CNC Routers

Re: CNC Routers

TomD

Are you looking for a turnkey type unit, or are you looking for parts, or building from scratch.

Also, what is the size.

I have been trying to get this underway for years, I always run up against it at some point.

For size I would be mostly either guitars or 4x8 sheets. Meaning that those are the two parameters that make sense for me, It would be crazy for me to get large enough, but miss either of those parameters. For guitars I would probably go 24 x 36, it could be smaller. That would be the working areas, the dimensions would be larger.

One thing that one gets into with a first take on a new technology is like the guy who goes into the dealership for his first vehicle and says: "Oh I don't know: cheap on gas; 4 wheel drive, easy to park, and maybe some place to sleep 2". I mean, is that too much to ask? What sounds like a reasonable list can pull a machine into the 4th dimension. In the case of CNC, realistic carving is a big ask.

What I ask is not entirely what I want, but what a machine can do. The big missing piece in our other tools, other than automation, are curves, and precise location. So curves means it can cut those guitar plates, or boat parts with easy and precision. Location means it can drill fastener locations to photo realistic pictures from photographs. Those kinds of things a cheap and easy.

Speaking of automation, in a home wood shop, with a cheap machine, expect to have to be there while it is working. If it stalls, it will start a fire... So if you have to be there, you want good dust extraction, low noise, and rapid movements.

CNCs break down into three pieces, for starters. Software; the XYZ thing; the electronics.

Software breaks down into what system you will use; whether you are going to pay for it, or want to go with something like linix which apparently has some pretty complete options. I am kinds in the 2.5D world, so that is relatively cheap.

Electronics, unless you buy a turnkey, you are going to be using the same stuff. Whether you build the machine from parts, or get a kit, at some point you will need to order the electronics as a complete kit, or from parts. Of course it will have to suit the capabilities you intend for you machine, I am just pointing out you can think of this as a piece. You can go cheap and run some machines of preconfigured boards that are relatively cheap, or go for a pro package.

The machine. The big costs here that are variable are getting it off the floor and the X axis. That Frank guy with the fancy shop and youtube channel, got a CNC router parts (like them) kit. He built an out of whack welded table; he then attached a CNC RP aluminum frame to it; he then attached the tracks. My feeling is that you are doing the same thing 3 times. Just build the X axis out on some plywood box frames, or a clapped out surface plate. Attach you rails to that. Faster, cheaper, better. The X axis is the big one, usually. You can then source a gantry and all the rest, or carry on. The Y is also a good candidate for wood. People use crap like pressboard. Seal it with epoxy. Hardware bond some flat stock rails, they are good enough, and CNC RP sells the interface to your gantry. Or you can use whatever you like. At least you cut out one layer.

Get some real plywood, maybe a few layers of carbon on the inside, seal all surfaces with epoxy. It will be far stiffer, lighter, stable, and cheaper than an aluminum gantry. Put some money into some real linear rails. Buy a good Z axis.

Right now, in Canada, the problem I see is that you can't hop the border to pick things up. Maybe there is a workaround? On the industrial level, there are Canadian suppliers that seem to get work, but I don't know of any suppliers for home machines I would trust. You can get parts off ebay, even amazon. Though I still prefer a few of the US parts suppliers. I am surprised (or ignorant) that there is no supplier of parts in Canada. I know there are people who have stuff, but non of them come close to prices or packages you can get through the US, or direct.

Re: CNC Routers

Larry Edinger

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Re: CNC Routers

AlMorgan

I just got a 24 x 48 Avid CNC. I'm a hobbyist and retired. I'm not using it to cut odd shapes in sheet goods. I'm still playing with it to learn how to use it. Lately I've been making 3d American Flags for some friends/family.

The thing that I didn't appreciate before using it was the need to first design the part using CAD software(in this case I (really we- my son and I) went with Fusion 360). Designing the part, can be a very tedious and intricate effort.

After designing the part you then need to do the CAM for the part. You may spend considerable time doing the CAM part...ie. how to cut the part, perhaps using a variety of cutting tools (most likely router bits) and cutting paths and techniques. Fusion 360 to my knowledge and engineering experience is a very high end CAD/CAM software...powerfull yes, but not necessarily the easiest to master. But, when you do, you can build very sophisticated parts/models.

Then when done with the CAD/CAM you got to have your CNC machine to finally cut it....And that's another learning curve with probably another piece of CNC machine control software (such as Mach 4)...with its quirks and intricacies.

And when you finally get the machine to start cutting wood, you have to put the raw wood on a flat surface, afix it to the flat surface, and make sure the router doesn't hit the method you choose to afix it too the flat surface, and then you have to zero the router in the X, and Y, and Z for the location to start the cut.

Tips, get a dust mask, wear hearing protection, set up dust collection for the CNC as quickly as you can to your shop vac. Buy some good up/down spiral bits that fit the router. Do test runs where the router cutter is offsetted above the wood you want to cut (so you can see the path the router is going to do, and hopefully avoid hitting your clamps or over shooting the wood before you begin to cut). Finally, its very easy to under estimate the number of clamps you need to keep the wood piece flat, and make it so the router doesn't move the piece while cutting.

What's really easy to do with the CNC is making engraved signs. There's also software that replaces the CAD/CAM software that makes signs very easy to do.

Good Luck!

Re: CNC Routers

Bob Grimm

I have a home built 24 x 48 setup (I can pass thru longer items by "tiling" the cut). I use it for all kinds of projects. A few suggestions for whatever setup you go with. 1. Safety. Things will go wrong. A CNC machine will do what you tell it to do, not necessarily what you want it to do. If you tell it to cut thru your hold downs or to go beyond the machine boundaries it will sure try. A functioning EStop (Which stops both the movement and rotation of the tool) is an absolute must as well as limit switches on all axis. 2. Noise/Dust. Get a water cooled spindle. Routers are noisy as hell and have an eternal fan that will defeat any attempt at dust collection. 3. Size. Figure out what you want to make and size the machine accordingly. 4. Software. You need to decide what you will use for CAD/CAM. Most offer free trials, but a lot depends on your comfort level with software. If you like to learn new things it is a very useful tool and a lot of fun.