Miss all your videos. Glad to see this one posted. Follow you on fb and if. For your air solenoid control just the it into your Vacuum switch, you want both on and off at the same time
That's a great idea. I'll have to check the load rating for the output pins on the bob to make sure it can drive both direct, else I might need a little extra pixie magic. ~P
This update was great! I've been working on my own CNC, and I've been running into some of the same discoveries. It's funny, there's so much information online from others who have made their own CNC, but I just need to try an idea for myself to really understand it.
Thanks for the update. I have been considering adding dust collection for a while now. Today I started to add the parts and pieces to make it happen and I re-watched your original video then I discovered the update. Great timing
@@sbirdranch 4 x 2 cutting area gantry style. Hiwin 20 rails. Slaved dual Y axis motors / ball screws. Nema 23 Z axis 34's on other axis. Made from Aluminium extrusion. Unorthodox Z axis made from brass extrusion in the form of a frame rather than machined aluminium plate. Nice and rigid. Had it cutting but now mothballed until I board / insulate my outbuilding over the winter.
good stuff. for the next 3 years I would like to see your CNC using linear magnetic motors (like the linear motor from LinX) , laser interferometric sensors for precision and all the axis in play (like putting the spindle at like 60 degrees and making a human face out of aluminum)
It keeps evolving, you’ve given me some ideas and direction over the course of this build. Thanks for saving me some of my great”ideas’ Greatly appreciated!
I started to edit that video next and find I am missing a ton of footage. Not missing. I didn't do it. I remember wanting to just concentrate and not worry about what and when to film. So what this means is I will stitch together the footage I have, along with some new 'post build' stuff to get the points across. It still isn't complete. There are probably 3 or 4 more videos I anticipate before it is done(ish).
I watched your video on your water cooled spindle and it GREATLY helped me to decide on one for my machine. I have already decided to make the cooling unit similar to your setup too. I live in an apartment, so quiet is paramount. I am wondering what temperature your spindle runs at. I have been unable to find any information concerning temperature. I really like how you don't ad-lib while recording. Narrating the finished video is much better. THANKS! Hate to tell you this, but that machine that sucks is spelled VACUUM. Just FYI.
Thanks for the feedback on the voice over. I have done it both ways, and it makes it faster for me to get a project done, as well as I think it helps me cut out some of the unnecessary footage. Definitely go with a smaller radiator. Two fans would be plenty and frankly, I'd consider trying a single. The water never goes above about room temp on mine. My spindle is always cool to the touch, even after 1hr+ programs. ~P
@@sbirdranch Hey thanks! I've ordered a cooling kit that has 2 120mm radiators. My spindle is only 800w so I thought to start with one radiator and add the other if needed. Looks like I probably won't need to. I'm also adding temperature control to the fan.
I’d love to see more on your plasma table build. A video like your likes and dislikes video that you did for your cnc router would be awesome. I’m also curious about your kiln. I watched and rewatched those videos. How’s it functioning?
Ahhh the plasma table. I'm happy to say I am working on it. I have done a bunch of cutting and identified a bunch of problems. Some small, some large. All have a lesson in them. I'll be putting more out on that someday. I will say the core design is solid and works. My problems are little things like belt tension and that stupid Z axis I bought from ebay. I'm currently making my own from scratch. I'm super excited to have a solid understanding of how to implement proximity sensors now. I think I'll do a video on that too. I never found anything clear and concise to reached down to my level. Regarding the kiln: I haven't used it in years. I also haven't done much wood working. I have no reason to believe that it won't work if I plug it back in. The controller and all the cables are in a case and the kiln it self is safely stored in the barn. I have considered selling it to be honest. But then I consider that I'd like to build a bandsaw mill (cuz everyone builds one at some point) and realize I'd need it. Who knows. ~P
@@sbirdranch thanks for the videos. It’s hard for me to buy things I can build myself. Economics doesn’t even seem to be a factor. I almost always spend just as much money in my build then I would spend to buy it. I lie to myself by telling myself that I save money on the customization aspect. I just need to learn balance....
