Vertical milling/routing with a lot less ... Y axis. Move it up against a wall and carve into the drywall or plaster ? Would it still be Z axis or just a regular OX on its side ?

Wasit here that I saw the HandyCNC or on KickStarter ? I forget the exact name ... It's an open "bottom" cnc router which is held over the work surface while it does its magic. Hold it against a wall, let it "crawl" a piece of 2" x whatever to cut stair beam, etc. Neat idea, not sure it would be fast enough not to bore heck out of user though. I would cramp ...

How about a cnc pole carver ? Let it go up a pole and carve a totem replica as it spirals its way down (4 axis) or have four or more offset heads working at same time as it slides down. If it can handle square posts, carve the gazebo/pergola/deck posts after the fact. Just set it, get a few beers and job done.

Come on Serge E. Stop holding that imagination back. You know you can do better.

3D graffiti : sneak the cnc pole carver over telephone or light poles late nights and... With the right bits, it should be able to handle the concrete and metal poles, right ? It would just need to self adjust for the varying diameter and other imperfections... It would need a power source ... Small engine acting as generator, built in to avoid long cables. It would have to be relatively quiet though. Raccoon skin camo ?? A beaver skin might be more appropriate, eh ? Call it the "Beav" !

Cities would probably pay for the service, no ? Lay a quick dry layer of paint, mill some of it off to highlight carving... What about several layers of different colours and then really show off your 3D milling skills by carving a coloured image ! Now that's falling off the edge of ridiculous.

Come to think of it, just how small can we make a micro / baby OX ? Can it be small enough to engrave / carve on a grain of rice ? If a few people can do it bare handed, why not a cnc ? Those few people are not shrunk ... that much. Not that it would be as commercially viable as the 3D pole/totem carver.

Combine the two and get a carved chopstick maker !

There's a few challenges to tackle.

Its doable, if you know how thick each layer of paint it and you move the mill down only that distance per pass it can look quite amazing

Back on topic, how foolish would it be to have the gantry plates milled from 1/2" aluminum as opposed to purchasing 1/4" aluminum specifically for the job? I understand I would probably need to do some pocket milling to 1/4" in areas that are dependent on that thickness. Reason being I have a 12x24 sheet left over from a previous project so it is considered free to me at this point.

Also, would there be enough of a benefit to justify tying the bottoms of the gantry plates together underneath the table?

Also thank you for creating this project, I have been looking at cnc routers for quite some time now, and had not found one that I was suitably happy with the design for the but the Ox sits well with me in so many ways!

There you go Serge E, I knew if we through you a bone, you'd run with it!!!!

Life seems so quiet now, doesn't it!

Cheers Gray

Finally got my OX plates, let the build begin....

mw.design
Don't forget, start a new Thread, and keep us informed of the good bits and the bad bits. Pictures or video would be great if you can manage it. Don't keep it to yourself, share the experience.

Good Luck
Gray

Hi KerryH.
I think some of us would bite your hand off for some of that plate. I think you need to check out and confer with Robert Hummel on the subject of Gantry plates. (He's the Gantry Man!) I don't really see there to be problems with that though. I certainly intend to beef up the gantry once the initial machine is constructed. It's one on those few machines that can actually rebuild and make itself better!

Good Luck
Gray

Ya I know what you mean, especially considering it is 7050 alloy. But it is honestly not being used for anything else right now or in the near future so I figure it would be a good place to save a little money vs buying new plate. I'm torn because it is such nice material to use on this application, but I have 0 use for it currently.

Use it, or sit and polish it?

I knew you would respond to the word "Gantry", Robert.
How fast are we talking here? What would be the "normal" life of a solid wheel, and how much would it be reduced to? Roughly. Approximately. Ball park. Round About. Somewhere near.
Cheers
Gray

I wouldn't just make it solid 1/2", I figured it would get some pockets and maybe even reliefs cut.

What did you use for the fill material? It is defiantly a nice (and functional) touch.

Finally got end stops and motion test/calibration. Next is cutting test. Anyone have any advice on feed rates for 6061 aluminum with 1/8" endmills?

I am using the grblShield v5 with an Arduino Uno.

I have a few RepRaps, so I started with a Sanguinololu but I switched to the grblShield. Overall I'm happy with the grblShield, the Sanguinololu will go back to a RepRap.

Here are some opinions I have about the two boards:

• Connections
  • Sanguinololu: has quick disconnect plugs for everything - awesome
    
  • grblShield: has screw terminals for steppers and solder holes for limits, inputs and spindle control. This takes a lot longer if you want to move things around, I definitely recommend getting some headers or wiring your electronics case with disconnects.
• Firmware
  • Sanguinololu: lots of options, teacup, marlin, etc. but all mostly targeted toward 3d printing. Most require you to recompile to modify settings.
  • grbl: This firmware is very solid. Smooth motion, has all the g-code commands you will need for milling/cutting. The settings can be adjusted on the fly without recompiling, which makes setup and calibration much faster.
• Price:
  • grblShield is a little less expensive, even more so if you already have an Arduino
    • Compatible with Arduinos 328p, the 32U4 series are NOT compatible

If you plan on doing more than 3-axis you can look into TinyG. Of course there are other options, such as SmoothieBoard, a few BeagleBone capes, RAMPS, RAMBo, RUMBa. The two I reviewed are the least expensive that still have everything you would need for a 3-axis machine.

Good luck on your decision!

Cheers, I ended up getting the grblShield V5 I hope it has enough drive for the nema 23's.

Yes and No, I have asked the same question in another board, and the response was it all depends on the amp and volt requirements, there are some motors that can go with the grbl sheild and will run fine, but there are others that have a higher amp requirments with the grbl shield cant provide.

Thats what I gathered, im not an electronics person, im not too ssure if thats true, but im sure if you get the motors from open builds your fine, but if you are going with something more heavy duty, you may run into power issues.

Im sure someone can give a better explanation

I'm using these http://www.kelinginc.net/KL23H51-24-8B.pdf 156 oz-in motors, wired bipolar series, so 3.6 ohms/phase. My motor power supply is 24v.

Even on the Y axis where the driver is pushing two parallel motors (effective 1.8 ohms/phase) it is fine. However, I am using some descent sized heatsinks and a fan on the stepper drivers. Technically this could exceed the 2.5 A/coil, but rarely will your motors on the Y be running with full dc power through the coils. The heatsinks and fan give you some flexibility and the drivers will perform much better with cooling.

I'll be sure and let everyone know if I manage to burn up anything. I have pushed lots of stepper drivers quite hard, and the only time I've actually damaged one was when a cable came loose under full load and was shorting.

It depends on the tool material, number of flutes and the rpm of your spindle. for carbide 2 flute at 3500 it is 7 ipm.

Does any of you have pictures of your limit switch emplacements?

I made a v-slot compatible limit switch holder with my 3D printer, it fits for the xmin-xmax-ymin-ymax axis.

I did the same and made a case suited to the 20x40 Vslot on the back of the gantry.

@BinaryConstruct

Where did you put your zmax switch?

Ok guys, what am I doing wrong? I made a simple sign in VCarve Pro. Everything looks good so far. I saved it to my toolpaths file. Post processor is Mach3 inches. I open mach3 and load my sign file. All the Gcode is listed. I start my OX with the Vbit zeroed right at the top edge of the wood and centered. I start to carve my sign but the Z axis raises all the way up plus it wants to go farther. I expected it to go negitive .250 and start carving. Any ideas on whats not set right? In testing, the Z axis seems to know the difference between pos. and neg.