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This instructable will show you how to construct a CNC Router that will allow you to cut 3-D shapes out of wood, plastic and aluminum using a standard hand held router. Recently I have noticed that more and more projects on instructables have involved the use of some sort of CNC machine, be it a laser cutter, 3d printer, milling machine, etc. I wanted to join this revolution of digital fabrication and start making my projects even better using these tools. So about a year ago I set out to find a way to make this possible and came to conclusion that a simple 3 axis CNC router would be the best option to get things going. I started doing some research and decided to design and build my own machine. This instructable steps though all the parts needed to build the machine I have designed and the reasoning behind why I built the machine the way I did. It also includes an explanation of CNC technology and would be a great reference for anyone looking to learn some metal fabrication skills. My hope is that someone might use these plans to build this router for themselves or at least draw some inspiration from my design. I have created 2d drawings of all the parts with complete dimensions and specs, details on how to build each part, a complete parts and tools lists with prices and links, a basic wiring diagram and an explanation of the design.
I have designed this router to be very versatile and hope to also use this same machine as a 3-D printer and a hot wire foam cutter in the future. This machine is constructed from rectangular steel tubing and aluminum plate and was fabricated using a small horizontal band saw, bench top drill press and flux core MIG welder. There is no need for high precision and expensive tools to build this machine. Using the techniques I have listed in this instructable for marking, centering, drilling and tapping anyone with the desire to build something well, will be able to complete this project. There are no angles to cut or parts that seem impossible to get right, just straight cuts and holes to drill. The machine bolts together and can be adjusted for square and levelness on each axis.
For those of you who already know about CNC routers here are the specs for my machine.
Travel: X-Axis 23in
Y-Axis 13in
Z-Axis 6in
Linear Guide: Fully Support Round Linear Rail and Mounted Bearings (20mm, 16mm, 12mm)
Linear Drive: 1/2”-10 5 Start Precision ACME Screws and DumpsterCNC Anti-Backlash Nuts
Drive Motor and Controller: Gecko G540 Controller with Gecko 280oz-in NEMA 23 Stepper Motors
Construction: Welded 1”x2” Steel Tubing and 3/8” Thick Aluminum Plate
Spindle: Bosch Colt Trim Router
Rapid Speed: 200ipm (inches per minute)
Cutting Speed: 1/4" end mill, full width cut, 0.100" depth of cut, 50ipm, material - hardwood (This is a fairly easy cut and is probably less than half the true cutting capacity)
This video is a time lapse of the assembly of the router, an hour and half condensed into 45 seconds.
There is also a video of the very first test of this machine on the last step. The CNC writes the classic "Hello World"
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Signing UpStep 1: What is CNC
Let’s start with the basics for anyone that is new to this. CNC stands for Computer Numerical Control, which extends to many different applications but in most cases is used to describe a machine that is controlled by a computer to remove small amounts of material from a larger piece of material. Most of these machines use a spinning bit with sharp edges to scrape away small slices of material in a very controlled fashion until the desired final shape of the material is left. Through the use of computers very precise shapes can be cut from almost any material.
So that was really basic, let’s get to some of the specifics on my type of CNC machine. There are many different types of CNC machines but they are most distinguishable by the type and size of material they are designed to cut. In general if someone refers to a CNC “milling” machine they are referring to a metal cutting machine and if they say it’s a CNC "router" it means a machine made to cut wood, plastic or other soft materials. This instructable will show you how to build a CNC router.
If you are learning about CNC and have considered building your own machine I would highly recommend taking a look at this website cncroutersource.com There is a wealth of knowledge about designing your own CNC router and well as explanations of the different types of router designs and list of terms commonly used in CNC lingo. When I first considered building CNC machine I was lucky enough to stumble across this site and it helped me make a lot of the basic design decisions early on.
Once you have read though all you can on the cncroutersource.com you can step up to the big leagues and join the cnczone.com forum. Here you will find a vast amount of information and huge community of active users all doing the things you want to do for your CNC. There is a specific section of the forum for CNC routers and many build threads have been posted that will make you drool with jealousy. Have a question about CNC? A simple search of this forum will most likely answer any and all of the CNC questions you have. Keep in mind though that a lot of acronyms and jargon are used on cnczone but if you have read cncroutersource you should be able to figure it out.
