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building your own cnc router/milling machine

2022-04-14

                                                                                   When I was young, I wanted to make a machine that could make things!
A machine that gives me the opportunity to create products in and around the house.
A few years later, I stumbled upon the word \"computer numerical control\" or, more specifically, a CNC milling machine.
When I found out that people were able to build a cabin themselves in their own shed, I knew!
I tried to find the right part for three months (
Tools, drawer slides, wooden blocks, etc. )
But I really don\'t know how to build CNC.
The idea was forgotten.
The idea of making CNC milling machines attracted me again in August 2013.
I have just finished my first year with a bachelor\'s degree in industrial design, so I am confident enough to start building.
The real difference now and 5 years ago is that I have learned to use metal on manual milling machines and lathes, and most importantly, I have the right tools to design the machine.
This Instructure will show you how I made CNC milling machines.
I know a lot of CNC Dreamers don\'t have the knowledge or tools to make all metal machines.
I still think and hope that this instruction will inspire you to make the machine yourself.
I include all the necessary steps I have experienced in designing and manufacturing this CNC milling machine.
It all started with a proper design, and in my case there were a few sketches to get a good feel for the size and shape.
At the end of the sketch phase, the CAD model soon appeared.
I created my model in SolidWorks.
If you are going to design your own machine, I suggest you use parametric CAD-modeling tool.
Chances are your machine will have a lot of parts that have to be neatly assembled together, sometimes with some odd size (Pre-for example-ordered parts).
Technical drawings were made after all parts were modeled.
I use these drawings to process all the custom parts on the manual lathe and milling machine.
As I love the well-designed tools, I try to maintain and adjust things on the machine as easily as possible.
The bearings can be integrated into the machine, but I chose to put them in separate bearing blocks (
If it needs to be replaced).
It is also very important to keep your machine clean, so the guides are accessible (
In the case of x-
Determine the shaft by separating some cover plates)
The frame provides a rigid foundation for the machine, not only can it be placed in the workshop, but it can also be used for work.
The gantry will be installed on the sliding guide rail and then on the working surface.
It also provides a stepping motor and spindle for x-axis.
I have 2 Maytec 40x80mm profiles, 2 end plates (
10mm thick aluminum)
4 corner blocks and a square structure block.
All the profiles are sawed.
Tilt and grind into a cube.
Heavy corners (
Relatively light;
It\'s all aluminum)
The frame is bolted together.
A square frame made of a smaller profile is fitted with 4 grinding blocks (aluminium)
Inside the Maytec profile.
Since the frame is under the working face, the dust may fall on the guide (
You want to keep them clean, more about step 5).
To prevent this, dust shields were made and installed around guiderails.
Corner profile with brass milling t-installed
Possible nut on technical frame and 2mm aluminum plate mounted in end plate milling pocket.
Install the spindle bearing block on both end plates.
They reached the correct tolerance after manual grinding.
On the front-end plate mounting slot of the stepping motor, the gantry is x-
The shaft guides and supports the milling motor above the workpiece.
The higher you do, the thicker the workpiece can be.
However, there is a drawback to the high gantries.
They are used as levers on guiderails and, on the other hand, side panels are bent more easily by making them longer.
Most of the work I plan to do with CNC involves milling aluminum parts.
The average vise of this machine is 60mm high.
Because the thickest aluminum block for me is also 60mm high, I chose the space between the working surface and the metal block, which can hit the workpiece first, to 125mm.
This gives me the starting point of a side plate.
Because I want the center of a vertical mill, hovering around the center of the runnig block (
From the side of the machine)
, The side plate must be placed at a certain angle.
Solidworks helped me to convert all the measurements to the final part.
Because of all the complex sizes, I decided to process these parts on the industrial CNC mill, which also gave me a chance to bypass all corners (
Grinding on a manual mill can be very difficult).
Part that supports y-
Shaft guide is formed by U-5mm thickprofile.
With the help of two simple mounting blocks, it is mounted between the side plates.
U in there-
Y-shaped houseaxis spindle.
It is again used for the same bearing block support of x-axis.
They are mounted on the outside of the side panel.
Under the main frame, a plate is installed under the side plate of the gantry, x-
Spindle nut.
The last movement is what I call z-axis (plus the z-
Of course the axis itself).
It\'s installed by y-
Shaft linear guide rail, 2 reinforcement plates, Motor support and back panel.
2 Linear guide rails are installed on the front board for z-
Place the shaft of the milling motor mounting plate with the runner block.
Bearing with z-for motor support
Shaft spindle mounted inside.
So I didn\'t use the bearing block on this spindle and only supported on the top.
His lower end floats behind the mounting plate of the milling motor.
Spindle nut of Z-
The shaft is directly bolted to the mounting plate of the milling motor.
The back panel provides a position for y-
Shaft spindle nut to be installed;
It is installed inside.
All the custom mechanics are now ready.
CNC is assembled by guide rail, spindle and a large number of bolts; -)
Since your end mill needs to move in 3 directions, the machine guides them with a guide rail.
The guide rail provides a full range of rigidity for the machine, in addition to the guide rail it moves.
