[gio666]

I am using regular motor oil for lubricating bits and nut after each use. Will same oil work before loctite application?
Thanks

oil? dont know what you mean, dont think locktite will work on oiled screws

[mecosv]

I agree. At this point it is then important to use either the locking threads. It should clean the nuts and bolts with a solvent (industrial alcohol, paint thinner) or degreaser soap before applying. If this is not done, the thread locks may not work.

[azam1959]

There is no room on any bolts to put lock washers . You should not need them if tighten properly.
the end frame has holes in to mount another 4080 to give to support in centre.
But most important is to tighten top to angles, then tighten to profiles.
Thats same way mount now on all the machines as it is far better and stronger the bolting on top

George,
I have no problem working on about 400 screws but seeing the cuts, do you really see issue with this. I thought issues are
1) spindle is loose
2) spoil board is curved and not getting enough support to provide stiff back
3) I am making rough cut in delicate positions on hard wood which is butting more then required.

Shouldn't I first check with 36 inch level? Will follow your direction.

Thank you very much.

[azam1959]

I agree. At this point it is then important to use either the locking threads. It should clean the nuts and bolts with a solvent (industrial alcohol, paint thinner) or degreaser soap before applying. If this is not done, the thread locks may not work.

Thanks Mecosv and George. I will just use wd40

[mecosv]

The review levels, alignment and position of the table above is a very good point. But keep in mind that, just keep the table aligned, straight and fixed to the structure of the machine, the working pressure can flex with all the concerns that this may cause.

[azam1959]

The review levels, alignment and position of the table above is a very good point. But keep in mind that, just keep the table aligned, straight and fixed to the structure of the machine, the working pressure can flex with all the concerns that this may cause.

Thanks Mecosv. I think XZero has done a very decent job of structure stability considering the price point. Purpose of this thread is not to question XZero, DMM or anybody else. Newbie like me who have never seen cnc machine in action will ask dumbo questions to find out what the norm is, and if our results are out of norm, what improvement opportunities we have in terms of setup, machining operation and tools. Support and help I saw in last two days tell me that I am in good hands.

Enough chit chat, I have three concrete items I can work on and then run few simple projects and come back with more complex issues.

Thanks again for the help. I will continue with current cad/cam package but based on your input about finishing pass, I will try to migrate to better package sooner but first thing first which means not to worry about complexity of cad/cam package and understand machining 101.

Bye till I have more to share.

[mactec54]

azam1959

If you are using Aspire, the Autocad inventer cad/cam package is not going to help you at all, the Aspire should be all you need for the type of work you are doing

[azam1959]

Mactec54,

Thanks

current cad/cam package strength is dictating the work i am doing right now and if wood carving is the end game i do agree aspire is pretty good at this.

i am not sure what i will be doing with router table, mill and lathe but i do envision creating small models which have if not hundreds at least tens of parts which integrate with each other. folks may have a smile on their face but me coming to the point where i assembled the machine and making some basic parts seemed impossible couple of month ago.

i wrote my first sw program in 70s using fortran. at that time i had no idea what i was doing and spent weeks and months just putting alpahbets in different angles to learn punch card process, compilation, debugging, language syntax and semantic (sp?) etc etc. sw development hobby stuck with me till my retirement and instead of alphabets i was working on the project which if successful nobody notice and if fail become wsj headline. i am not interested in making money with cnc hobby but i do not see myself wood carving for next 30 years either. i will also like to see one cad/cam interface for 4 and 5 axis and for turning too and with my limited/bookish exposure to inventor/inventorcam they do satisfy this requirement (aspire does have fourth axis). beside advance functionality, aspire do have some weakness in showing the third dimension. we can simulate how project will look after project is complete but during the design third dimension presentation is little week (subjective analysis, if i do not like aspire, i had other options too) only question will be my negotiation skills to get enough discount to buy inventor/invetorcam package.

on the issues which we were talking yesterday pm ... i did put the 36 inch level on different part of the table top and do not see any deflection on table top. i found and fix the screws which were loose on spindle. i did put a spacer between the spindle and backplate and at that time i did not know how to adjust the screw length using the grinder and i did loose few threads due to spacer. if loctitie does not hold, i will use a longer screw. this is one of the benefit of diy kit, i am no scared of machine breaking ... i built it and can rebuild it again (feel so good to say this )

as usual i wrote more then i should have ... for mdf, i am planning to just tie it with table top with left over tnuts. hope they will be good enough to hold it. wish there is a way to get 4x8 sheet on the table, additional weight would be a great help.

azam1959

If you are using Aspire, the Autocad inventer cad/cam package is not going to help you at all, the Aspire should be all you need for the type of work you are doing

[mecosv]

With the concern about possible problematic situation in Mach3 with Servos, it would be possible with Linux CNC could get a better tuning and calibration.

