[blackout1985]

Hey all,

Has anyone converted their littlemachineshop mini mill to CNC? i have the one with the solid column and am looking to convert it but have no idea how or whats involved with something like that. if anyone has any info or could point me in the right direction it'd be greatly appreciated! Thanks.



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[doorknob]

Would you prefer to do the conversion "from scratch" or use a kit to simplify the conversion?

If the former, then I suspect that the plans that Hoss published on his site (Hossmachine Homepage) may be a good starting point (although IIRC the LMS solid-column mini mill is an SX2 model whereas I believe that he converts an X2 model - similar but with some differences).

If the latter, then you might look into combining a ballscrew kit from CNCFusion (CNC Fusion) with a kit including stepper motors, power supply, and Geckodrive G540 driver from Automation Technology, G540 3-Axis NEMA23 381oz in PSU48V/7.3A | Automation Technology Inc

[blackout1985]

Whoa! Awesome. Didnt even realize that there were two directions. thank you!

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[vbgraves]

There's an article in the current (Summer 2013) issue of Digital Machinist entitled "Converting the LittleMachineShop.com HiTorque Micro Mill to CNC". It gives directions for a DIY approach.

[blackout1985]

Cool! It'll be the first thing i check at work this morjing! Thanks!

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[coherent]

I converted mine (LMS 3960) and decided not to buy one of the kits (like from FusionCNC) and build the parts myself from 6061 aluminum. Mainly I just didn't want to spend the money, and figured it couldn't be that hard. Thrust bearings can be ordered online for very reasonable. I ordered my ball screws and couplers from china (ebay) and am pleased with the quality and accuracy. If you have a lathe you can turn the ends yourself. If not they will do it for a pretty reasonable fee. You can use the existing screws (some have on the X2 mill CNC conversions) but I'd recommend upgrading to something better or accuracy will suffer with these Seig Chinese mills. Measure your backlash in manual mode and you'll see what I mean. You can adjust some of it out with a little tinkering but not enough in my opinion to consider the accuracy acceptable for CNC use. I used the mill in manual mode to build all the parts for the motor mounts, bearing mounts etc. It may take a little grinding on the x/y slides and some trial and error to made your balls & screws mount and clear everything, but it's not to hard with a simple angle grinder. Once the X/Y are done, you can do some 2 axis CNC mode (manual Z) milling for the Z parts. Once it's all at least operational for 3 axis CNC milling you can redo/modify anything you aren't happy with. I'm not a machinist by trade and although I have a small lathe this was my first mill. I've build a couple of home built CNC machines and found this project a bit simpler in such that there were no linear rails, slides or gantry etc to worry about due to the mills cross slide ways but for the most part it was a fairly simple but time consuming process. I learned a bit during the process which always helps. From the time I got the mill and all the parts it took me 3-4 weeks or so because I only worked on the project on weekends and occasional weeknights. I estimate I saved quite a bit over the cost of a kit (hundreds$). Is it the same quality? I don't know because I've never seen/used one of the kits personally, but I have no complaints. A kit from somewhere like Fusion will definitely speed up the process to a few hours. I used a Gecko G540 driver and steppers and have had no issues with lack of speed or power. I'd highly recommend the G540 for such a conversion project on this mill, it's performed flawlessly.
Best of luck and if you have any specific questions feel free to ask here or PM me.

[coherent]

There's an article in the current (Summer 2013) issue of Digital Machinist entitled "Converting the LittleMachineShop.com HiTorque Micro Mill to CNC". It gives directions for a DIY approach.

Just be aware that this article is for the micro mill, not the mini mill you said you have. I've read the article and while overall the concept is the same the specifics and dimensions are obviously different. This is a good writeup and I'm sure you could use the drawings (available in larger PDF format fro the village press, Digital Mechanic web site) as a base for making the appropriate changes and converting the Mini Mill. The most important thing is the concept is the same, and this was well presented and a fairly concise/easy to understand article.
Good Luck!

[vph]

Hi coherent,

do you have any pictures or drawings to give an idea how you did it?

Thanks,
vph

[joecnc2006]

I used Acme Screws and Dumpster anti-backlash nuts.

Harbor Freight 44991 SX2 Clone Three Axis CNC Complete - YouTube

and a pile of aluminum chips about 1" thick on the bottom after a week of use.

Attachment 196826

[coherent]

Hi coherent,

do you have any pictures or drawings to give an idea how you did it?

Thanks,
vph

Do a search for the build thread by Don Bird (djbird3). I used his design as a basis for my build. Overall it's the same except for the Z axis and some differences in some minor issues like thrust bearing sizes, z bearing mount, stepper standoffs and some general dimension changes. I say minor because most of my changes were due to what I already had, or that I used the Chinese ball screws instead of the ones he did. His build thread has some drawings I think. If you have trouble finding them or have any questions, PM me and I'll help if I can. I can send you photos of any specifics or closeups etc of any area you have questions about if it would help.