Great job on this .. Really good to see a pragmatic build. I like your design as it is nice and simple and like the horizontal X gantry rather than vertical as it makes more sense to me as well Just a few questions if you don't mind. I am on the process of designing myself a CNC router, and it will probably be a lot like yours If you had to do the build again from scratch, what would you change or do differently As far as linear bearings , would you use the same ones again (ie the supported round rails or would you use HiWin type square linear rails Was it akward to get the linear bearings tuned in being fitted to square profile metal rails which by nature are not perfectly straight. Did you need to shim, etc... Any other comments or suggestions would be much appreciated to save me making more mistakes that I owuld have done !!! Keep those videos coming. I think I have watched most of them Many thanks
Stephen, thanks for the interest and I hope your build goes well. Funny you ask, as I am now in the process of testing my plasma build and told a friend the other day that my router build worked out of the box with no significant design changes needed. Plasma...not so much. What would I do different on the router, is just what you said. I would have started with HiWin rails. Here's the thing. I had no idea if the machine would work at all so I was keeping my costs down. Once it was up and running, I started demanding more. More accuracy, rigidity and speed. My design didn't need to change, but the rails did. As you can see, my X and Z are now HiWin rails. I will change the Y rails at some point as the bearing are causing problems sometimes. So...same design, different rails. My gantry height is of no use about 98% of the time....but that 2% can be a killer. I have added about three layers of 3/4 MDF to reduce that distance mostly hunting for rigidity. Spindle...love it. Motors...might have gone smaller, especially with HiWins. Some 'large' NEMA 23's might have done just fine, especially on the Y where you are driving two. Bottom line is I have learned to trust this machine. I can walk up to it and hit cycle start and it works every time. You would not be the first person to copy some or all of it. A guy down under called @etchandcutdesign on IG built one from my drawings and he is running a business. Good Luck ~P
Very nice! I am getting ready to set up a Taig mini mill so had some questions for you. I was wondering what driver you are using on the z axis since I am using all NEMA 24's? On one of your past videos it looked like you had a heat sink on the x axis stepper, just curious what was going on there then vs now? In that same video you mentioned your pc choice would be to try and find controllers that use USB, would have an example of a board of this type, because honestly get so confused trying to configure Ethernet adapters.
The stepper driver for the 24 is a DQ542MA. It is the one that came with the motor when I ordered it off FleaBay. The heat sink resulted from when I first did the build, I felt like they were getting hot. I had the sinks so I put them on. They are still there. They probably are not necessary as I think a lot of the heat was coming from the power spend holding the motor in place when not moving. I changed that driver config reducing the amount of amperage at rest. The board I would highly recommend is the ESS or Ethernet Smooth Stepper. No parallel cables. No special 32 bit machine stuff. One cable and your done. Good Luck with your machine. I'm about to retire and hope to put many more hours on my machine. It still runs great. ~P
Me too. I have the blue elco tore apart right now. When it goes back together, I'll have room to get the plasma going. I have run it once. I don't like the store bough Z axis so that is the main thing to finish. Then will come the wiring and circuit for the limit and homing functions. ~P.
What ratio of colloidal silver are you using in the coolant loop i.e. is it all colloidal solution or are you diluting it with tap water?? Interesting idea I had never thought of doing that but I could see how it should work . I have my own colloidal silver generator setup so I could make what ever I would need.
