Hey everyone, as the title says, after a much frustration with backordered parts, I finally placed my order for a C-Beam machine to delve into the crazy world of CNC! I am very new to CNC routers so I just wanted to say thanks ahead of time for everyone's help. I am not new however to CNC. I have successfully build a 3D printer and wanted something to do some routing work in mainly wood and plastic, however I do want the ability to do some aluminum parts as well. I don't plan on doing anything larger than a sheet a paper at the moment, but that may change in the future depending on how successful I am at smaller things. Anyway I have the Machine, 24V power supply ordered. I already have a Dewalt 611 router, so I am going to print a collar to make that work with the mount. I still need to purchase a controller though. Any suggestions? I was looking at the GRBL arduino shield from another company that I won't mention... Would that work or do I need something more robust? FYI, I plan on designing in AutoCAD and Inkscape. Thanks again!
Mention away, this is an open forum. Besides, we kind of need to know in order to follow up on the latter part of the statement.
Ok, wasn't sure if that was Ok. I was looking at the gShield from Xcarve. It seems pretty cheap and similar to the Ramps controller. Just not sure if it will handle the current required for the Nema 23 motors. Or should I wait until the xPRO V2 becomes available? I don't think I need individual motor drivers with a separate controller.
If you are looking at the gShield, I would suggest also taking a look at the Arduino CNC Shield - Arduino CNC Shield – 100% GRBL Compatable | Protoneer.co.nz There are plenty of inexpensive clones available on eBay, or you can buy as a kit from the Protoneer eBay store. Arduino CNC Shield V3.51 - GRBL v0.9 compatible - Uses Pololu Drivers Inexpensive clone including Arduino Uno and 4 x DRV8825 drivers for less than $30 - Arduino CNC V3 Shield for Mill Router Engraver Robot + 4x DRV8825 + UNO R3 The advantage of this vs. gShield is that it natively supports 4 axis drivers, and the drivers (Pololu sticks) are replaceable and also very inexpensive. The newest rev of the board from Protoneer also has signal filtering on end stop and probe connections to help deal with noise issues. I have an xPRO v2, and have recently replaced it with a combo Raspberry Pi/Arduino/driver solution also from Protoneer - Raspberry Pi CNC Board / Hat | Protoneer.co.nz
John, Thanks for the info. I remember seeing some info like this before as I was going through the forum, I just couldn't remember where it was. I decided to go the cheaper rout and order a clone from Amazon. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...ue&ref_=ox_sc_act_title_6&smid=A2YI8XQU239Q2W for $35 with 4 drivers and UNO, I figured it was worth a shot. I also ordered an emergency stop button and inline fuse. I noticed there was an "E-Stop" connection on the controller. Should I wire up the button to that or to just cut the power to the whole machine, IE spindle power and PSU. I would assume the entire machine that way it shuts everything down.
If you wire everything including spindle through it just be sure the stop switch has the Amp rating to cover it all.
The specs show Rated Current : 10(6)A;Rated Voltage : AC 400V http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008ZY8G5O?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s01 So at 120 Volts it should handle 33 amps. It will be on an outlet with a 15amp breaker.
Not sure if I'm just being impatient, but I haven't gotten a shipping confirmation yet. I placed my order last Monday, and it still shows awaiting fulfillment a almost a week later. I emailed support on Thursday and the responded very quickly that it would only be a day or two. I'm not sure what the delay is. If They haven't shipped it by tomorrow is there a support number I can call to talk to someone?
So I contacted support again yesterday after a week had passed. I did not get a response however a little while later I did finally get a shipping notification. Tracking says it should be here Friday. Thanks to the team for getting it out to me, I was starting to get worried.
