I just finished up my first cnc router :banana:

cutting area 12" x 24" x 3"
hobby cnc board and 200oz steppers
1/2-10 2 start acme screws
linear slide ball bearings
hardened steel shafts
dremel advantage spindel
homebuilt dust extractor
using deskams desknc software
max of 43in/min
mdf and hdpe plastic construction

Thanks to all the great info on this group i was able to finish my 1st router. I say 1st because I already started ordering parts for the next one. Lots of things i already want to redesign:)

It took me longer to figure out how to use and operate it then it did to build, lol. I bought some special mills for cutting plastic and wow are they sweet. I can cut high density plastic like butter and fast now.

Just finished up cutting out 10 aluminum control panels for my business. It took many hours to fine tune the cutting but they turned out beautiful, very slow however.

Ordered most parts from mcmaster carr since i love the fact that i always get the order in one day by ups ground, cant beat that compared to waiting weeks for scrounged ebay parts. Now i can take my time and make a better one since i am already addicted to cnc'ing.

I will try to post pick of my new machine i am building from 80/20. I am thinking about making it a small table top plasma table/cnc for the garage. Should be interesting.

Thanks all,
cncmage :cheers:

Very nice. I'm working on my 3rd design but hopefully my 1st succesful one. Very nice work.

Thats a really nice router, how long did it take to build?

I knew absolutely nothing about building a cnc until i stumbled across this site. I then studied hundreads of threads on this site and spent 2 weeks designing. I modelled it in 3-d to be sure of the design which i highly reccommend to everyone who has any 3-d software. It makes it much easier to catch any errors in measurements and clearances. Ony major thing i changed was the gantry sides since they were way to flimsy as you can see in the 3-d image.

I spent about 5 solid 12 hour days building and then a few days adjusting and modifying slightly. Overall i probably spent $1200 total but i could have used much cheaper parts if i had been willing to wait a few weeks (which i wasn't). I didn't mind spending so much because i now have the knowledge to build my 2nd more professional machine.

CncMage

Very nice work. Well done !

You mentioned a homebuilt dust extractor, can you explain a bit more about this please.

I'm almost at that stage where I'm doing / learning how to do cutting. The amount of dust generated is a concern as I don't have anything fixed up yet.

Also can you post the G-code for the CNC logo. I would like to have a bash at this :)

Thank you

The dust extractor can be seen on my machine photos. It is basically a hose that is mounted in front of the spindle which is connected to a shop vac.

I have seen similar setups in other threads that used bristle brushes in a perimeter around the hose and bit that help to extract more dust but I didn't like that they block the view of the work being cut.

I have cut mdf plastic and aluminum for many hours and a simple dust extractor like mine works great at extracting small airborne dust. I have terrible allergies and just a tiny particle of dust in the air causes me to sneeze and have a reaction but i never had any troubles while the dust extractor was running. Lots of larger dust particles cannot be sucked up and will fall close to the machine (within a foot or so) but i just vacuum up my mess afterwards and its not bad.

I can tell you that without the dust extractor turned on there would be dust collecting even 20 feet away from the machine.

ps: deleted the g-code from my sign but i will try to make a newer one for you.

CncMage

hi is realy good job i hope if i can reach your stage soon

That is a nice well built machine I love it, in fact machines like this appeal more to me than aluminum ones. I love the homebuilt MDF CNC's and hopefully that is what mine will be built of, congrats on a superb machine.