Why the MCXL is the BEST e.max CAD Mill Out There

Why the MCXL is the BEST e.max CAD Mill Out There

Why the MCXL is the BEST e.max CAD Mill Out There

So I’ve got your attention. Do I really dare stake claim to a statement as bold as “the MCXL being THE BEST mill out there”? Absolutely not, the MCXL is a terrible mill.

Read the title over again carefully.

Truthfully, the MCXL is a terrible mill, but in my opinion, it is the “BEST e.max CAD mill” out there. It’s loud, its proprietary, and it’s track record is beyond unreliable. Personally, the one I’ve used at our lab since 2012 has gone through 10 motors, a few distribution boards, a fried main board that went POP and billowed smoke, 3 replacement PC towers, and approximately 2-3 chamber doors per year of ownership. Thankfully, mostly all covered under warranty. The Patterson service team member, David, practically lived at our lab at one point. Any more and we probably would’ve had to put him on the payroll.

Now, back to the main point of this post. The MXCL is indeed the best mill for e.max CAD, or blue blocks as they are colloquially referred to. (Even though they look more violet/purple to me personally. What do you think? Am I color blind? Throw your opinion down in the comments!) I didn’t reach this epiphany until a few months ago as a result of our lab purchasing an imes-icore 350i that was ‘capable’ of milling e.max. Notice the emphasis on ‘capable’.

Yes, with the 350i there was an option for a burr smaller than the width of my thumb. And yes, I was able to design in a CAD software package (3shape) that wasn’t intended for ‘clinically acceptable’ same-day restorations while the patient waits in the lobby with a magazine. And yes, I had CAM software that could nest at different angles and with different sprue sizes!

But when it came time to milling e.max with the 350i, the honeymoon period wore off quickly. Margins chipping, entire crowns breaking loose, poor tool life, longer mill times. How could this be possible? This machine can mill titanium! It weighs 500 lbs! It can tilt at 30 degrees in multiple directions. It can play game of thrones! It can mill everything… Click here to go to my YouTube channel and watch the full review. Now that I’ve finished shamelessly plugging my own content, back to our regularly scheduled programming.

It made me realize that I took that little MCXL money-pit for granted all these years. Sirona, for some odd reason, has had this unfounded vendetta against the dental lab industry and has been actively trying to eliminate the profession by directly targeting dentists as their usual modus operandi since… forever. Let’s set my personal feelings about that aside for a moment, and I’ve gotta say, Sirona did something very right with the MCXL. I can pay due respect to a feat of engineering when it is rightly earned.

My model of the inLab MCXL features 2 motors on each side, the grinding motion and simultaneous action rips through e.max blocks like a 2am run to taco bell does on its way through your digestive system. The torque driver supplied with the machine is dialed in to a specific setting to eliminate vibration in the mandrel. It took me almost 8 months before I thought to apply the same torquing principle to the 350i’s glass block adapter… which did indeed significantly reduce chipping rates!

Calling the MCXL a “Mill” is actually inaccurate. It is a grinding machine. The way that it operates compared to a standard mill is completely different. This gives it an edge over mills with “wet options” because it is a purpose built tool for a specific task. Yes, there are other purpose-built grinding machines out in the market like the Roland DWX-4W, the CORiTEC 140i, The IOS Technologies Ts150, Kavo Arctica, AG Ceramill Mikro IC, Carestream CS3000, VHF N4, and the Planmeca PlanMill40S. But I haven’t personally tested any of those machines to comment on their respective e.max grinding abilities.

Taking it a step further, when the coolant that is used gets mixed with leftover grindings from the e.max, it amounts to nothing less than what I’d like to describe as ‘liquid sandpaper’. This is catastrophic for the seals and gaskets it just destroys them. Those cheap plastic MCXL chamber doors never stood a chance. My newfound respect was confirmed earlier this year when I had a chance to chat with a bunch of colleagues. They also mill e.max cad blocks, but on Wieland Selects, Rolands and even on DMG Ultrasonics. The consensus is that any and all CNC machines that mill e.max are prone to rapid deterioration. It’s simply the nature of the beast. The MCXL just happens to mill e.max much more quickly and produces desirable margins more reliably. Finally, the Pièce De Résistance, and what makes the MCXL stand out in its specific category as opposed to other purpose built wet grinders: How popular it is, and as a direct result of that, how cheaply one can come across a unit second hand. The used market for MCXLs is ripe for the picking.

As much as dentists like to try their hand at eliminating lab bills from their practices, many of them lack the time/staff/patience/know-how to operate a mill effectively, and their MCXL’s end up sitting in a corner collecting dust. Eventually, those lightly used machines end up on the second-hand market. You could purchase an entire farm of second-hand MCXL units to mill glass blocks all day long for the fraction of cost of some other options I’ve previously listed.

