Homemade CNC machine

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Jun 11, 2006 | 09:00 PM

#76

"Beemer Nut"

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From: "Islander"

You should spend more time with the wife and your kitty cat, BTW your project is rolling along quickly and looks great, if it were me i'd take two months to show any progress.

.....=o&o>.....

Jun 14, 2006 | 08:59 PM

#77

frederic

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From: New Jersey

More pictures...

making taller corner posts:
http://frederic.midimonkey.com/cnc2/IM001842.JPG
http://frederic.midimonkey.com/cnc2/IM001843.JPG
http://frederic.midimonkey.com/cnc2/IM001844.JPG

Bearing blocks (holders):
http://frederic.midimonkey.com/cnc2/IM001845.JPG
http://frederic.midimonkey.com/cnc2/IM001846.JPG
http://frederic.midimonkey.com/cnc2/IM001849.JPG

Y-Axis leadscrews:
http://frederic.midimonkey.com/cnc2/IM001847.JPG
http://frederic.midimonkey.com/cnc2/IM001848.JPG

Jun 15, 2006 | 03:04 PM

#78

frederic

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From: New Jersey

Adding angle iron to the top of the posts to help make the structure a bit more stable:

http://frederic.midimonkey.com/cnc2/IM001850.JPG
http://frederic.midimonkey.com/cnc2/IM001851.JPG
http://frederic.midimonkey.com/cnc2/IM001852.JPG

Jun 15, 2006 | 05:50 PM

#79

Torque1st

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Check out this post:
https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/s...8&postcount=34

A tip for machining small parts:

A big lathe can turn small parts also but sometimes the spindle speeds are not high enuf, otherwise they can do almost anything a small lathe can do. When you need to chuck on small parts there are three methods I have seen used:
-Use a small lathe chuck chucked up into the large chuck.
-Fit a small chuck on the lathe spindle.
-use a 4" long piece of round stock to mount a standard drill chuck. Drill and counterbore for the retaining screw. Turn down the end of the stock and thread for the drill chuck of choice. Turn an indicator band on the stock to aid in indicating the tooling in. Warning, cheapo drill chucks sometimes have excessive runout.

Jun 15, 2006 | 08:24 PM

#80

"Beemer Nut"

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From: "Islander"

Try to move the carriage on a 16" or 18" lathe working with small parts or threading 0-80. If I need a workout i'll Kayak or go to a gym, NOT.

.....=o&o>.....

Jun 16, 2006 | 12:04 AM

#81

Torque1st

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It may not be as easy but it can be done. I like having the "capacity".

Jun 19, 2006 | 01:45 AM

#82

"Beemer Nut"

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From: "Islander"

frederic;
check out www.rollon.com
I just got their catalog, the have two and three axis gantry systems and slides for X-ray tables. Intresting what's out there.

.....=o&o>.....

Jul 14, 2006 | 06:51 PM

#83

frederic

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From: New Jersey

I forgot about this thread, and haven't updated it in a while. But fret not, progress has been steady (but slow)!

Been making stepper mounts:
http://frederic.midimonkey.com/cnc2/IM001901.JPG

And mounting motors!
http://frederic.midimonkey.com/cnc2/IM001900.JPG

Now I have to mount the stepper on the Z-axis, buy three belts for the three steppers, and possibly make tension pulleys depending if I can get the length that I need. I expect not. Then I'll route the wiring harness that's already made, and tie it down, and attach to the new mini-kludge that I'm calling a "CNC PC":

http://frederic.midimonkey.com/cnc2/IM001886.JPG
http://frederic.midimonkey.com/cnc2/IM001887.JPG

The neat thing is I've already tested the Mini-Kludge PC, the controllers, wiring harness, and the steppers. They stepped as instructed sitting on the workbench. I have two steppers mounted as of this writing, and using 40 or so rubber bands around the pulleys as "belts" the assembly did move around as the stepper were stepped. They "sprung" with each step, but that's because rubber band suck

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Jul 25, 2006 | 01:35 PM

#84

frederic

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From: New Jersey

Progress is always slow, so sorry for the lack of an update in quite a while.

