Guess they didn't learn after Jurrasic Park. ...Get it? Raptor? ...THUMP THUMP THUMP Is this thing on?


I need somewhere to document the build because I suck at documentation, so its time to practice. Anyway, I bought a 30x48 Raptor for the same reason everyone else did: I could design my own, but I just would have ended up with something similar but not as good as the Raptor and it would have cost about the same. So I pulled the trigger. The kits has so far been distributed in about 6 packages (3 from Canada and 3 from China) with 2 more to arrive from Canada. I think there was some issue with my Y gantry that had to be recalled. Combined with ordering the kit about a month ago, during Chinese New Year, its been a distributed arrival. That's fine.

I was excited to get the electronics in first so i could go to school on that side of it before the hardware assembly distracted me. Electronics and I dont always get along, so I wanted to establish the CAD->CAM->G-CODE->SmoothStepper->Controller->Stepper link first. Unfortunately the power supply that came with the kit was DOA (remember how electronics and I aren't friends?). Anyway, George is replacing that power supply in the next shipment. I went with the MX4660 because I figure a 4th axis will happen at some point and I have a pair of rotary stages that were laying around in my buddy's machine shop that he didn't want. I'll have to run them open-loop, but whatever. I also scored a 2.2kW spindle from him, but I needed an inverter, so I picked with the one from Automation Technologies. That one fought me for a while until I finlly found the hidden setting that I had overlooked and now the spindle spindles up nicely.

I scored some heavy 80-20 from work that was leftover scrap and built a nice rigid table (then put it on casters for extra rigidity!). Just kidding, the casters are there to help me move it around while I build it and everything in my garage is on wheels so I can reconfigure. Jack-screws will follow. once the machine is done.

I think the most difficult choice I have to make in this whole process is what color to anodize the machine. Blue? Black with Yellow extrusions? Red? First world problems. There is a blue motif running in this shop (yeah, I just used "color motif" and "shop" in the same sentence. Deal with it.) Weigh in if you want to have an opinion, but I hear people are shy about sharing their opinion on this "internet" thing.

Here's a few pictures of the goods to tide you over. I'll post more when there is something worth showing.