I just got a new CNC router and am looking to pair it up with a boring machine. They all look the same to me. Any recommendation on number of spindles, and brand?

If your cnc is not a nesting machine then it is gonna just cut Blanks, Only software tells each machine what to do Or if it is manual then the operator does

What kind of boring machine are you talking about? A dowel machine or a line bore? If you are not drilling all line bore on the CNC you need to do some work with your software or get some new software that will allow you to do that. If you are looking for a dowel machine it maybe best just to start with blind dados. Then you just shoot the box together and then run screws into predrilled holes from the CNC. I have never used a dowel machine but I can't see how it would be any faster than staple and screw. I could see and advantage with an automatic drill and dowel inserter but not the $10,000 manual ones the auto ones are about $50,000. We are using all UV2 3/4" maple even the backs that are dadoed in. The way that it nest its cheaper that way believe it or not. It also allows the box to be build faster. With the method I described our guys are building wall cabinets with hardware in 7-8 minuted and a drawer base with all runners in about 12 minutes. All hardware holes are drilled on the CNC.

We also run all on the nested base, staple and screw, We owned a boring machine but we did sell it without ever setting it up

Let me step back and say I've got a mix of work where I do about $150k / year of flat pack furniture that requires horizontal boring. I currently have a 2 spindle machine that I use for it. But it constantly gets out of alignment. I only use it for my flat pack work. For my cabinet construction, I bore 5mm construction thru holes on my cabinet sides, then staple and attach with confirmats.

I suppose I could buy a better boring machine just for the flat pack furniture. But was thinking about using it for cabinets as well. That's interesting that all the responses are against it.

We've had a nested CNC router for about 8 years now along with a Mini Max 21 spindle line bore machine. It has been a good machine, never needed major repair of any kind. I assume all of your gables etc will be bored on the router and you will be end boring on the line bore. I think any reputable machine will do the job. We bore off one fence and never move the fence once it is set. We just this week to delivery of a Gannomat Index dowel inserter. We'll see if it is worth the money!

The price might be right for a used Accusystems like an HP Jr or similar model. It's a cnc-controlled single drill head and dowel inserter. Ideally you'd get something that would recognize a CNC part's bar code and load the proper boring program. Omit the dowel insertion step to pop horizontal holes for your confirmats or cam knock-down fasteners.

If you can swing it go for the auto drill/dowel inserter, we started with just a horizontal system boring machine but quickly replaced it.
I would avoid an Accusystems machine, they were a nightmare to deal with when the computer failed.
We got a new KOCH a year and half ago couldn't be happier. It really pays for itself in efficiency.
Omal & Gannomat make great ones too

I have a Maggi System 32 construction boring machine that I do all of my horizontal boring on- decks, stretchers, wall decks and tops.
I've been really pleased with it. Set it up and forget it.
I use confirmat construction, so doing my 7mm thru holes and 5mm line boring on the Weeke.

We bore and dowel because we need hidden fasteners.

We started with a Gannomat combination machine and it was good. We outgrew that and went to an Accusystems bore and insert, as someone else said I would avoid them including Pillar. its the same people different name.

We now have an Omal bore and insert. I have nothing but good things to say about that machine. An Omal is in the $50K range.

For what you described I quality combination machine would probably be the best bet. I just sold a Gannomat at Auction for $5K.

What are you boring with now?

I've been following this thread because I've been researching boring machines for a while and am very seriously considering purchasing a Maggi System 23 machine.

Since some of you seem to have experience with similar machines i am wondering: is the (new) Gannomat equivalent really worth 2X the cost?

Eric,

that is the same question I've been asking myself few months ago.

Finally, I decided to go with Maggie System 23. I got a new machine recently, but still didn't put it in service cause I didn't have time for that, due to a lot of work I had recently. I hope it will be ready in 2-3 weeks, and if you're not in a hurry, I'll come back here and report how it works once I try it.

But, from what I could see unpacking the machine it seems it's well built and it looks like it has enough "steel meat" to stay rigid and in tune, fences seems strong and all spindles rotate surprisingly easily when you rotate just one by your hand, which makes me believe that it's mechanics is good. I do not have experience with other brands of boring machines so it's not a real comparison against others, just my assessment of the machine in general.

Like many before me have said about using those machines - "Set and forget" is the way to go with this machines, and if you sometimes need a hole somewhere else than usual, maybe it's better just to use a piece of plywood to offset your working piece of the fence, instead of moving the fences around and dialing them all the time.

All the people from J & G Machinery I've been in contact with regarding the purchase gave been great to me, especially Andy from sales and Peter from technical support who answered all my technical questions (like how to connect that 3 phase machine through phase converter and some more).
Contrary to some other manufacturers (or their U.S. distributors) they had everything in stock and could ship it in 1-2 days.

If you plan on doing bigger jobs or multiple projects at once, a multi-spindle machine would be a better fit