[mxtras]

I had a few pretty major problems when making the control face. I engraved the front first then did the pocketing so I had too much time invested in the engraving that when I had issues with the pocketing, I had to improvise a bit, but it turned out OK. I would like to re-do it, but can not afford the time, so this will have to do.

I picked up the LCD monitor at a wholesale club for $150.

That's it for tonight. It's late and I work in the morning then I am driving to Florida (Supercross and the end of Bike Week) tomorrow night, which reminds me - the ball screws from Hiwin came today but I have not even unpackaged them yet. There's a guy in Florida that wants my original screws and I really wanted to take them along to save him the shipping, but it's not going to work out. Sorry!

More pics and more info in a few days.

:wave:

Scott

[lingdao]

cool moto very good money 7A110byg 9KG money82 4/2phase

www.gocx.cn

[jdelaney44]

Scott, good job as usual. Good hunting at Bike Week.

-jd

[mxtras]

Wow. I have been pretty bad about posting updates and for that I apologize, guys.

The X and Y are done and I have actually been running the machine for the last few months making parts for my project (MXporter) as well as a company out in Arizona. These parts are helping me pay the bills and it is actually starting to get pretty intense - they just sent me another RFQ for over 40 parts.

In the mean time, I am going crazy with everything else. I have been racing quite frequently lately and I am getting married in a few weeks.

I have started the Z axis drive. I will post up some pics of that when time allows me to.

I am driving the quill through the pinion shaft - a little different from the way most folks do it. Backlash might be a problem, but I think it's something that can be overcome with a small pneumatic cylinder - time will tell. I am confident it will work just fine.

I am driving Z with a relatively small, 276OzIn stepper from AutomationDirect through 2 gear reductions and mounting the motor on the left side of the head. The motor will drive a driveshaft that will transmit the rotary motion through a gear reduction and a driveshaft to the right side and then through another gear reduction to the quill pinion shaft. In theory, the resolution will be sub-micron but I doubt I will actually be able to hold any better than .0005" or so. Who knows, but that's the plan. I am about 1/2 way done. I want to retain the ability to move the quill by hand and I do not want to drill into the machine anywhere. So far, I have managed to get everything mounted to the machine for all three axis without drilling a single hole in the machine except for dowel pin holes and the VFD mouting plate.

I will get a few pics as I progress. It might be next week before I get them posted - I am leaving for a race in Michigan tomorrow, I have a business partner coming into town Sunday night, my kids are coming to visit from Colorado next week, I am racing next weekend too and I am getting married in three weeks - my time is nearly non-existant these days!!!! It takes me basically three days of work to prepare and recover from each race, so racing twice in 2 weeks is a lot more work than I want. This is why I have not been keeping my thread updated as I once did - I just don't have the time and I am trying to get my company off the ground and continue to race as often as possible.

There aren't enough hours in the day!

:wave:

Scott

[Mcgyver]

hey congrats on getting married and everything else. in my experience, unless you've found the first bride that'll sweep up the shop, being married just adds to the time burden - then again not if she makes you cut out the racing

[mxtras]

Wow. I really need to update this thread, huh?

Well - the married life is great. (notice the date of the previous post) This is my second marriage, and after the first one ended, I told myself I would never do it again. BUT - I went out, made my own life without a woman for many, many years and then a woman showed up. She fit into my life like a finely crafted, custom fitted, fine italian leather glove and I just couldn't resist marrying her. Life is good.

It's amazing what happens to you as you go through life.

You start out your adult life when you are 12 or so and you just know all there is to know about everything. By the time you are 20, you have pretty much learned all there is to know. It's amazing how much your parents learn between the time you are 20 and 30, cuz they sure didn't know anything prior to that.

So - you spend your 20s going into debt, your 30s digging out of debt and then your life takes interesting turns as you enter your 40s - which is where I am at. You finally start to really, really figure things out and then you realize that you are in familiar territory - knowing what you are doing. Is it for real this time? I mean - I knew what I was doing when I was 15, right? At least I thought so....

I am just now beginning to feel alive and at ease. Of course, my body isn't agreeing with that - especially my knees and shoulders.

I will make an effort in the next few weeks to pick up the pieces of this thread and continue the chronology. The mill CNC is done - has been for quite a while.

It is truly awesome to have this capacity at my disposal. I have always had access to a huge variety of CNC machines and all other types of equipment, but to have a fully competent CNC mill of my own - this is a first. I am now doing my best to wear the machine out!

