Ski Builders Forum

Hey all,

I'm gonna have a lot of time inside the house for the next few month (I'm about to being a dad) so I had to find something to do while not changing diapers but still having an eye on "mini-Ben_Mtl"... Moving my skibuilding equipment in the kitchen was not an option, not to mention the charming noise of a planer of router shaping some cores or the delightful smell of Epoxy... -> it's time to build a CNC !!

I spent the last few weeks working on a nice CNC concept, spend countless hours on CNCZone and finally found something I liked. At one point I found a journal about a very nice and innovative CNC machine, I had my starting point and spend a lot of time checking every detail on every picture on this thread so I could design my machine from something that actually works (and I don't even feel guilty about trying to replicate and adapt to my needs this nice machine.. I guess I'm used to it as I do it all the time with skibuilding processes/videos).

First, give Ceasar what belongs to Ceasar.. here is my inspiration :
http://www.cnczone.com/forums/diy-cnc_r ... build.html
It's a very nice looking machine, the concept is great and I always wanted to give it a shot with sheetmetal to make a CNC...

For all of you pics whores, here is the latest 3D I have of my future machine :


I made it so I have a 7'x2' cutting area, the skeleton is 80-20 extrusions, the rest is bent sheetmetal and a few aluminum parts.
The linear motion is basically V-Groove bearings rolling on steel rails, Rack and Pinon drive on the X axis (one stepper on each side of the gantry), ACME screws for Y(5-start) and Z (single-start).

I have to say the critical part was to figure out how to install the rack&pinion drive for the X axis.. I'm still unsure of my solution so before I commit to what I've done and have te parts lasercut, I'm gonna wait till I get the rails to check if everything could work.



I just ordered my stepper kit (4x NEMA 23 steppers + Gecko G540) + some parts needed for the R&P and ACME drive, plus all the V-Groove bearings.

I'm also about to order a few laser-cut / bent parts to validate if the 45degree rails concept is working with the "not-so-close" tolerances I can get from local manufacturers. If it's not working I'll buy some specific v-groove rails.. but it's gonna be more expensive...

That's it for now, if you have any comment/recommendation/question feel free to post !

Nice job Ben, slipped one past the goalie.
Congrats!

Looking forward to how your CNC comes together.

sam

Not sure that "build a CNC" and "bringing a new baby home" have ever been used in the same sentence before!
All the best on both fronts.

Whoooo G540! That made this stuff a no-brainer for me, plug and play!

Have you figured out a rough budget yet?

Mine was fun... I ended up almost exactly DOUBLE what I had originally planned on spending

Very rough budget is around $3000 right now but I'm afraid I might have to think again when I'll have the quotes for lasercut/bending...

The drive components + electonics are almost $2000... and I'm pretty sure I forgot a few items !

I thought I could build mine under $2k, but the end result set me back $4000. The awesomeness is worth every penny though!

Super interested in seeing more!

Also twizz, Didn't know your machine cost your 4k!

To pay off bills or not is now the question...

Finally had a quote from a local manufacturer ! (other were from quite far and I'd prefer avoid the shipping on large metal parts)
The price is the best (=lowest) so far ! I just pulled the trigger on a few part for the X Axis so I can validate if they can make the parts close enough to drawing that everything is working.
With the rails concept i'm using, the bending of the metal is the most critical part and unfortunately it's also usually where tolerances are the worst... Good news is I only have tight bending tolerances for the rails and there are plenty of other parts that mainly need the 2D cutting to be precises... those are also larger parts so the good prices are a bonus ! It they're not good enough for the bending I will only have a few parts to be manufactured somwhere else !

I've used the V-groove roller/bearings in designs before, and they wored great for areas of high debris/dust/crap. But I seem to remember that they're hardened (Rc48?).

Do you have any concerns about the rollers damaging the laser-cut steel (I'm assuming they won't be hardened).

Looks like a fantastic project. Congratulations on the new midget!

Jekul wrote:I've used the V-groove roller/bearings in designs before, and they wored great for areas of high debris/dust/crap. But I seem to remember that they're hardened (Rc48?).

Do you have any concerns about the rollers damaging the laser-cut steel (I'm assuming they won't be hardened).

Looks like a fantastic project. Congratulations on the new midget!

for my profiling table build which end up almost like CNC without electrical part I found bearings/rollers with bronze on outside.

good luck with the project.
If only I could do electrical/electronics I would ad it to my profiling jig and make it into CNC

MadRussian wrote: If only I could do electrical/electronics I would ad it to my profiling jig and make it into CNC

Look up the Geckodrive G540. I'm like you, and know nothing when it comes to electronics, but my G540 was basically plug and play. I bought it from a guy that wired up DB9 connectors on the stepper motors for me, and gave me a config file for Mach3 all set up. Hook the stepper motors up to it, plug it in to the computer, fire up Mach3, and you're set!

twizzstyle wrote:

MadRussian wrote: If only I could do electrical/electronics I would ad it to my profiling jig and make it into CNC

Look up the Geckodrive G540. I'm like you, and know nothing when it comes to electronics, but my G540 was basically plug and play. I bought it from a guy that wired up DB9 connectors on the stepper motors for me, and gave me a config file for Mach3 all set up. Hook the stepper motors up to it, plug it in to the computer, fire up Mach3, and you're set!

thx for advice. ... may be in the future. Now I'm going all manual AK-47 style simple and effective

Quick question for those of you guys that have a CNC : what CAM software do you use ?
When I was at school I very shortly learned the basics of MasterCAM but it's pretty damn far in my memory... I wanted to take some time to refresh my skills while I'm waiting for the parts I ordered.

Typically I make some 2D of the skis on AutoCAD (or "flat" 3D on CATIA V5 as I'm using this software at work). I'm looking at cutting the sidecut for my future skis on my CNC and as another step shape the thickness... (+eventually cutt the case and tipspacers with a drag knife but at that point it will only be a matter of changing the tool setup)

Any tip will be appreciated !

Thanks !
Ben

I'm still trying to find one I like, that I can afford, and use legally.

Right now I think the best/most affordable I've tried is Cut2D/Cut3D from Vetrics.

http://www.vectric.com/

I REALLY like the SolidCAM add-on for Solidworks - but to use it legally is well outside the realm of a hobbyist budget

looks like a nice software, I'm gonna take a look at it !

Today I received the lasercut parts for my Z axis / test, I'm gonna get the V-Groove bearings next week, can't wait to see if it's working !