So .....CNC Routers ......

[Howard_Casto]

Yeah it's 3d printers 2: electric boogaloo.   So I've enjoyed my 3d printer but for what I want to use it for it just isn't suited, and by that I mean structural parts and items that don't have lines all over them that need post processing to fix.   

So I ordered this:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B09MZB5RVM/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Solid aluminum frame, 52mm, 200 watt motor and the price was right.   I should be able to just barely mill some aluminum with it which will work well for it's intended use.... Injection molding.   There are now kits to build a hobby grade injection molder for around 200 bucks.   So if I build that and use the cnc machine to mill aluminum molds I should be able to make small plastic parts for arcade nonsense and perhaps for toys.... say gap fillers and guns for transformers.   Plus it'd be cool to carve stuff into wood, make signs, machine parts for specific uses ect.   


If the machine can't handle aluminum a spindle upgrade and linear rails for around $100 should make that happen.   Additionally the only custom parts are the plates that hold the extruded beams together so I should be able to cheaply upgrade the size somewhat if I ever want to.   

[bobbyb13]

Looking forward to see what you discover with this.
Very cool.

And oh my, I do NOT need another hobby.

(I'll keep telling myself this-)

[BadMouth]

I bought a similar smaller one a few years ago and added the mini controller/card reader.  The purpose was to learn Fusion360.  I can't seem to wrap my head around Fusion360, so haven't used the CNC machine (at all).  I bought a Fusion360 parametric modeling textbook, but can't make myself dedicate time to it regularly.  Too busy fiddling with 3D printers I guess.  I did generate gcode with fusion360 a few times, but it never worked on the machine.  I moved the machine from the workshop to my desk three months ago so I would mess with it again.  I haven't.

It should be easy to get it working with Easel, but I've failed. 
Pretty sure I could use it with Vcarve which I learned at a shopbot training session, but that will only do 2.5D and I haven't been willing to buy a copy.

I look forward to seeing you get it working to give me some motivation. 

[nitrogen_widget]

I have a compressor from a refrigerator my buddy gutted to make a powder coating oven.
i grabbed it for a vacuum chamber for resin casting.

which i have yet to even look at past noticing just how heavy it is for such a small object.

[Howard_Casto]

Fusion seems to have a pretty high learning curve for whatever reason.  Any 3d modeling program can export stl or similar formats and those can be imported to easel so a better option might be to try one of the art-oriented 3d modeling programs and simply export the whole thing to be converted to g-code in another program.   I always found 3dsmax to be a good modeling suite.... maya is also good.   

I do feel like learning the software is going to be the hardest part.   Manually inserting tool changes in the code and what-not seems cumbersome.   

I'm also going to buy a cheap drag knife and make an attachment to cut vinyl.   I'm not particularly interested in the laser attachment.... I mean why burn wood when you can carve it?  Someone is going to have to explain the benefits on that one to me.   

[PL1]

I'm not particularly interested in the laser attachment.... I mean why burn wood when you can carve it?  Someone is going to have to explain the benefits on that one to me.

The laser is good for wood projects with detail cuts narrower than a typical milling bit or projects that have very fine features that are likely to break from the force applied by milling or where you want sharp inside corners.

Audi keychain:
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/736n-0Pi8JU



Another thing that you can do with the laser is etch/drill/cut custom PCBs.
- Lots of tutorials to chose from on YouTube.   


Scott

[RandyT]

Solid aluminum frame, 52mm, 200 watt motor and the price was right.   I should be able to just barely mill some aluminum with it which will work well for it's intended use.... Injection molding.   There are now kits to build a hobby grade injection molder for around 200 bucks.   So if I build that and use the cnc machine to mill aluminum molds I should be able to make small plastic parts for arcade nonsense and perhaps for toys.... say gap fillers and guns for transformers.   Plus it'd be cool to carve stuff into wood, make signs, machine parts for specific uses ect.   

Honestly, I wouldn't hold my breath on those aluminum molds.  The chatter would likely be so bad it wouldn't be funny.  You might get somewhere, albeit very slowly, with tiny tooling, tiny passes and lots of lubrication to reduce loading of the tool, but even that would require a very well-tuned machine.

If short-run injection tooling is your goal, a much better option would probably be to make the molds out of high-temp resin on one of the cheaper SLA 3D printers.  Then slap that into a pre-made aluminum mold frame.  You'll still be into it for at least a grand before you see a part out of a mold, not counting your time, so I hope whatever you plan on making is worth that to you.