Good question and I don't know. The CS I'm using is being made with a CS Maker my wife has and it doesn't indicate at what level it turns off. It is making water intended for drinking if that helps. In addition, I put a sliver of pure silver in the reservoir just for extra grins. I have yet to change the water and it isn't growing anything. I do keep a cover on the reservoir but not the lines. ~P
Everything tops out at about 40ipm and that is mostly due to the length of the ball screws. They pick up a vibration at high speed and cause the steppers to miss steps. There are some things I could do that might lessen this but 40ipm is fine in most of what I cut and I have to crash the machine to miss steps. ~P
I've watched a few of your videos and taken many suggestions to heart when designing my 5x10 cnc Plasma table. I had a couple questions for you though. What size SBR rails did you use and do you know if they can be run end to end, that is if I need 10ft, can I use two 5ft long pieces? I originally was going to build a smaller 5x5 plasma table and simply feed in the full sheet as needed, but a local machine shop was selling off some relatively precision jig tables and I was able to purchase a 5x10 jig table for $100. So my original design has changed a bit and I'm looking at all options. The SBR's are in my price range if I can utilize 2 pairs end to end. I suppose if I center drilled them on the lathe and used indexing pins for alignment, I guess I'm just thinking out loud. Thanks for your time.
I used the 20mm version. I honestly can't think of a way I could machine them to be joined in such a way that there wouldn't be a rather harsh bump when the bearings go over. I think event turning the ends and putting a dowel pin between them would still leave too harsh an edge. Those balls are very small and will notice everything. Good luck and thanks. ~P
@@sbirdranch so after sending you this question, I saw your videos on your plasma table and that got me thinking about the steel plate and v wheels and I'm going that route.
Between 30 and 40 IPM. Any faster and you risk a harmonic in the ball screw that causes missed steps. The trade off for precision and rigidity is worth it for what I want from the machine.
Nice, I watched the previous video as well, Plus i like the yellow on the X gantry!
Thanks! I watched some of your "old" videos when all was new. Now it's good to see that most of it still works fine 3 years later.
Miss all your videos. Glad to see this one posted. Follow you on fb and if.
For your air solenoid control just the it into your Vacuum switch, you want both on and off at the same time
That's a great idea. I'll have to check the load rating for the output pins on the bob to make sure it can drive both direct, else I might need a little extra pixie magic. ~P
This update was great! I've been working on my own CNC, and I've been running into some of the same discoveries. It's funny, there's so much information online from others who have made their own CNC, but I just need to try an idea for myself to really understand it.
I understand. You might come up with the best version yet. Good luck.
Thanks for the update. I have been considering adding dust collection for a while now. Today I started to add the parts and pieces to make it happen and I re-watched your original video then I discovered the update. Great timing
Good luck!
Great to see you posting again. I really got inspired to build my own watching your original build.
How did yours come out? ~P
@@sbirdranch 4 x 2 cutting area gantry style. Hiwin 20 rails. Slaved dual Y axis motors / ball screws. Nema 23 Z axis 34's on other axis. Made from Aluminium extrusion. Unorthodox Z axis made from brass extrusion in the form of a frame rather than machined aluminium plate. Nice and rigid. Had it cutting but now mothballed until I board / insulate my outbuilding over the winter.
great to see you back. Looking forward to the plasma table update too!
You and me both!
good stuff. for the next 3 years I would like to see your CNC using linear magnetic motors (like the linear motor from LinX) , laser interferometric sensors for precision and all the axis in play (like putting the spindle at like 60 degrees and making a human face out of aluminum)
That would be cool!
It keeps evolving, you’ve given me some ideas and direction over the course of this build. Thanks for saving me some of my great”ideas’ Greatly appreciated!
Your welcome. ~P
It would be awesome if you had drawings for the build--dimensions, materials, etc.
Glad to see things are still going well and I like the improvements you've made along the way. Hope life is treating you ok. - Tom Z
Thanks, you too!
Hoping for an update on the plasma too.
I started to edit that video next and find I am missing a ton of footage. Not missing. I didn't do it. I remember wanting to just concentrate and not worry about what and when to film. So what this means is I will stitch together the footage I have, along with some new 'post build' stuff to get the points across. It still isn't complete. There are probably 3 or 4 more videos I anticipate before it is done(ish).
Good review, thanks.
Thanks for this update. I was curious how the CNC was coming along.
More to come! ~P
That was a great video. Could you please say where you purchased your replacement linear rails from?
I watched your video on your water cooled spindle and it GREATLY helped me to decide on one for my machine. I have already decided to make the cooling unit similar to your setup too. I live in an apartment, so quiet is paramount.
