Unfortunately steel can't be extruded like aluminum. To do this in steel would require something custom ground which would quickly get cost prohibitive.

 

It's out there Gary. Hardened and ground. I used it on my build.


Joe

 

I used IMService machine shop for the rails and spacers. They have a website and eBay account. I recommend you contact them for a quote through email directly if you decide on going this route. They have a dedicated setup for fabricating the spacers and eccentrics. The bearing are VXB.

The rails are not extruded, but Rick was right about one thing that it's a pricey system. Not horrible for what you're getting into though.

I have a couple of dated pictures of the machine I designed and built in my media section(OB members only. Will probably take them down soon now though), but I haven't done a full build section here on the site. Considering I haven't seen my setup used anywhere in the router domain I'm kinda hesitant about China and others equipped for rapid knockoffs. Plus, It's a daunting task doing a build section at this point with such a large to do list for other things. I did take hundreds of photos throughout the process and would be glad to assist anyone through PM.

iirc, the rail and vslot combination is no good. I have it in memory that the #2 steel rail will work with a couple of other profile extrusions out there(none by slot). I don't retain that type of detailed information well enough to recall which and would have to dig through my files. I have them all modeled. Off the top of my head I think it might have been 8020 and misumi that had a profile or two that would possibly suffice and not minitec or the Openbuilds extrusion. All mainly because of the extrusion radii, but some for the amount of bite the mounting screws had. Disclaimer, in no way am I knocking profiled systems. They're tried and true as demonstrated, I ended up staying away from all of the profile extrusions because they were not up to the task based on requirements I set forward (plus the FEA and hand calculating). Even with braced steel rails at all four corners of the gantry I was seeing more deflection through the system than I could handle based on the requirements I set(Important to note here that I work in mechanical design for rapid R&D, think in industrial design which conflicts with the latter almost always, and have a prior tool and die background with CNC programing experience). The inertial mass was great for accel/decel requirements, but I found that box extrusion was too hard to beat for both tasks.

You can see how I installed my rail by checking out my media. However, the process in which it was installed is not described there. The rails have some slight bow and/or twist to them and butting them up tight was no menial task. You really have to get this right the first time or the top an bottom rails will ride funky permantly. I do retain process details quite well and remember every step of that stinking job. Actually I came up with a new machine concept while installing those dang rails and am currently working out those details(instead of running the router of course!!).

In the end Gary(yes there's finally an end to this rant), I wouldn't recommend the steel vrail system for long lengths to anyone here at this point unless you have the dough to cough up for perfect bishop wisecarver components or are willing to deal with a task to install a component that is normally straight forward in regards to its available counterparts. On top of that you should have a good mechanical inclination to begin with(I believe you do). If you are looking to build an industrial grade machine then this system is spot on(even on par with profile rail plus some additional advantages if installed right), but not right for profile extruded aluminum. My requirements meant that I was building a Ferrari from the get go for myself. While the performance is as designed, its not really a practical nor economical system to implement for the hobbyist. I just had resources and the know how to pull it off, but you have to ask yourself if that's what matters for what you intend to accomplish. If one can't afford top notch name brand components, or if they want to get to machining already, and/or just have a few jobs in mind then just get delrin vwheels to put on the openrail and get her done. I'm sure you'll be happy and most importantly you'll be able to move on to the next build. Otherwise, I think that putting steel wheels on that aluminum openrail is going to lead to discouragement and distraction from what might matter more to you than I...making those chips fly.

Joe

 

And once you get cutting you can make your own redesigned components.

I don't like to give spindle advice, but personally I think the 1.5kw spindles are a bit much to be mounting on some machines. My setup doesn't have any of the gantry torsion or deflection problems associated with profile extrusion(though I might redesign my Z). I don't know what positive effects reinforcing the gantry actually gives so I'll leave that to others more experienced with that setup. As you probably know, there are a lot of variables to consider surrounding the spindle.
Weight, desired collet size, water or not, remote operation, VFD selection, etc. Regardless, make sure you have the right voltage and current capacity for everything at the job site prior to purchasing.

I think there are some builds here that use the 1.5kw. with some success(subjective). I can't recall any specifically. There are a couple that tried a 3kw spindle(don't do it). I use a .8kw 1hp spindle with a Allen Bradly drive and it cuts the above no problem. Regardless of spindle, I recommend you avoid the HY drives that come in most eBay spindle packages. Fork up the dough for a good VFD. If you're hard up for cash look into the Teco FM50 and FM100.

 

I'd just like to mention for the sake of review and for noob readers that 1hp is about 746watts. 1000 watts is a kilowatt. A 1.5 kilowatt spindle can be considered a 2hp spindle and so on. Also worth mentioning that motor drives can be limited internally through the settings. So essentially a 2hp drive can operate a motor rated less than 2hp without blue smoke. Running a 2hp motor on a 1hp drive is counter intuitive. I know this all seems really fundamental to some, but it is lost on many beginner's.
All that said, Gary, I think that if you can find a deal on a nice 2hp drive 230 or not then you have the option to run a .8 or a 1.5kw spindle. The 230 circuit is something you'll have to determine is worth installing. It'll draw less current, but I don't know if the cost will be justified. VFDs at 120 and over 1hp are limited. They're out there, but decent ones can get pricey. 120 draws more current, so you'll have keep an eye on breaker capacity as mentioned. It's up to you to contrast these things with your individual situation. The FM100 or the EV Series would get to a 2hp drive, but you'll need that 230V. The 1hp drive would mean you'll want a .8kw spindle. Your call.

 

Yeah. Depending on the work you do or plan to do 230 really works well. There's a lot of 220 shop equipment out there. You can by 3 phase equipment and run it on VFD/SVD's. You could run a decent welder if you're into that sort of thing too.

 

Automationtechnologiesinc I think they warranty for a year on the spindles. Mine has been solid. My vfd came from an electronics seller on eBay.

 

Yeah. They're a little pricey on shipping, but you do get orders pretty quick. I like their motors. They're formerly known as Keling.
www.kelinginc.net/ They had decent motor drivers from what I've heard.

 

I don't know about mach4, but with 3 Artsoft let you download, install, and set it up. The trial is limited to 500 lines of code and I think some features are disabled, it still allows you to have an operational cnc. I ran it for a couple of months that way before buying a license to do complex work. I don't know if it's the same case with 4. Might be worth looking into. You could get started on the configuration now if it is.