The Shop > Tools
CNC Engraver
AdeV:
The Y-axis setup I'm a little bit more proud of, although again I can't hold the microswitch properly. This time it's pinched in a really clunky bracket. Again, once the M2 screws rock up, that will be thrown away and a much sleeker bracket put in its place. It's simply screwed (using a spare "T"-nut that came with the machine) into the top of the side extrusion, roughly in the middle of the table travel.
The ends of the table extrusion have a 5mmx10mm (approx) slot, which is perfect for the "1" shaped end stop I milled up. As it ended up being a slight rattle fit, I added a small screw which simply pushes against the back of the slot to hold it in place. I only made one so far, another will be added later, which will give the Y-axis a hard stop on both ends, using just one switch. The photos show the really crappy bracket, and the end stop thingy.
The 1-shape is so it doesn't just smash the end of the microswitch. :lol:
The X-axis switch is just glued to the frame... I will make a proper bracket for it, as I can't glue it far enough back to not lose around 10mm of travel. I'll probably mount it lower down too, to catch the bottom of the Z-axis carrier, just so it's less in-yer-face. Wiring will all be sorted properly as well, at some point. Probably.
With the usual apologies for crappy lighting, sound and editing; follow the link for a very short video showing it homing itself to the various axes:
raynerd:
Nice one Ade. Looks fun for the money!
AdeV:
So, a spot of progress today. Not as much as I'd have liked... but, well, some is better than none, right?
The M2 bolts had arrived (2 sets of them... oops), but no M2 tap! Argh! Fortunately I discovered this before midday, and the local engineering supply shop had one in. So I bought two, on the theory that if I only had one I'd break it or lose it; having a spare will prevent either scenario :lol:
Z-axis was easy, I just drilled through where the switch was already held on with hot-glue, prised it off, tapped the holes & fitted it back on with appropriate bolts. :thumbup:
Next up was fitting the cable drag/tow chain I bought; this is the stuff you see on grown up CNC machines which stops the millions of wires from flopping about, causing a trip hazard, catching on moving parts or finding their way - somehow - into the cutter... First up was a bracket to hold the end of the chain to the head. Lacking a 3D printer I whizzed it out of a piece of ali. Holes were drilled & tapped by hand. I had to remove the Z-axis motor to tap the holes, what a palaver THAT was! Totally worth it, though!
I still need to lash up the bottom bracket (that'll be dead easy), for now I've put some electrical tape on it just to hold it roughly in place.
As I don't have a 3D printer (did I mention that already?) I've not yet done anything to tidy up the top. I probably never will either... knowing me... :palm:
Anyway, below is an extremely brief video of the cable chain doing it's thing.
AdeV:
PS: I think I discovered why my M4 thread in the plastic Z-axis Adjustment Screw Holder AttachmentTM is so loose and wobbly....
...turns out I used an 8-32 UNC tap!!!
:doh: :doh: :lol:
I think I'll re-make that block in Aluminium, and use the correct tap next time.... :palm:
AdeV:
More progress today - despite another project interfering... I made (after a couple of false starts due to advanced maths failure :palm:) some T-nuts to go in the machine slots. The eventual plan is to get a piece of plastic the size of the table clamped down, with a section milled out to hold the standard sized PCBs I'll be working on, but I wasn't feeling it today so instead I just lobbed a piece of plywood I found lying around on instead.
Had a little go engraving, which worked OK, but plywood's crap wood for that sort of job. I'll try on a piece of plastic once I've got some double-sided tape to hold it down.
After that, I messed around drilling a cheap PCB blank I've got - and that worked perfectly! So I'm one very happy bunny tonight :D
Still got a few more things to do before I'll be ready for regular PCB work, but I'm very happy with the machine. £140 well spent I reckon :thumbup: (wives/significant others may disagree :scratch: :loco: :lol:)
No video tonight, as I can't find my tripod head, and holding the camera even close to steady whilst sending manual G-code commands to the machine is - like trying to strike a match on a bar of soap - one of the few things in life that's actually impossible...
Navigation
[0] Message Index
[#] Next page
[*] Previous page
Go to full version