Hi Jonatan. You can trust that yours are all 4988's if they work without reversing the orientation of the adjustment screw. As we were noting, if you put either flavor in backwards the thing will burn out as soon as power is applied. If they are working, there's no question what you have.

The only color I've seen 8825's in is purple. That is good. But if some maker is using purple for the 4988's too, that's going to be a problem unless we can clearly read the chip labels. I just wish I could remember the company's name.

Getting old sometimes sucks. Fist you lose your hair on top, then hair grows in new places and before you know it you hearing goes and get blind as a bat. All about the time you figure out what the girls really want - well, maybe not that, but you ARE much smarter about most things, you just don't have the energy to fully chase them.

 

Hi Rick. They are also in white, black and about every other color. It seems like somebody decides they have too much of some paint color in stock and so they spray everything that color.

Getting back on topic a little bit, I am running a five axis board on one machine, with Mach 3 and the other machine has one of the cheap GRBL boards on it with 4 4988's on it. It also runs fine. I'm playing around with Chilipepper on it, learning as I go.

The 4925's I ordered a few weeks ago just arrived and they are going on a new build that will utilize bigger steppers on the x-y axis (270 oxin) and I'm going to put a nema 34 on the z axis. This will be dedicated to drilling and plunge milling operations. Of course the 34 will have a dedicated driver block all it's own.

 

Oh MAN_nnnn....
I'm getting DIZZY just thinking about all this higher voltage, higher current, higher POW_AHH stuff.
Images of 25 HP 3 phase 460 volt spindles being carried on fat I-beam gantries and driving grinders into cast iron a foot or more deep.... where does it end ?
Shipyard scale ?

Maybe I'll just build the base machine "as designed" and get started on the learning curve with some Styrofoam blocks from the local hobby shop - yeah, that is my plan of record (today).

 

estlcam looks interesting and for $50 probably a good buy.
I "assume" the name is derived from .stl files ?

 

Nobody says you must reinvent the wheel (or ox) with each build. Not even I would hand thread each bolt and nut, but that 25hp spindle motor sounds about right.

 

END MILLS, etc.

OK, so the day will come (EVENTUALLY) to put bits into the router and actually CUT something.
Probably blocks of foam initially, then (soft ?)wood, eventually aluminum.

QUESTION:
What is the recommended "starter set" of end mills, ball end mills, slitters, slotters, threaders, whatever_all_ else ?
Presumably carbide is the way to go - vs HSS ?
micro100.com seems to have everything, but what should a beginner BUY ? (NOT "everything", due to budget constraints)

I guess I am looking for the "beginner general purpose starter set".

 

i use the fish tail 2 flute end mills from precisebits http://precisebits.com/gateways/EndMillsHome.htm for cutting aluminium on the c beam. 0.125" i did gum one up with the wrong feed/chip clearing.

using precisebits since about 2008 never gone wrong with them for me.

fusion360 has also been great for me, i really liked it , solidworks with solidcam or hsmworks is definitely more indepth and can do a lot more, but so far digging the f360 experience.

 

LOL sold faster than in the housing bubble going on in Auckland NZ these days...Laurie

 

Hey Mark, or anyone else, is this file posted somewhere on here or would you mind sharing it? I would like to mess around with it and would really appreciate it if someone could point me in the right direction? Thanks in advance.

 

Hi Kyo. What RPM and feedrate would you recommend for this in AL with a 1/8" 2 or 4 flute carbide cutter? I'm never sure about this because I cut mostly wood, but now I also need to make some of these plates myself.

 

Thanks pal. I was looking every place EXCEPT where it was. Best wishes.

 

Congratulations! Looking forward to the spindle mount idea.

 

I got my bundle last Friday, but a last minute work commitment came up that kept me from starting the build until yesterday.
This came up AFTER I had bugged openbuilds to hurry it along and bugged them for the tracking number, etc.

Anyway, almost done but thought of a couple of things to add to Mark's EXCELLENT build video.
1) I can't "DISAGREE" with the way he "squares" the nut blocks when tightening them down, in fact it is clearly "good practice" to hold the block down and press the screws against the same side of the holes before tightening them.
In a perfect world where everything is straight, square, level, true and plumb this would work every time.

Howeverrrrrr.... with the anti backlash nut blocks it turns out later that the lead screw doesn't run true down the center of the channel - unless forced to do so, which seems like the wrong thing to do.
So, I have been getting the eccentrics set up, threading the lead screw through the nut block, adjusting the block for zero back-lash, THEN with the lead screw "free" (from bearings in end blocks) adjusting the nut block's hold screws to align the lead screw straight down the middle.
2) The cast corners' "nubs" are a problem if you leave them on, at least in a lot of places where they don't drop into a channel.
I tried to leave them on where they seemed to do some good, but got so frustrated with grinding one side then using the wrong side that I gave up - just ground them all off.
3) Related to cast corners, there are a LOT of places where 10mm screws bottom out in the channel before the head contacts the cast corner. I think there are just WAY too many places where 10mm is called out, but 8mm is needed.
BIG shortage of 8mm screws, BIG surplus of 10mm screws in the bundle.

Impatience will send me to the hardware store for a BIG bag of 5mm washers this morning.

Again, EXCELLENT video Mark, thanks.

Also a round of applause for whoever figured out the packaging.
While I am quite sure that a lot of us could work our way through this if all screws, spacers, etc of each type were put into one individual bag, having them counted out and individually packed into sub assembly bundles helps a LOT.
We are just about ALL doing this for the first time, if I did a dozen builds it would be different, I would just KNOW how many of which go where and if there were leftovers.

Thanks guys, GREAT build.

 

I wanted to second the bundling of the parts, it made it much easier to assemble the machine. Also want to say that who ever does the packing, they are masters at bubble wrapping and tape. A semi truck could run over the box and not hurt the cast corners.

 

For the record, filing off the nubs takes only a few strokes. I definitely think it's a benefit for when the nub is turned the other way than shown in the photo above - and the nubs are the only thing making contact.

 

Love the C-beam Machine. I am now saving my pennies to purchase one. I will be using it to cut centering rings and fins for high power rockets. Either in plywood or fiberglass. But I can also envision a time when I would perhaps want to build something a bit bigger and this would allow me to cut the plates to do so. Great little machine.

 

Received my C-Beam Machine Kit very quickly and it was by far the most organized well put together packaging I have ever received.
WELL DONE OpenBuilds!!
Before putting it together decided to put all the parts into SolidWorks so I could have them if I want to re-design a different unit in the future and know what OpenBuilds parts to order.
Today 3D-Printed up some ABS plastic End-Caps for the Extruded Aluminum.
https://ctmprojectsblog.wordpress.com/2015/09/02/openbuilds-c-beam-cnc-machine/

~ CHEERS!!