So that was really basic, let’s get to some of the specifics on my type of CNC machine. There are many different types of CNC machines but they are most distinguishable by the type and size of material they are designed to cut. In general if someone refers to a CNC “milling” machine they are referring to a metal cutting machine and if they say it’s a CNC "router" it means a machine made to cut wood, plastic or other soft materials. This instructable will show you how to build a CNC router.
If you are learning about CNC and have considered building your own machine I would highly recommend taking a look at this website cncroutersource.com There is a wealth of knowledge about designing your own CNC router and well as explanations of the different types of router designs and list of terms commonly used in CNC lingo. When I first considered building CNC machine I was lucky enough to stumble across this site and it helped me make a lot of the basic design decisions early on.
Once you have read though all you can on the cncroutersource.com you can step up to the big leagues and join the cnczone.com forum. Here you will find a vast amount of information and huge community of active users all doing the things you want to do for your CNC. There is a specific section of the forum for CNC routers and many build threads have been posted that will make you drool with jealousy. Have a question about CNC? A simple search of this forum will most likely answer any and all of the CNC questions you have. Keep in mind though that a lot of acronyms and jargon are used on cnczone but if you have read cncroutersource you should be able to figure it out.
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Since work, family, and related activities place a constant demand on my time that will make it difficult to go back and make another anytime soon, I'm planning on scaling things up to 24"x36"x18" in order to facilitate some specific future projects that will require a larger working volume.
That said, other than factoring in the cost of the additional materials necessary to accomplish this, and perhaps providing some additional external bracing and support to offset the longer spans, are there any other elements that I should consider when pretty much taking your design, and scaling it up to these dimensions?
If your going to have 18" of z travel then you should have at least that much if not a little more clearance from the bottom of the bit to the table. This would ensure you can actually use that full travel. This will make the gantry considerably taller than my router and therefore less stiff, so bracing should be used.
For 18" of travel your probably going to want to use at least 24" rails with the bearing spaced by 6", I would consider this the minimum. That means the router will be hanging down 18" the from the bearings. The aluminum plate I used probably wouldn't work for this. The high frequency vibration of the router could resonant in that plate and give you poor surface finishes. I would mount the bearings to the gantry and move the rails up and down with the z axes, the rails will help stiffen up the z axes. I'd also use steel tubing on the z axes just to keep it as stiff as possible.
Keep us posted on your progress!
What would be really cool to do is get like a 3d printer head on this and be able to interchange with a mill.... Why do I have to tempt myself??
Just wanted to see if you have made any progress on your build? I'm glad someone gave this design a shot and am will to answer any questions you may have.
dbc
Nice Job!
So your problem is when you tighten the rails to the frame the linear bearings won't move. I am assuming you have already welded some of the frame together, right? Which axis are you talking about? Does the problem still happen if you tighten one single rail to the frame and not the other for the problem axis? Did all the bearings slide freely on the rails before you installed them on the frame? If you mount two bearings together and try to slide them on a rail do they bind at all?
I ask because I want to help, because I'm glad someone has built this machine.
When I was bulding my machine I knew I might need to make adjustments to the rails to get them positioned right. I bought some of these shims, McMaster #98055A098, to put under the rails to make sure they were parallel. After building the machine and assembling everything I was really surprised that I did not need to use any of the shims.
Welding the frame was my biggest concern because things always warp/flex/move while welding. That is why I got the big heavy right angle welding clamp, to try to keep everything nice and square.
Dale
Cutting 1/8 steel plate is best done on a laser cutter, water jet, or plasma cutter. Even using a legit CNC machine for this material is impratical, the other three are by far the best choices.
thanks-Scott
I'd love to see some pictures of your build if you wouldn't mind posting them.
I got this video that shows exactly what I need, not necessarily at this speed :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5tOYWfhuyM
The parts are a lil expensive, but I think it worths.
Im brazilian, but living in Mexico, and there are some "alternative" motor controlles around here. Do you think I could use them instead of the Gecko ones ?
Again, congratulations for your nice work, and thanks for sharing !
As far as the controllers I'd say used what you can get. I choose gecko because of their reputation here in the US but I'm sure there is plenty of other nice controllers from elsewhere.
Here is a great article about cutting aluminum on a CNC router 10 Tips for CNC Router Aluminum Cutting Success
If you want to cut any metals other than aluminum I would suggest looking into a bench top milling machine. My friend, who made the mounting plate jig, recently converted a G0704 mill to CNC.