[azam1959]

Hi,

Based on input here, I have secured the work holding. Dust shoe is also shipped and should be getting it soon. One thing more, spindle although move parallel to table top, I think it is close to 86-87 degree instead of 90 degree with the table top. George told me how to fix it and work is little involved. If issues you are seeing here seem to be because cutter is not perpendicular to the work piece, I will give this a high priority otherwise, I will get to it whenever I can.

This particular cut involved 90 degree vbit and then 1/4 end mill and I am including both the pictures. I left 5 thousandth in the bottom (i needed help to move mdf and will like it to last as much as it can). I am planning to use dremel to cut the skin in the bottom and then sand the sides, if there is better way, let me know.

Results are better then before ... in fact I am not sure if I can ever do this kind of work manually. I am posting two details closeup pictures showing the shortcomings. If you can continue to help in identifying how to improve the details I will appreciate it.

One thing more ... this work is directly from aspire examples. Absolutely no creativity from my side. I will continue to use Aspire examples to learn machining. Creativity and originality will obviously follow once I have some control on the machining techniques.

Regards,

[azam1959]

guess i am the only XZero user making the mistake...no complains though,. want to learn and best way is to learn from mistakes.

first of all, implemented one more suggestion given on this thread


left carving in the above picture has a vertical cut and i had seen it before where axis was shifted. i stopped the program and went step by step and came back and checked the cad/cam ... there was an offset selected in the cad/cam .... perhaps this happening before. Other issue in the left carving is piece was no secure and i actually saw it moving due to cutting forces. I started again on a new piece and as you can see more close up in following picture it seems like surface was not parallel to cutter movement, carving is shallow or does not even appear on the left side.



third try on a new piece and started seeing the same behavior. I stopped the program and drew few lines with shallow depth and see that depth is same on both the ends so hypothesis that surface is not parallel to cutting depth was not correct. Offset the cutter and started again and this time results are little better. Issue is only with circle/carving, square seem to be fine. I think circle depth and width is not constant through out and improper z zero is causing the issue.


I check the cad part of circle and there are too many nodes. I have simplified it and will try again tomorrow.

do not care much about this pattern but just want to understand the machining behavior. If anybody is more insight, I will love to hear.

[ger21]

It sure looks like your board is not flat. For best V carving results, it must be perfectly flat.

[azam1959]

Thanks Gerry.

I have seen folks using fly cutter for metal. Do wood have the same tool or does it call something different?

Regards,

PS: In the mean time for this type of work, I will just do the pocket operation first.

It sure looks like your board is not flat. For best V carving results, it must be perfectly flat.

[Ven0r]

I use a onsrud spoil board bit to make sure my board is absolutely flat.

Onsrud part # 90-002

:: Smooth Finish | Spoilboard | Finishing Cutters | Plastic | Aluminum | Documents

little pricey, but i'm sure there are chinese knock-offs though

[ger21]

Thanks Gerry.

Do wood have the same tool or does it call something different?

Insert Spoilboard & Rabbeting Router Bit with Scorer 2 + 2 Design - Toolstoday.com - Industrial Quality Insert Bits

[Ven0r]

Insert Spoilboard & Rabbeting Router Bit with Scorer 2 + 2 Design - Toolstoday.com - Industrial Quality Insert Bits

I'm not sure if that cutter will fit azam's spindle. Azam, I think you got the same one as me, ER25 collet? Max i've seen is 1/2", the one in the link requires 3/4"

[azam1959]

Venor,
Yes I have ER25 and I think max for ER25 is 5/8.

Gerry,
I used 1/2 inch cutter for pocket and issue is resolved ... although I see tons of room for improvement and opportunities to learn from this cut but there is always tomorrow .... i like the finish of my planner instead of 1/2 cutter for pocketing and i will spend some time to see why my 4-5K powermatic helixcal (sp?) planner is not doing its job. Even in this case, i started with two screws and end up putting two additional longer screws in the middle of the machining. Issue may not be planning but fixing the surface securely.

Thanks again Gerry.

I'm not sure if that cutter will fit azam's spindle. Azam, I think you got the same one as me, ER25 collet? Max i've seen is 1/2", the one in the link requires 3/4"

[mactec54]

Ven0r

They have 1/2" shank in there cutters, ER25 is standard up to 5/8 or 16mm collet size

[Ven0r]

Ven0r

They have 1/2" shank in there cutters, ER25 is standard up to 5/8 or 16mm collet size

I know that. The one linked by Gerry has a 3/4" shank, which would not work in Azam's spindle.

[gio666]

That dust boot you have is for only 1 3/4 flycutter. 2 inch the brush gets pulled in and dust fly's out one side. Here is bottom dust boot for up to 3 inch cutter for Tekno 1 to 3 HP and Hitachi