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stezza333 DIY CNC Milling/Lathe combo... 09-01-2012, 01:31 PM
awerby Although a 4-axis milling... 09-01-2012, 10:42 PM
stezza333 Thanks for all your input... 09-02-2012, 04:51 AM
awerby [I'm getting set to do that,... 09-02-2012, 09:35 PM
stezza333 Did you build your current... 09-03-2012, 03:53 AM
  1. #1
    Join Date
    Sep 2012
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    DIY CNC Milling/Lathe combo design? (PICS)

    New to the forum and the world of machining . I guess it's becoming an obsession. I've been using Solidworks for a couple of years and have a good grasp of it, but I want to turn my ideas into a reality. I want to be able to mill accurate 3D parts out of wood, plastic, and aluminium (other metals?). I would also like to be able to machine gears and threads.

    I started to read books on routing machines and how to construct your own. But now what I really want is a milling/lathe combo. Is it possible to build such a thing? Are there any existing plans out there? Where can I learn about building a CNC lathe?

    I will be using a local engineering company that will drill and supply aluminium profiles and ball screws etc. I would rather spend a year perfecting the design with all the features I require, than to build a basic CNC router. Am I jumping the gun here a bit? I'm a quick learner and have had a bit of experience at an engineering/metal fabrication company which taught me a lot.

    render of my unfinished CNC machine I was going to build...



  2. #2
    Join Date
    Apr 2004
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    5951
    Although a 4-axis milling machine and a lathe have certain features in common, they really are quite different machines. Instead of removing material with a rotating tool, the lathe rotates the material against a stationary tool to remove it. In order to hold a tool rigidly enough the entire assembly holding it must be very rigid - the slightest vibration will cause a poor finish, and a little chatter will make threads non-functional. While there have been attempts at creating combination machines, like the Unimat fun and the Smithy Granite 3-in-1 Combo | smithy.com, most people that have used them consider them a compromise - neither a very good mill nor an excellent lathe. They generally look like conventional lathes to which a milling machine has been grafted on.

    None of them look like your image which as far as I can make it out in the murk looks like the gantry of a CNC wood router. That (if you added a table and X slides and driving hardware) would probably be able to deal with soft materials, but metal would be doubtful, even in milling mode. There's no way it would be rigid enough to hold a lathe toolpost, IMHO. If you really want to build a lathe or mill (or combo unit) capable of machining metal effectively, I'd say forget about aluminum extrusions and start learning how to cast iron.

    Andrew Werby
    www.computersculpture.com

  3. #3
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    Sep 2012
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    Thanks for all your input Andrew. I think I'll be going with a basic milling machine and scrap the combo idea.

    On a side note, being a web developer, are you interested in updating your current website?

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Apr 2004
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    5951
    Quote Originally Posted by stezza333 View Post
    Thanks for all your input Andrew. I think I'll be going with a basic milling machine and scrap the combo idea.

    [It's usually easier to retrofit an old CNC mill with good slides and screws but a bad or obsolete control system than to try building the whole thing from scratch. You can often find them for about their price as scrap. Of course, casting iron can be fun, too...]

    On a side note, being a web developer, are you interested in updating your current website?
    [I'm getting set to do that, actually. Got any good ideas for me?]

    Andrew Werby
    www.computersculpture.com

  5. #5
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    Sep 2012
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    Did you build your current website yourself? Maybe you could go for pre-existing software such as Wordpress? It's not too hard to setup and once you have, managing your website is too easy. It's just a matter of getting the overall design done. If you are wanting to setup an online store then that's a bit different.

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