Picture this: you pick up an inLab cam license from Sirona, and then network together a farm of these machines. Disclaimer: there would be no automation, occlusal anatomy detail would suck, and those who dare to enter the room would probably be required to wear noise-cancelling ear protection from the screaming of those motors.

But churning out units at an average of 15 minutes a piece and margin reliability that beats out half-million dollar, 15-kilowatt behemoths. You’ve got a golden solution for a high-volume production environment to take care of such a challenging material. And since you can pick up used ones on eBay for next to nothing. If one is irreparable, just hop on an auction site and pick up a slightly used replacement. Granted, if everyone did this, we’d simply drive up the price in the second hand market and do what mining cryptocurrency has done to the cost of graphics cards.

But for that particular enterprising individual, who has just the right amount of demand, this solution might be a good fit. Personally, I find my volume of milled e.max to be declining so this MCXL farm wouldn’t be a good fit for me. Newer generation zirconias that are being released now, are rivaling e.max in translucency and overall appearance, while also being much easier to mill and touting higher strength figures.

If someone does decide to venture into this MCXL farm idea, we’d love it if you could share some pictures of your progress/setup! One piece of advice though: make sure you have a very capable service team member on your staff at all times, those machines are notoriously unreliable. The MCXL may be a terrible mill, but in my opinion, it is the BEST e.max CAD mill out there!

Have any stories about the unreliability of this machine that you’d like to share? Or do you disagree with the opinions? Throw your thoughts down in the comments section and let us know what you think about the MCXL.

imes-icore COREiTEC 350i Review

imes-icore COREiTEC 350i Review

imes-icore’s COREiTEC 350i is a Jack of all trades milling machine that can pretty much handle anything thrown at it.

HUGE Thank You to our Sponsors (hyperDENT & IMILLING) for making the production of this review video possible!

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DentalTechTips Exclusive! Core3DCentres Official Press Release

DentalTechTips Exclusive! Core3DCentres Official Press Release

DentalTechTips Exclusive Press Release:

Core3DCentres, LLC is excited to announce that they have recently acquired Ivoclar Vivadent’s Troy, Michigan milling center and all of its associated business assets. The transition is to be finalized and new ownership to commence on February 1st, 2018. In the interim, Ivoclar Vivadent’s customer service team will continue to provide service and support to customers through January 31st, 2018.

Products offered through the Troy facility and web portal login credentials will remain the same with only cosmetic modifications to branding. Customers with existing mill/warranty and 3shape support services of the Troy facility should not expect any change or interruption in service. All future licensing, renewals and service will be offered through and supported by both Core3DCentres.

According to our source Mark Maier, President of Core3DCentres:

“The addition of the Troy, MI location to Core3DCentres’ Las Vegas facility will provide our existing and new customers with a diverse product offering and world-class service and support. We now can offer models , abutments and broad range of new materials to Troy’s existing portfolio.”

Core3DCentres has been an Ivoclar-authorized milling partner since 2010 and one of the premiere IPS e.max CAD milling centers worldwide. With the existing knowledge-base developed by the collaboration of 3shape and Ivoclar’s team in Troy; Core3DCentres hopes to leverage that already-established foundation of outstanding product quality, best in-class 3shape support and efficient operations.

“Our goal is to bring a broad portfolio of digital solutions aimed at meeting the ever-changing product and regulatory needs of dental laboratories.”

The acquisition of the Troy facility was in-line with Core3DCentres’ commitment to partnering-with and being a leader in materials, education, service, and quality control systems.

“Ivoclar and 3shape have developed a tremendous support, implementation and education team in Troy, MI. The opportunity to leverage one of the best 3shape support teams and one of the best materials companies was opportunity that Core3DCentres did not want to miss out on.”

For the time being, there is no need for existing customers to make any changes. Core3DCentres will reach out to customers with additional communications over the coming weeks.

For more info on Core3DCentres and an exclusive in-depth interview, stick with DentalTechTips!