I am wondering what temperature your spindle runs at. I have been unable to find any information concerning temperature.
I really like how you don't ad-lib while recording. Narrating the finished video is much better. THANKS!
Hate to tell you this, but that machine that sucks is spelled VACUUM. Just FYI.
Thanks for the feedback on the voice over. I have done it both ways, and it makes it faster for me to get a project done, as well as I think it helps me cut out some of the unnecessary footage. Definitely go with a smaller radiator. Two fans would be plenty and frankly, I'd consider trying a single. The water never goes above about room temp on mine. My spindle is always cool to the touch, even after 1hr+ programs. ~P
@@sbirdranch Hey thanks! I've ordered a cooling kit that has 2 120mm radiators. My spindle is only 800w so I thought to start with one radiator and add the other if needed. Looks like I probably won't need to. I'm also adding temperature control to the fan.
I’d love to see more on your plasma table build. A video like your likes and dislikes video that you did for your cnc router would be awesome. I’m also curious about your kiln. I watched and rewatched those videos. How’s it functioning?
Ahhh the plasma table. I'm happy to say I am working on it. I have done a bunch of cutting and identified a bunch of problems. Some small, some large. All have a lesson in them. I'll be putting more out on that someday. I will say the core design is solid and works. My problems are little things like belt tension and that stupid Z axis I bought from ebay. I'm currently making my own from scratch. I'm super excited to have a solid understanding of how to implement proximity sensors now. I think I'll do a video on that too. I never found anything clear and concise to reached down to my level.
Regarding the kiln: I haven't used it in years. I also haven't done much wood working. I have no reason to believe that it won't work if I plug it back in. The controller and all the cables are in a case and the kiln it self is safely stored in the barn. I have considered selling it to be honest. But then I consider that I'd like to build a bandsaw mill (cuz everyone builds one at some point) and realize I'd need it. Who knows. ~P
@@sbirdranch thanks for the videos. It’s hard for me to buy things I can build myself. Economics doesn’t even seem to be a factor. I almost always spend just as much money in my build then I would spend to buy it. I lie to myself by telling myself that I save money on the customization aspect. I just need to learn balance....
Great job on this .. Really good to see a pragmatic build.
I like your design as it is nice and simple and like the horizontal X gantry rather than vertical as it makes more sense to me as well
Just a few questions if you don't mind.
I am on the process of designing myself a CNC router, and it will probably be a lot like yours
If you had to do the build again from scratch, what would you change or do differently
As far as linear bearings , would you use the same ones again (ie the supported round rails or would you use HiWin type square linear rails
Was it akward to get the linear bearings tuned in being fitted to square profile metal rails which by nature are not perfectly straight. Did you need to shim, etc...
Any other comments or suggestions would be much appreciated to save me making more mistakes that I owuld have done !!!
Keep those videos coming. I think I have watched most of them
Many thanks
Stephen, thanks for the interest and I hope your build goes well. Funny you ask, as I am now in the process of testing my plasma build and told a friend the other day that my router build worked out of the box with no significant design changes needed. Plasma...not so much. What would I do different on the router, is just what you said. I would have started with HiWin rails. Here's the thing. I had no idea if the machine would work at all so I was keeping my costs down. Once it was up and running, I started demanding more. More accuracy, rigidity and speed. My design didn't need to change, but the rails did. As you can see, my X and Z are now HiWin rails. I will change the Y rails at some point as the bearing are causing problems sometimes. So...same design, different rails.
My gantry height is of no use about 98% of the time....but that 2% can be a killer. I have added about three layers of 3/4 MDF to reduce that distance mostly hunting for rigidity.
Spindle...love it. Motors...might have gone smaller, especially with HiWins. Some 'large' NEMA 23's might have done just fine, especially on the Y where you are driving two.
