Ok guys, been surfing and searching the forum for the past 2 days now and I am still not exactly clear on what to do. So far i have the table of my machine built, its 3'x5' and i have my x-axis rails welded together i went with some mild steel tubing and angle iron, and i am making the skate bearing rails. The gantry will be made out of MDF and a piece of steel or two and the router i plan on running for now is a small trim router, but eventually would like to run a high hp router or a 1.5 or 2kw spindle.
After reading through many posts and seeing many different ways of making the gantry move there are several options. Such as the following:
Belt Drive, Chain Drive, ACME Screw, Ball Screw, ect.
My first question is this: Can i get away with a single screw in the center of my gantry underneath or is it better to try and put a screw on each side of the gantry?
Secondly: I am really leaning towards the ACME screws since they are wallet friendly for my recently graduated engineering unemployed self. They are under $7 per foot at Rotron, and i am looking at say a 1:1 speed ratio, but what about starts and TPI? Any recommendations? Also i have been reading about the "backlash" i plan on getting Anti Backlash nuts from dumpsterCNC.com.
Third: After looking at speed ratio's if i go with a 1:1, mcmaster says it would move approximately 1/10th of an inch per revolution, would i gain more precision and accuracy out of the table if i did a gear reduction from a stepper motor to the screw? or would direct drive provide me with more than enough? I plan to cut mostly wood, do some carving, and cut aluminum.
I appreciate any help i can get, I am new to the construction aspect of a CNC, but i have used many including some large HAAS mills in an internship and at college during an automation course. I will be using MACH 3 for my controlling software and purchasing steppers from wherever, looking in the 300 oz/inch + range when i get that far.
Thanks, Andy