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Squaring the Gantry

Discussion in 'CNC Mills/Routers' started by Jonathon Duerig, Oct 17, 2016.

  1. Jonathon Duerig

    Jonathon Duerig Journeyman
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    I had a lot of trouble squaring my gantry with adequate precision on my CNC router. This meant that small parts were pretty good, but larger parts were noticeably out of square. Here is an outline of the more or less unsuccessful techniques I tried:

    (1) I knew my two side rails were very close to parallel, and it seemed that they spanned the same distance. So I tried making sure that each side of the gantry was the same distance from the end. This does not work very well at all. You can make square-looking pieces, but nothing like a precise fit.

    (2) Use a carpenter's square or speed square. The problem here is that the gantry rail and the side rails are not on the same plane. So it is somewhat hopeless to try to eyeball it.

    (3) Two strings can be used to square a frame. You tape or tie two strings to the corners of the frame and hang them diagonally across the square of the frame. If the two strings are tightened to the same tension and the distance is the same, then the two strings will just barely touch. Unfortunately, that is a lot of 'if' to have in a precision squaring. I didn't have a way to ensure that they were tensioned the same and adjusting the gantry position changes both the distances and tensions at the same time. It ended up being very fiddly and the end result was not very square.

    (4) Measure the diagonals of a frame. If they are the same distance, then the frame is not a parallelogram. If all the edges are also the same length, then the frame must be square. This was less fiddly than the two strings, and I got about half the skew by using this method. But it was difficult to measure the two distances with any kind of accuracy. I was using a tape measure and getting consistent results across the frame was very hard. It may be that a less flexible measurement tool would have been precise enough.

    ---

    These techniques may be good enough to lay out furniture, but I was still getting noticeable skew across my 1-meter CNC bed. Fortunately, I found one more technique that really worked:

    Use a laser square. Laser squares are typically used to lay out tile in a room. I used this one Tiling/Flooring Laser | 40-6616 | Johnson Level & Tool Mfg Company and it worked great, but I presume any other brand would work equally effectively. Laser squares have two big advantages.

    First, the laser lines extend all the way along your rail even for large machines. Speed squares and even carpenters squares are usually shorter than the rail for a large machine.

    Second, The laser lines project downward at an angle. So the fact that your gantry and base rails are in different planes no longer matters. Put the square on the gantry and one line will project downward along the side rail.

    The only issue with the laser square I used is that there is not really a mounting or clamping surface. If I could have clamped it in place and made fine adjustments. Instead, I had to hold it by hand and re-align it each time I moved to adjust the gantry. Perhaps a different model would be easier to clamp.

    -Jonathon Duerig
     
    Mark Carew and GrayUK like this.
  2. GrayUK

    GrayUK Openbuilds Team Elder
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    Seems like a potentially useful tool. :thumbsup:
    Thanks for the helpful info. I'll look out for one of those next time.
    Cheers
    Gray
     
  3. ChadRat6458

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    experiencing the same issues. Can I get a picture of your setup?
     
  4. Jonathon Duerig

    Jonathon Duerig Journeyman
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    I don't have a photo of using the laser square on my gantry. Partly because it is necessary to do it in the dark. See this video about somebody using it to lay out a floor:



    Now, take a look at my machine.

    Contrariwise -- A C-Beam Router

    I put the laser square on one side of the x-axis gantry. The whole gantry is at one end (near y-max). The z gantry is in the middle somewhere out of the way. I sight one laser line down a line on the extrusion, often an edge. Then I see how close the laser line gets to a line down the y-axis rails. Then I tweak one side's position accordingly. Repeat until it is dead square. I found having an assistant is super-helpful since my laser square doesn't really have an easy way to clamp it.

    -Jonathon Duerig
     
  5. Korimako

    Korimako New
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    Hi All I am also having trouble squaring my gantry, how did you physically change it shape in a reliable way? I am trying to adjust the little corner blocks that secure the v-slot to the gantry plates, I would be gratefull for any advice, thank you :)
     
  6. ChadRat6458

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    Korimako, What kind of machine do you have?
     
  7. Giarc

    Giarc OpenBuilds Team
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    Are you trying to square the Y gantry plates to the X axis? If so, the best way is to make sure the ends are cut square to begin with. Then, what I did was hold a speed square on while tightening up the screws to make sure I was not pulling it out of square while tightening the screws. I never cranked any tight until all were snugged up fairly well. This method worked for me. But, I made sure the cuts were square first.
    [​IMG]
     
  8. Jonathon Duerig

    Jonathon Duerig Journeyman
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    For this thread, I was mostly concerned with squaring the Y-axis with respect to the X-axis. My Z-axis is probably not 100% aligned, but it is good enough for the cutting that I do (3mm plastic). Giarc's advice is probably the way to go if you need a perfectly aligned Z-axis.

    -D
     
  9. Korimako

    Korimako New
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    Thank you, yes I am working on the y axis gantry. the ends or the vslot were milled to start with so I am working adjusting the mounts, thank you for the advice :)
     
  10. Korimako

    Korimako New
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    it is all openbuilds parts, V-slot and gantry plates, the v slot was all milled to start with so I am attempting to adjust the corner brackets holding it together
     
  11. Korimako

    Korimako New
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    what I ended up trying was loosening all parts of the gantry and then putting a thin shim under the outer edge of the corner blocks on the diagonal opposite sets. effectively making those block a degree or two over 90 degrees, and then I used those blocks as leverage to gradually move the gantry by tightening the bolts. it seems to have worked :)
     
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  12. Biglouie

    Biglouie New
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    I'm going to give this a go tomorrow. I noriced today that the gantry seems to be out of square. I noticed, because, if I put a block on one of the X axis rails and pull the gantry to it, then swap the block to the other side, its 2.5mm out. Ie the other side doesnt make it up to the block. SO must not be square!
     
    Hydro likes this.
  13. Biglouie

    Biglouie New
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    I have the
    I am working on the exact same issue at the moment. 2.5mm out on one side.

    How did you get on? Did you shim one side. If the extrusion is cut precisely then you would expect it to be square out of the box. But even a small amount out will multiple over a meter of gantry I guess. 1.746cm rings a bell.
     
  14. diybuilder

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    I had the same problem. Good thing I came across this thread, so thanks for the info! I got a similar tile laser square that comes with a clamp. I did what you said about clamping and fine-tuning it. Worked pretty well for squaring the gantry.
     
  15. bo Toepfer

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    following along here, I am still working on my build and I am very impressed with this equipment, I did notice when I move the gantry to its limit one side hit the corner bracket before the other I have not added the corner brackets to the gantry under the flat plate , so just trying to think ahead,, Thanks
     

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