DentalTechTips Exclusive! Core3DCentres Official Press Release

DentalTechTips Exclusive! Core3DCentres Official Press Release

DentalTechTips Exclusive Press Release:
Core3DCentres, LLC is excited to announce that they have recently acquired Ivoclar Vivadent’s Troy, Michigan milling center and all of its associated business assets. The transition is to be finalized and new ownership to commence on February 1st, 2018. In the interim, Ivoclar Vivadent’s customer service team will continue to provide service and support to customers through January 31st, 2018.
Products offered through the Troy facility and web portal login credentials will remain the same with only cosmetic modifications to branding. Customers with existing mill/warranty and 3shape support services of the Troy facility should not expect any change or interruption in service. All future licensing, renewals and service will be offered through and supported by  both Core3DCentres.
According to our source Mark Maier, President of Core3DCentres:
“The addition of the Troy, MI location to Core3DCentres’ Las Vegas facility will provide our existing and new customers with a diverse product offering and world-class service and support. We now can offer models , abutments and broad range of new materials to Troy’s existing portfolio.”
Core3DCentres has been an Ivoclar-authorized milling partner since 2010 and one of the premiere IPS e.max CAD milling centers worldwide. With the existing knowledge-base developed by the collaboration of 3shape and Ivoclar’s team in Troy; Core3DCentres hopes to leverage that already-established foundation of outstanding product quality, best in-class 3shape support and efficient operations.
“Our goal is to bring a broad portfolio of digital solutions aimed at meeting the ever-changing product and regulatory needs of dental laboratories.”
The acquisition of the Troy facility was in-line with Core3DCentres’ commitment to partnering-with and being a leader in materials, education, service, and quality control systems.
“Ivoclar and 3shape have developed a tremendous support, implementation and education team in Troy, MI. The opportunity to leverage one of the best 3shape support teams and one of the best materials companies was opportunity that Core3DCentres did not want to miss out on.”
For the time being, there is no need for existing customers to make any changes. Core3DCentres will reach out to customers with additional communications over the coming weeks.
For more info on Core3DCentres and an exclusive in-depth interview, stick with DentalTechTips!
IPS Ivocolor

IPS Ivocolor

 

 

Nowadays, ceramists are spoiled. It wasn’t that long ago that getting the colours and surface textures you desired would mean an entire career of experimentation. Due to recent developments in stains and glazes, we have practically every colour imaginable available to us at our fingertips.

I received the Ivocolor Starter Kit a couple of months back and I’ve been using almost nothing else since. I wanted to make sure that I had a really firm grasp of the specific nuances and characteristics of the system before issuing my final verdict. The goal was to give an honest review for someone hoping to take the plunge and commit to this system. In full disclosure, I did receive this kit at no cost from Ivoclar, however, there was no financial incentive and it does not affect my final verdict on the product.

First Impressions

Using the stains for the first time, I didn’t really have an idea of what to expect. So I approached it with the idea that I’d explore and test it’s apparent similarities to other stains. One of the best ways to get to know something new is to compare it and relate it to what you are already familiar with.

Straight out of the box, you can tell that the development team really put a lot of time and effort into the product. The packaging simply screams quality. With an ultra clear glass-like finish, the jars convey a level of translucency and clarity alluding to the quality of the final product. It has no bearing on the actual product itself, but the thoughtfulness and time investment found here is a nice touch for those who are real sticklers for packaging like myself.ivoglass

Portion sizes are a bit on the small side. I’m not sure if there are larger sizes available, but it would be great to have; Especially for those popular shades that you tend to use over and over again. Head over to our Youtube Channel and check out the unboxing video if you want to see what’s included in the starter kit.

Overview

Ivocolor is a well thought out and thoroughly tested system. The stains are made from alkali-aluminosilicate glass, a material that is (interestingly enough) found in iphone panels. Aluminosilicate glasses are lauded for their inherent toughness, scratch resistance and compressive strength. I’ve been told that the product has been in development since 2012.

Carrying on the theme from the packaging, the product really feels like “Ivoclar 2.0”: refined, meticulous and calculated. I feel that they’ve developed a truly universal system; Not just a system that “works on all ceramics and fires at the same temperature etc.,” as they’ve claimed in the marketing brochure, but a universal system for both hardcore artists and high volume production labs alike.

Once I started using the system a bit more regularly, I started to understand and appreciate the depth and capabilities of the Ivocolor system. The system is a kind of hodgepodge of the best of both worlds of stains. At it’s core, Ivocolor consists of some pre-mixed gel paste stains as well as powder-based essence stains.

Pre-Mixed Shade Pastes

Gel pastes are great for those looking for consistency, speed and ease of use. The Gels come in 9 dentin shades and 3 incisal shades. If you’ve used empress or crystall glaze pastes, you’ll feel right at home. The working consistency is neither too runny or tacky. Ivoclar has really found and nailed the “goldilocks” texture for working with the gel pastes.

Maintaining colour depth, intensity as well as the great working consistency is truly a treat when working with these pastes.

As wonderful as the gel pastes are, the true star of the Ivocolor system is the powder-based component. The gels are what I like to refer to as a “gateway” into unlocking the true potential of the system: The Essence Powders.