You want them to let the machine move only in the preferred direction.
Any rebound in other directions will cause the workpiece to be inaccurate.
On my machine, I want to use a guide rail that supports the length of the track to reduce the risk of deflection over the long axis.
In my opinion, some kitchen drawer slides are more popular than hardened steel bars supported at one end (yes!
They will transfer).
As you constantly fight against the material of the workpiece with the power from the end mill, it is recommended to support a lot.
I chose the most expensive one.
Special-shaped linear guide rail with gate block.
They are designed to receive forces in all directions.
In the third picture, you can see the circular bearing balls, which are located on both sides of the profile.
All tangents opposite each other are 45 degrees, enabling them to handle high loads.
To make all the guides vertical and parallel, they are aligned with the dial indicator (
The maximum difference is 0, 01mm).
If you spend your time on this part, the accuracy of the machine will be very good!
The spindle converts the rotational motion of the stepping motor into linear motion.
When building a machine, you can choose between three different versions;
Screw or ball screw in rice or Imperial configuration.
The main difference between the screw and the ball screw is precision and friction.
Compared to the ball screw, the lead screw has more friction and lower accuracy.
If you are looking for a very precise machine without any bounce, you should definitely consider the ball screws.
But they are relatively expensive!
I chose to use screws with special plastic drives that reduce friction and are close to the no-gap system.
You can order the drive nut here: x-and y-
In order to install the bearing, pulley and clamping nut, the shaft must be turned to the appropriate size. Since the z-
The shaft spindle is supported only on one side and comes with a bearing, turning only on one side.
The shaft size of the pulley drilled to the rotation (8mm in my case)
And provide M4 fixing screws perpendicular to the shaft hole.
The working surface is where you will clamp your material.
On many professional machines.
Using a slotted bed gives you the option to use T-
Nuts and bolts used to hold your material or vice.
I chose to use a 18mm birch tree --
Plywood, unscrew the material on the plywood and replace it when needed.
Affordable working face!
You can also use a mid-fiber board with anchor nuts and bolts.
In the medium fiber board, try to avoid screws and nails, its grip is not as good as plywood.
After completion, the working surface can be milled and leveled by the machine itself.
Your first project. )
The main components in the electrical system are :-Stepper motors-Step drivePowersupply (or 2)-Breakoutboard-Computer-
Last but not least: Safety first;
Emergency parking; -)
I chose to purchase a complete set of devices on Ebay with 3 standard-compliant 23 stepping motors, 3 suitable drives, a split board and a 36 v power supply.
I convert 36 V DC to 5 V DC using a buck converter.
Of course, you can also put your own set together.
Since I can\'t wait to fix this machine, I put all the drives and power supplies on an open board for the time being.
Shell is being made.
For several years, the CNC can also be connected very easily via USB. The UBS-
Breakthrough boards in the market usually have their own software.
I chose to use the parallel printer port on most old computers.
I am not going to use the new computer in a room full of dust, oil and aluminum sheets, as it is difficult for me to find a suitable scheme with the required components, i\'m trying to make everything clear in the infographic above (
PDF can also be downloaded to enlarge different parts
Since we want to remove the material from the part where we clamp to the surface of the workpiece, we need something that drives the cutting bit; i. e. the endmills.
The milling motor will rotate the tool at low or high speed.
High frequency spindle from simple Dremeltool to several kilowatts.
The Kress spindle is very convenient for our machine size.
A reliable Hf spindle will satisfy you if you want to improve your machine.
It all depends on the amount you can afford.
Try to find something that can use colleagues of different sizes.
In the topic \"CNC Software\", I will discuss not only the program me that controls the machine, but also the software that produces the code that the machine will understand.
When we make the workpiece on the computer, whether it is plane or 3D CAD (
Computer-aided design
We need to convert it into something that machines can understand. With CAM (
Computer aided processing
We can read the vector and 3D model and create the appropriate output (Gcode)
Software used to control the machine.
I can use the professional software provided by my university.  The software that controls the machine is the Gcode interpreter.
When you use USB
Hub, as described in the electrical system)
It will have its own software.
If you use a parallel printer port on your old computer, you can choose your own port.
I chose to use Mach3 as it was used by most amateurs.
You can find a lot of information about it on forums and Google.
Since Mach3 has a lot of options and features, I will not explain them.
Just play with it and you will find the secret of it :-)
Connect the right power, connect the power, it will work! !
Starting with some wood or foam, you will get used to the speed and performance of the machine.
The work above shows some parts I am working on with aluminum.
As you can see, this machine can work very complicated.
Find the right part and take your time.
I could have made this machine in a month, but since I had to search for parts on sites like Ebay.
It took me half a year.
Of course, this reduces the cost and I can make this machine for less than 1000 euros ,-
I hope this story will encourage you to make your own CNC milling machine.
Please feel free to contact me or comment on what you think is missing.                                                                            

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