[Howard_Casto]

Sorry about the lack of updates.... I'm debugging a hardware issue with the tech department from the company I bought my cnc with and I've been busy on top of that.  So I got my cnc last thursday and for a hobby machine it is a beast.   The frame is pretty much immovable.   The only waggle I could get was from the x axis bars if I press firmly down on the Z and I plan on replacing those with reinforced linear rails later on anyway.  The hardware issue is with the power supply.... it keeps tripping some sort of internal fuse if I run the spindle at 100%   Tech support is working on it but in the mean time I've just been running tests at 80% power.  The machine seems to cut through wood like butter.   It engraved a 3 inch logo on a gnarly scrap of plywood in about 30 seconds.   Unfortunately I did it on unfinished plywood so it doesn't really show up on camera.   I'll have more time to test Tuesday as I'm off so I'll stain the wood prior to more tests so I can post some pics.   I want to ease into metal tests slowly.   I don't want to ruin a pack of bits just trying stuff out so I'm researching which bits work best for various materials and I'll buy a variety pack of bits that best suits my needs.   

One thing I realized from my tests is I need to buy a resurfacing bit to flatten woods when cutting into them.   Even a really flat looking piece has various dips and valleys that become apparent when you try to engrave.    I'm also going to buy a drag knife so I can cut vinyl.   Bits similar to the ones used in a cricut can be purchased cheaply:

https://www.amazon.com/Roland-Cutting-Tungsten-Plotter-Cutter/dp/B07DNYSPVK/?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_w=DfArx&pf_rd_p=bbb6bbd8-d236-47cb-b42f-734cb0cacc1f&pf_rd_r=P4JKZQA0CPMDK30ADACR&pd_rd_r=f924ec51-fd9e-4ac6-9c43-42f8cb454350&pd_rd_wg=4wlPP&ref_=pd_gw_ci_mcx_mi

My cnc has a 52mm spindle holder so milling an adapter seems easy.... mill a 52 mm plug with a lip on it that has a 12mm hole to hold the drag knife.... easy.   I might have to spring load it to compensate for wobble but that should still be easy.   

So yeah other than a potentially dodgy power supply the 3018 max is a a solid machine.   I'm happy with it thus far and as I try more difficult materials I may have to do upgrades but I'm fine with that.   This is a long term project.   

[BadMouth]

Wow.  I'm glad it's working out.   

I dealt with "customer service" on my little one.  The x axis bearings were just nasty crunchy.  They requested proof.  I sent them links to a video uploaded to youtube and google drive, but they claimed they could not accept it.  They said the "proof" had to be submitted through amazon, but amazon had no way to send a video to them.  Pretty sure there was no way they were sending new bearings regardless of what I did.  I disassembled and cleaned them, but the races were all messed up.  Ended up buying replacements for around $12.  The machine was $135, so I can't complain too much.  The grbl board it came with is pretty neat.  All kinds of extra inputs and outputs.

[Howard_Casto]

I ordered a variety pack of burr bits and some single flute end mill bits for aluminum testing.   Probably won't be in by Tuesday but we shall see.   

[RandyT]

I might have to spring load it to compensate for wobble but that should still be easy.   

Plan on some sort of adjustable tension spring load.  Actual vinyl cutters have a magnetic transducer in them which allows for adjustable pressure and the difference between cutting through the vinyl and cutting all the way through the backing isn't huge.  You'll also want to devise some way of keeping the vinyl flat.

I actually purchased one of those drag knife kits as a backup for my Rolands.  Haven't used it yet, but it seems decent enough and the price is insanely cheap. 

[pbj]

I did an internship at a transducer company once.  They were a tax dodge operation.  Raw material came in duty free from South America, and then they made it American and sent it to the states.  Not sure anyone there did any actual work except for the women soldering boards.  I still don't know what a transducer actually does.  They told me "detect vibration on airplane wings."

 

[RandyT]

I did an internship at a transducer company once.  They were a tax dodge operation.  Raw material came in duty free from South America, and then they made it American and sent it to the states.  Not sure anyone there did any actual work except for the women soldering boards.  I still don't know what a transducer actually does.  They told me "detect vibration on airplane wings."

 

Heh.  In this case, it follows the "mechanical transducer" definition.  i.e. "Anything which changes one form of energy to a different one".  Electricity goes in, creates a magnetic field of varying strength to provide varying downward mechanical pressure on the drag-knife.