy something he will ask what you're trying to do and then tell you if you need that or something else.


----------



## PatL

Thank you for the feedback. I'll check out the Shopsabre


----------



## oldnovice

Before I bought my Shopbot PRS Alpha, 2'×4' with a 2.2hp spindle, I looked at a lot of CNC routers including Legacy, Laguna, Canmaster, and many more than I can remember. I do not regret buying my current router as it has done everything I have asked it to do with accuracy and repeatability.

However, I should have bought a smaller, perhaps bench top size, with the same spindle as only one of my projects have used the entire work area. A bench top unit would obviously take up less room and a gantry type can be used for cutting dovetails (with the addition of some hardware).

Shopbot support has been very good and I cannot speak for other CNC manufacturers except by what I have read about Laguna and Legacy.

This is the "*manager"* of my garage shop!


----------



## Dark_Lightning

> Before I bought my Shopbot PRS Alpha, 2 ×4 with a 2.2hp spindle, I looked at a lot of CNC routers including Legacy, Laguna, Canmaster, and many more than I can remember. I do not regret buying my current router as it has done everything I have asked it to do with accuracy and repeatability.
> 
> However, I should have bought a smaller, perhaps bench top size, with the same spindle as only one of my projects have used the entire work area. A bench top unit would obviously take up less room and a gantry type can be used for cutting dovetails (with the addition of some hardware).
> 
> Shopbot support has been very good and I cannot speak for other CNC manufacturers except by what I have read about Laguna and Legacy.
> 
> This is the "*manager"* of my garage shop!
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> - oldnovice


UH-OH, looks like trouble!


----------



## PatL

thanks for the feedback. I'll check further into the shopbot unit. I would actually like a 3×4 or a 2×4 unit


----------

