I wish i could give you a full review, but the prints i received didn't work out and snapped while I was adjusting the wheels. The issue was definitely with the printer though so not really your problem. Overall I was very happy with the thickness and had these not snapped i definitely would have kept them. I loved the idea of having the recessed mounting holes because you would be able to print covers to hide the hardware (not to mention having nice bulky appearance). My home printer has a limited build volume so i was only able to reprint the Z axis bits. Both pieces were printed at 75% fill with .2 layer height. One change i made to both top and bottom was the addition of a 2mm lip to stop the lead screw bearing from sliding through the mount. The other was a change for the Z motor screw holes where they seemed to be facing the wrong direction (see photo for the change). Ill give you a heads up if i find a way to try out the other pieces from a different printer.

 

Thanks for your response mate. Interesting that the parts snapped. Did you print the parts yourself and did you print in PLA or ABS/PETG? If you got them printed via 3D hubs, it may be that the printer didn't actually print at 75% infill - happens quite a lot with 3D hubs unfortunately and it's difficult to determine exactly what infill they used. I'll have a look at the Z axis part and see what went wrong and fix, thanks again for the heads up

 

Im starting to think it was printed in PLA and the infill does look a bit light. what did you use for your drag chains? Ive been printing up "Drag Chains HD" from thingiverse, but they seem a bit narrow.

 

I haven't printed and assembled mine yet unfortunately - just don't have the time and so many other projects going at the moment. If you did get these printed from a printer service, it may well be the case that they didn't print with enough infill. You can check if it's PLA or ABS by using various chemicals on the plastic - google for more info

 

@gyrex Thank you for posting this build. I'm still a little undecided about this build and it will finally put my printer to good use. How has your experience been in terms of accuracy and repeatability? Any parts that have come apart etc? Will it sustain cutting Alu?

 

This has me wondering (I've been intermittently daydreaming extensively about building a CNC/kit for about 2 years now) if remixing the parts to be reinforced in at least certain areas with some sheet metal and threaded insert nuts or grommets, would extend their overall lifespan and allow for cutting alu plates for an ox/sphinx. If not, it seems like it'd be able to plot/bore the holes, leaving the non-critical plate sides/dimensions to be cut manually. (My space and financial budgets are probably fairly limited for the foreseeable future...)

 

EA, you shouldn't need any reinforcement. I 3d printed all my plates for a Sphinx and was able to slowly cut new ones out of aluminum. I did mine at 50% infill, 8-10mm thick, and used ABS. I even had some pretty severe head crashes and they never broke. You do have to go very slow and take shallow cuts for aluminum. The plastic will flex, the endmill will chatter and if you go too fast, will evntually bite and break. I had a lot of breakage, but was new to CNC, so I suspect some of this was just normal learning curve.

 

I am new to CNC and 3D printing and looking to start by building a machine with 3d printed plates just like what you have managed to do.

Curious to find out besides the 50% infill, 8-10mm thickness of your plates. Did you change such as layer height, infill type etc in your slicer settings for additional strenght?

Look forward to hearing from every one about the best settings to use for 3D printing of the plates.