Scott

[Jason Marsha]

Congrats Scott, I hope the good life continues.
Now how about some pics and maybe a vid of the machine at work.
We are beginning to feel neglected.

Jason

[turbostang]

Don't be stingy with some updated pics, that mill is NICE! (so is the shop of course, but you already knew that!)

Did you rescrape the ways etc, or was it already that nice? I just bought a BP series one that is already converted and needs to be disassembled and cleaned up, I've been debating on whether or not I am going to realy clean it up or just make it useable.

Good job, keep up the good work!

[mxtras]

I posted this text and these pics in another thread and thought I would cheat and post in my own thread in the name of an update.

This set up uses a small, NEMA 23 frame motor though two gear reductions - one on each side, driven with a transfer shaft. The total reduction is 36:1 and I could have gone with something like 60:1 because it is ridiculously fast. I slowed it down in MACH to make it more manageble for jogging - by something around 50%. It is still very fast. At 100% feed rate, it will still full stroke in less than a second. And this is with a 23 frame motor. If the backlash was eliminated (which might be possible with a set of eccentric pinion bushings) the resolution on this is pretty insane, but with the backlash it is obviously not as accurate as it could be. The clock spring keeps it loaded in the good direction. For critical stuff, I lock the quill in place with the stop nut and elevate the knee but most of what this machine is used for is profiling parts from plate. For what I do with the machine, it works well.

I do eventually plan to power the knee for intricate 3D stuff and then select between which Z axis I use. This won't happen anytime soon.

It's also important that I mention that this conversion required no holes to be drilled and tapped in the head. All mounting was done with factory produced features. How cool is that?

I capped the belt housings with steel so I had more surfaces to stick a magnetic base.

All of the tilt functions of the head are entirely operational and easily accessable. I can easily disable the Z axis drive and use the quill by hand should the need present itself, which it hasn't in the past two years or so.

Since the time these photos were taken, I have removed the quill lock handle, by the way. I did not like the way it could fall down and partially engage - is it was in the photos. No more handle.

Scott

[mxtras]

One more pic. This is the right side completed.

What's not shown is the tensioner inside the case. On the motor side, I adjusted the belt via moving the motor in a pocket. On the right side, I made a positive displacement tensioner with a dual bearing mounted nylon idler wheel then adjusted it with a jacking screw and locked it down internally.

Scott

[rustamd]

Have you done anything cool 3D on the mill yet?

[NC Cams]

Scott: I like your adaptation as it is small, compact and does not detract from the OEM style handle drive potential should the need arise.

The only fault I can find/percieve seems to lie in the factory backlash and/or the inability to remove it.

An eccentric bushing on the pinion could be used to remove gear backlash but I fear that any pitch error in cutting of the factory R&P on the quill would result in binding or sticking. I'm sure that the R&P are not AGMA 10 which would enable you to dial out any backlash without the risk of sticking/binding.

These issues asside, I find your adaptation to be nicely done and possessive of a lot of charm all things considered. Now to figure out how to remove 3D backlash/compliance and you really have something that has more charm potential than the Elrod.

[mxtras]

Wow. I need to update this thread!

As far as the backlash in the Z axis arrangement - it is .013" at worst. It's definately coming from the pinion - I have not really attempted to get it out - it has not been a serious issue for me yet. For high tolerance or finishing, I will lock the quill and use the knee to obtain spot on accuracy. It works for me.

Scott

[Cartierusm]

Well done, I know this post is old but it got me thinking. I'm doing a BP clone retrofit to CNC right now and I'm getting rid of all the original bearing brackets and such. I'll be making my own brackets as you did.

My question is the steel brackets are 1/4" thick, what kind of bearings did you use and how did you support the bearings with only 1/4" thick material. Thanks, I'm hoping you have a better idea than the one I'm pondering.

[mxtras]

Wow. I am getting bad about updating my threads.

Sorry!

My question is the steel brackets are 1/4" thick, what kind of bearings did you use and how did you support the bearings with only 1/4" thick material. Thanks, I'm hoping you have a better idea than the one I'm pondering.

I used standard bearings - SKF explorer series to be exact. I simply c'bored into the plate about 1/8" to locate the bearing and then made a thick collar to trap the rest of the thickness of the bearing. The collar is retained with c'sunk screws from the outside that thread into a pattern drilled and tapped into the collar. Does that make sense?

Scott

[Cartierusm]

Makes sense but you're a little late , I'm already finished with my conversion, came out great.