Mounting the rest of the steppers:
http://frederic.midimonkey.com/cnc2/IM001903.JPG
http://frederic.midimonkey.com/cnc2/IM001904.JPG
http://frederic.midimonkey.com/cnc2/IM001905.JPG
http://frederic.midimonkey.com/cnc2/IM001909.JPG

And making tensioning pulleys for the belts, which should arrive "any day":
http://frederic.midimonkey.com/cnc2/IM001912.JPG
http://frederic.midimonkey.com/cnc2/IM001916.JPG

Of course wiring is always fun...

Stepper wiring:
http://frederic.midimonkey.com/cnc2/IM001918.JPG

And the start of the auxilary control board (which buffers the axis limit switches, turns on and off the plasma cutter and coolant pump, and monitors the emergency stop button). Soldering ribbon cable is a real PITA. Wish my hands were steadier, this would have gone much faster. Now it's time to solder on transistors!
http://frederic.midimonkey.com/cnc2/IM001919.JPG

Its too bad my new workbenches are completely covered in CNC project parts, it would have been nice to solder wires with the PC on the workbench, rather than wobbling on the bed of the lathe lol.

Last edited by frederic; Jul 25, 2006 at 01:37 PM.

Jul 25, 2006 | 04:34 PM

#85

Torque1st

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I have been off the forums more than on lately.

Headers are easier to solder, then use IDC connectors for the ribbon cable. Unfortunately you can't spread the headers unless you use long wire wrap headers and splay them out a bit. You can also use two IDC connectors and matching headers to spread out the connections.

If you think your hands aren't steady you should have mine...

Jul 25, 2006 | 08:13 PM

#86

frederic

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From: New Jersey

Quote:

Originally Posted by Torque1st

I have been off the forums more than on lately.

Same here, not for any reason other than lack of time this summer.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Torque1st

Headers are easier to solder, then use IDC connectors for the ribbon cable. Unfortunately you can't spread the headers unless you use long wire wrap headers and splay them out a bit. You can also use two IDC connectors and matching headers to spread out the connections.

This is really just a monkey way of doing the circuit board. I could have drawn the schematic in Orcad, design and route a circuit board pattern, then etch it then just plop the parts in and solder. However that would take more time than cramming parts in by hand and dealing with the bridging of solder pads spaced 0.100" apart with excess solder to make the circuit traces.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Torque1st

If you think your hands aren't steady you should have mine...

Well, lets just say a decade ago, I could solder surface mount parts no problem, including some of the medium density LSI stuff. Had a special tip for that too, however I struggle with 0.1" spacing at this point. I imagine in about 10 years, I'll have to go back to making circuit boards, and have my son solder them together. He'll be 11 by then

Jul 25, 2006 | 09:52 PM

#87

"Beemer Nut"

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From: "Islander"

Just make up bigger boards with .500" spacing besides later on you'll have everything in focus at arms length. Ya can't beat old man time.

.....=o&o>.....

Jul 25, 2006 | 10:41 PM

#88

frederic

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From: New Jersey

ha ha ha ha ha!

Jul 25, 2006 | 11:14 PM

#89

Torque1st

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Quote:

Originally Posted by frederic

Same here, not for any reason other than lack of time this summer.

Same here, I will be gone for quite a while soon.

Quote:

I have built many boards that way!

Quote:

I could never have done any surface mount work. Thru-hole at 0.1" spacing was difficult for me. I have my son (21) do almost all of my soldering. I managed to solder two car battery terminals a few days ago by myself but it was all I could do...

Jul 25, 2006 | 11:21 PM

#90

frederic

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From: New Jersey

Quote:

Originally Posted by Torque1st

The key is to use a soldering tip that's as small as you can get. I used to make them out of 1/4" threaded copper round stock, turning them down on my buddy's unimat lathe (it had a 3" chuck). His lathe could turn slow enough and was adjustable enough I could make the soldering "tip" about the same diameter as a pin, then hand file a point on the end. Then tin, and go at it. I used a 15W iron for this initially, before I bought a temperature controlled weller setup.

I actually liked SMT because I could make things much smaller and denser, and typically use less power when running on batteries. But, no longer.

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