Nice! BIG! I look forward to reading the details and looking at the pics. Lots and lots of pics please. Larry
I joined the X-Axis rails. Before doing that I could grab the spindle and get quite a lot of forwards and backwards flex. Still not perfect but better.
Zero spacing. 1. Fully assemble x-axis rails in their finished position. Adjust off base for face of x-axis being perpendicular to base. Make sure top of rails are even 1. Clamped x-axis rails together 2. Drilled 5mm pilot hole through both rails, marking rails for reassembly in same position. 3. Unclamped rails 4. Drill front rail slightly oversize for 8mm bolt and counter-bored for clearance of socket head screw. Slightly oversize to make sure there is an ability for the rails to move sideways to line up flush with the plates. By slightly, I think I only did it by 0.2mm 5. Drilled and tapped rear one for 8mm socket head screw 6. Reassembled rails to side plates and then tightened bolts holding rails together. making sure top of rails flush. A bit of messing around but I ended up with a pretty solid 60 x 40 rail. What I was trying to achieve was getting the two rails clamped firmly together without the screws in the plates having to cope with any misalignment. 5mm screws in aluminium are not going to compensate for the ends of the rails not lining up Spacing was about 150mm - this is a 1500 x 750 machine
Having said all that, The first thing I would change on mine is the X-Axis. I thought the 1500mm on the Y-Axis would be an issue, did the double belt mod and no problems with stretch at all. Did the same double belt mod to the X-Axis and no real improvement, mainly because on my machine it's only 750mm and belt stretch is not an issue. I have the same type of spindle (but 2.2kW) and mount, and as you said there's a fair bit of weight out there. I am also using the same VFD as you. I made sure that all the stepper drivers and the VFD had forced fan ventilation. I haven't had any issues yet and have gone as low as 6000 rpm.
Thanks for sharing your work. Great job. You have certainly put in thought and design in your work. I've been studying on what spindle motor to use. Would you comment on your motor selection and the experience with different suppliers? Also, if you had to do over, would you use the same slot material? Good luck, Tom
Neil, Thanks for that info. I think I am going to try the Mod at 150mm spacing when I get some down time. Also I think I am going to try the double belt method as well that Martin posted on his feed. I feel like I am having to re-tighten the belt more often than I expected. When I tear into it I think I am going to tighten up the V-Wheels on the Z axis because as I push on the bit fore and aft I can see I may not have the bearings tight enough on the Z axis they move a little bit. I will try to post a video of the movement soon.
Tom, Let me start with the Slot Material. If I had to do over and $3,000 more I would have honestly went with CNC Router parts CRP4848. My buddy has that set up and it is a BEAST. That being said it is over twice the cost of the parts on Open Builds. For smaller setups for 3D printers, small CNC routers and Laser engraver/cutters I would go with Open Builds ALL DAY LONG. Over all I am VERY happy with what I have built for the cost from Open Builds Part Store. The whole Spindle VFD experience was quite comical for me. I purchased a 1.5Kw Spindle/VFD combo on Amazon for $255. When it came it was missing the connector for the spindle so I order what I thought was the correct connector (but wasn't) it fit though. Additionally the VFD was some off brand which was an imitation of the Huan Yang. So I wired it all up and it ran very intermittent and would trip an Over Voltage or Over Current and shut off. So I bought a Huan Yang VFD on Ebay for $139. Hooked it up and was having worse luck. So I opened up the spindle to find that the connector I had purchsed was numbered differently than the Spindles connector. Pins 1-3 are the 3 Phases coming from the VFD and pin 4 is the ground so that is how I wired the connector I purchased but the 4 pins of the connector did not coincide with the 4 pins of the Spindle. I wasted weeks and a lot of money trying to figure out my own stupid mistake. Bottom line is I would buy a Huan Yang VFD Spindle combo. If you are using Mach3 as your controller I would by a RS485 adapter to control the VFD through Mach3 (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00O6Q2PKM?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s01) and download MattyZee's plugin for Mach3 (http://www.machsupport.com/forum/index.php/topic,14182.0.html). That is what I am running and it is a dream. I click on cycle start and the spindle turns itself on runs through the g-code and turns the spindle off when its done. There is a little bit of set up with Mach3 and the VFD but it is not too difficult. The spindle is supper quite and the I can run it all day long and it hardly gets warm. I am VERY happy with the set up. Sorry for the long winded explanation, I just don't want you to make the same mistakes I did. If you have any other questions please let me know, hopefully I can help. And Honestly this is not a knock on Open Build for their extrusions or V-wheels and bearings, they are great. There are just more robust options out there.
Thank you, Dominic, Great answers to my questions. Very complete and insightful. I appreciate you taking time to go through the details. This is a great education. I wish you well. Regards, Tom
Adrien, The Z travel is 4.5" then subtract the thickness of your material and your Z rapid height along with the length of your bit. Bottom line you can not cut material that is that thick. The thickest material I work with is about 2" Thank you, Dominic
Nice build, Looks like we are building the same thing ( Here is mine ) with the exception of the spindle. I too imediatly started to experiance and be warned by viewers about having a 1500mm axis and the 80x20 or 60x20 not being rigid enough. My Sponsor - SNB Solutions, has provided me an upgrade kit that for those starting out is well worth a look, it is based on the 80x40 C beams and bigger better plate and feet (Oh, and did I say, beutiful RED anodized finish too, just in time of the holidays ) so I will be retrofitting these new parts over the next few weeks and publishing the new build in videos as I go. Anyway, one of the questions you was asking is regarding how to stiffen up the build even more, well these should help alot, please go check it out and I hope it helps Peter
Hi, I recently got a 1.5kw 80cm with 1.5kw VDF to upgrade my OX. how'd you go with the Z axis did you end up modding it? or just tighten the stock z axis? Cheers