Bottom line is I have learned to trust this machine. I can walk up to it and hit cycle start and it works every time. You would not be the first person to copy some or all of it. A guy down under called @etchandcutdesign on IG built one from my drawings and he is running a business. Good Luck ~P
Very nice! I am getting ready to set up a Taig mini mill so had some questions for you. I was wondering what driver you are using on the z axis since I am using all NEMA 24's?
On one of your past videos it looked like you had a heat sink on the x axis stepper, just curious what was going on there then vs now?
In that same video you mentioned your pc choice would be to try and find controllers that use USB, would have an example of a board of this type, because honestly get so confused trying to configure Ethernet adapters.
sorry I meant NEMA 23's
The stepper driver for the 24 is a DQ542MA. It is the one that came with the motor when I ordered it off FleaBay.
The heat sink resulted from when I first did the build, I felt like they were getting hot. I had the sinks so I put them on. They are still there. They probably are not necessary as I think a lot of the heat was coming from the power spend holding the motor in place when not moving. I changed that driver config reducing the amount of amperage at rest.
The board I would highly recommend is the ESS or Ethernet Smooth Stepper. No parallel cables. No special 32 bit machine stuff. One cable and your done.
Good Luck with your machine. I'm about to retire and hope to put many more hours on my machine. It still runs great.
~P
Like to see more on the Plasma table
Me too. I have the blue elco tore apart right now. When it goes back together, I'll have room to get the plasma going. I have run it once. I don't like the store bough Z axis so that is the main thing to finish. Then will come the wiring and circuit for the limit and homing functions. ~P.
What ratio of colloidal silver are you using in the coolant loop i.e. is it all colloidal solution or are you diluting it with tap water?? Interesting idea I had never thought of doing that but I could see how it should work . I have my own colloidal silver generator setup so I could make what ever I would need.
Good question and I don't know. The CS I'm using is being made with a CS Maker my wife has and it doesn't indicate at what level it turns off. It is making water intended for drinking if that helps. In addition, I put a sliver of pure silver in the reservoir just for extra grins. I have yet to change the water and it isn't growing anything. I do keep a cover on the reservoir but not the lines. ~P
Colloidal zinc would probably work just as well as antibacterial in the coolant and is much cheaper
Seems like machine is running slow, what speed & acceleration do you normally run at?
Everything tops out at about 40ipm and that is mostly due to the length of the ball screws. They pick up a vibration at high speed and cause the steppers to miss steps. There are some things I could do that might lessen this but 40ipm is fine in most of what I cut and I have to crash the machine to miss steps. ~P
I've watched a few of your videos and taken many suggestions to heart when designing my 5x10 cnc Plasma table. I had a couple questions for you though. What size SBR rails did you use and do you know if they can be run end to end, that is if I need 10ft, can I use two 5ft long pieces? I originally was going to build a smaller 5x5 plasma table and simply feed in the full sheet as needed, but a local machine shop was selling off some relatively precision jig tables and I was able to purchase a 5x10 jig table for $100. So my original design has changed a bit and I'm looking at all options. The SBR's are in my price range if I can utilize 2 pairs end to end. I suppose if I center drilled them on the lathe and used indexing pins for alignment, I guess I'm just thinking out loud. Thanks for your time.
I used the 20mm version. I honestly can't think of a way I could machine them to be joined in such a way that there wouldn't be a rather harsh bump when the bearings go over. I think event turning the ends and putting a dowel pin between them would still leave too harsh an edge. Those balls are very small and will notice everything. Good luck and thanks. ~P
@@sbirdranch so after sending you this question, I saw your videos on your plasma table and that got me thinking about the steel plate and v wheels and I'm going that route.
Could you please tell me what X Y velocity that you can achieve?
Between 30 and 40 IPM. Any faster and you risk a harmonic in the ball screw that causes missed steps. The trade off for precision and rigidity is worth it for what I want from the machine.
@@sbirdranch Thank you. I do appreciate your reply and I appreciate the time that you spent in making these videos.
Where did you get cabinet for electronics?
I salvaged it out of a building security system installation.
@@sbirdranch ok. Thanks