[NeedAnotherTool]

I started building a machine a few months ago and thought I'd show it off and share my lessons learned. I wanted the machine to break down enough to move into my basement, so the legs attach to a piece of channel, which detaches from the table.

the X and Y axis use R&P parts from cncrouterparts.com and the Z uses a ballscrew from linearmotionbearings2008 on ebay (eBay My World - linearmotionbearings2008). All the axis ride on SBR20 linear bearings and rails from ebay as well.

Motors and G540 came from modelshopcnc (Kits). I went with the 4x 620 oz/in stepper kit. My gantry is heavy, something like 150 lbs, so it seemed to make sense to use the bigger 620 oz/in motors from modelshopcnc than the 380 oz/in motors from cncrouterparts. Cables and 12.5 amp 48 volt power supply came from cncrouterparts.

The gantry uses a 2040 (2" x 4") piece of 80/20. I had originally planned to make a rectangle out of aluminum, but the 80/20 makes it much easier to attach rails to it, and saves a bunch of hole tapping.

[NeedAnotherTool]

I'm a bit of a tool guy, so an excuse to get more tools is almost reason enough to build a CNC router. Without a knowledge of what I'd do with it, I bought a big benchtop mill a year or so ago. It was instrumental in making the router, as I made most of the gantry parts out of aluminum stock.

The first thing I did while making this router was to add DRO scales to my mill. I bought these really cheap scales (< $100 for 2) from Taylor Toolworks store on eBay!. I only got scales from the X and Y axis. I should have got these right away when I got my mill, as they make everything much easier to make, and you don't have to monitor backlash on the wheels anymore.

I also bought a used 4x6 bandsaw off of craigslist, and promptly burned out the motor the first day. After adding a bigger motor with a thermal overload switch from Harbor Freight, it works a lot better now.

[NeedAnotherTool]

I had started taking apart some metal cases to install the electronics, but decided instead to them on a piece of plywood, as it'll be a lot easier to deal with a thin box than a cube where some parts are over the top of each other.

I haven't built the box around this front panel yet, just set it over the top of a plastic container so the fan drives air over the G540, which needs it. This setup maxes out the G540 (4 motors @ 3.5 amps) so it's important to get the heat away.

I bought a solid state relay off of amazon ([ame="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005KPGPU4/"]link[/ame]) to control power to the router. It can accept 3 to 32 volts for the control voltage so it should be easy to find a power supply to drive it.

The electronics panel has 2 120 volt lines running into it, one for the router and another for everything else. I plug them into 2 different outlets on different breakers, as you could blow a breaker if the stepper power supply draws near its max current while the router bogs down.

The router power line has a switch wired in so you can switch the router off, even if the relay would otherwise turn it on. There is a separate switch to control power to the stepper power supply and 12v (fan and relay) power supply. Bought some 12V 1A wall wart from Goodwill that should work great for the relay/fan power supply. Tie the V- of the relay supply to the V- of the stepper supply so that the relay can work with the G540.

On page 6 of the G540 manual (link), it shows how to wire up a relay to control the spindle.

I'm using a Freud variable speed router that everyone had on sale for $100 a couple years ago. It is much quieter than the other routers I have.

For a PC to control the router I chose to buy a cheap refurb from newegg. They have a good selection of PCs around the $100 mark that will work fine for a controller. I'm using Mach3 software, which is worth the money spent, even though it doesn't have a pretty user interface.

Lesson Learned: It is possible to run mach3 on a pc with onboard video and still have excellent timing results. I had a concern as the requirement on the ArtSoft site says "Non-integrated Video Card with 32MB RAM", but others confirmed in this thread that it can be OK.

Bought a $15 LCD monitor from Goodwill. Plenty good for a monitor for Mach3.

[NeedAnotherTool]

I'm using a Freud FT1702VCEK router, which has an acme screw attached to the router, thus the hole in the router mount. One thing I haven't seen others do but I tried on this machine was a quick release skewer for holding the router in place. It works great. I just used a die to extend the threads of a quick release skewer from a bicycle, then cut it down to the desired length.

I had some old bike lying around I harvested a skewer from, but here is an example of what I'm talking about.

[aarggh]

Those quick release bike handles are extemely for that sort of clamping aren't they!

The only problem sometimes I have is for the dust shoe (and other projects) I need longer ones, so I have to use an M6 bolt, and mill the sides of the head flat, and drill a hole through it so it can remount in the original handle.

Good luck on your build, and in my opinion, any excuse, no matter how flimsy, to buy more "needed" power tools, is justified!

cheers,
Ian

[NeedAnotherTool]

Added a spoilboard this weekend and did some rudimentary cable management until my cable drags arrive from Asia.

I'm planning to build some cabinets for my closet and needed a way to drill some tiny pilot holes for drawer slides. I decided to build an adapter out of MDF that will allow the router to be replaced by the dremel. The 3 C shaped things stack, with dowels running through the holes to maintain the alignment.

[vtx1029]

Looking good

[NeedAnotherTool]

My cable drags came in today from Asia. Just some pieces of plastic, but they'll do a great job of preventing the cables from getting tangled up. I got the 25*57*R75 drags from linearmotionbearings2008 on ebay. 1x1.5 meter for the Y axis and 1x2.5 meter for the X axis. I had to cut some of the rubber off of the power cable for the router to get it through the cable drag, but the serial connectors fit fine.