Essence Powder Stains

To get my feet wet with the essence powders, I found myself adding small amounts here and there to experiment. The more I used them, the more I liked them. Only small amounts are needed for impressive results. The motto of “One for all” may refer to the universal nature of the system, but the meaning extends to what I refer to as the “trifecta” or “three musketeers” of Basic Red, Basic Yellow, and Basic Blue. With these three colours alone, you have every single colour of the rainbow available to you at your brush tip. This was definitely my favourite part of the entire system.

 

ivocolor-tri

Essence stains can be mixed with porcelain during buildup, internal characterizations for mamelons, and to create the simulation of cracks. The powder can be added to a second build up if you have trouble controlling moisture. This versatility really adds a layer of depth and dimension to your finished restoration. The “porcelain-like” nature of the powders will be a real treat for talented ceramists who are eager to get their hands on the system. I always found using a gel paste and painting on the surface as an “ok” solution, but it would lead to a dull/flat or dead look for the final product.  The level of comfort afforded by the essence powders is just simply refreshing. Once you have your desired look, throw a layer of enamel or transparent incisal over top and fire it.

Firing Cycles

Generally speaking, there’s one firing cycle:

ivocolor-firing

With the exception of Zirconia crowns, every ceramic fires at 710°C/1310°F. This is great for those busy days when you have crowns just sitting there on a tray waiting next to your furnace to glaze. Now you can just get a bigger tray and throw everything in the furnace at once.

When using older stains from Ivoclar in large batches (10-15+ at a time), I would always have problems with haziness or white discolourations for the final finish. There were workarounds like increasing holding times etc., but it wasn’t perfect and only reduced the effects slightly. With Ivocolor they seem to have solved this issue. I’m not sure if it’s a characteristic of the aluminosilicate glass, or a solvent that they’ve engineered, but large batches and single firings turn out with identical results.

The Not-So-Impressive Stuff

No product released is perfect, but Ivocolor comes pretty close. My grievances with the system simply boil down to a matter of preference rather than actual problems.

When it comes to firing multiple units, I feel this is a truly universal system, however, if you look in their catalogue, Ivoclar states: “IPS Ivocolor has only been tested and approved for IPS ceramics and Zenostar zirconium oxide. If IPS Ivocolor is used for other ceramic materials, the responsibility lies with the user.”

ivocolor-disclaimer

 

It’s like they wanted to go all the way, but simply fell short of committing fully.  Yes Ivoclar, we know you would like everyone to use your porcelains and furnaces exclusively, but the truth is, we pick and choose the best of what works for each of us.

I’ve used the stains and glazes on other “unapproved” ceramics and zirconias and they turned out equally as phenomenal… (if not moreso in some instances). Including a disclaimer won’t stop me from using it on other brands. All it does is weaken their credibility and resolve as a universal system. Since Ivoclar won’t say it, I will. Go ahead and use this on any system or ceramic you want, it will turn out great!

As mentioned earlier, I felt that the package sizes are a bit on the small side. I would love to see a big giant Costco-sized jar for those really popular shades that are used over and over again. The starter kit comes with everything that you need to get going. I would’ve preferred to have had a bit more variety.  The combination of basic red, yellow and blue is a total knockout, I was surprised that they only included basic red in the starter kit.

Shade 1 is only for A1 on ceramics, and not applicable to anything for zirconia. Shade 4 is for B1 and B2 on ceramics and no zirconia applications as well. No grey type shade for C+D shades was included either. The incisal gels are blue.. and less blue. I would’ve preferred a grey/violet option here.

If you ask me, my ideal kit would’ve been:

Sunset, Khaki, Basic Red, Basic Blue and Basic Yellow for essence powders

SD0 for those hollywood wannabe patients, SD2 would stay and either SD6 or SD8 for those grey/brown/aged ones would’ve sufficed. As for incisal shades I would’ve wanted Si2 and si3 for a violet and blue option.

I’m not saying that the starter kit is a poor choice by any means. I think the reason Ivoclar included these in the starter kit was to really showcase the boldness intensity and contrast of colour capabilities of the system. I simply would’ve preferred the more subtle options because that’s my style of characterization.

Final Verdict

Overall, I’m impressed and I’m glad that I had a chance to try this system out. I’m excited to see how the popularity of Ivocolor will grow in the coming years. The 2-type all-encompassing system is a real game changer and I foresee it as a benchmark for all others to live up to. With such a well thought out and meticulously crafted system, Ivoclar deserves every ounce of praise for their creation. The Gel Pastes have simply nailed the “goldilocks consistency”, not too runny but not too thick. The Essence Powders are an artist’s dream, offering unlimited potential. It is a truly Universal stain and glaze system, fire all of your ceramics (even unapproved ones) all at once in a single program.