Love your description of the BOSS-5 !
First of all, realize that this is not just one big project. You need a PC. You need a break out board. You need drivers (Geckos). You need a power supply for the drivers and steppers. You need limit switches, and to connect them to the BOB. You need to house all this stuff. Each of these is a separate project. Don't let them overwhelm you.
You're right on the money there. Except there is a ton of cooling fin material in the left cabinet. Save all this stuff, plus all the caps and resistors and bridges. I spent a fortune buying cooling fins, not realizing I already had a lifetime supply. You may never use any of those gold colored resistors, but they cost about $25 each, if you have to go buy them. I have no idea what the diode bridges are rated at, but they were mounted on huge heat sinks. Speaking of which, when you mount the bridges, or the Geckos, or anything else which might need cooling to the Al plate, add just a touch of heat conducting paste. Comes in a small jar, looks a lot like toothpaste.
Toss almost everything in the power cabinet. I moved the power cabinet to the right side, as I need to get my machine closer to the wall.
There are several transformers in the two cabinets. Keep and
protect the smallest one. It's an 18 Volt transformer, with center taps.
The tabs are very easy to break off. DAMHIK Use that transformer, plus two of those monster bridges, and two of the 50 volt caps, and you'll have a fairly rugged 12vdc and 24vdc power supply. Very handy for supplying 24 vdc and 12 vdc to your conversion. I'm using several surplus computer fans for cooling, they are 12 VDC.
And of course, there are several 24 vdc coil relays in there. Save all of the relays.
First off, don't just snip wires. Disconnect all the wires from the mill at the connection strips where they come into the cabinet. Save all the bushings where the cables enter the cabinets. Also, save all the connection strips and fuse holders. You won't use them all, but you'll use several. All of the stepper motors have individual cables running into the back of the computer cabinet. Also the limit switches have individual cables running in somewhere. Once everything is off, it'll be more apparent what most of the wires are.
There is a steel plate on standoffs in the back of the power cabinet. You can either use this plate as a mount for all your etc components, or cut a sheet of 3/16" or 1/4" Aluminum sheet to the same dimensions. You're going to need to drill and tap about a gazillion holes in this plate, the Al plate is much easier to drill and tap, and about a ton lighter. I used 1/4" Diamond Plate, as that's what my local metal yard happened to have in stock. I recommend 3/16".
I started at the top of the plate with the 76 VDC 7A power supply, and outlet strip, and the 12v24v supply.
Then comes the geckos mounted to heat sink. They'd probably be just fine mounted to the 3/16" aluminum. On top of that I have the Bob. I used a PMDX-132 and a PMDX-106 (I think). YMMV I'm also using a VFD mounted at the spindle motor. The PMDX-106 produces 10v to control the VD.
Next I mounted a plastic food box with two computer fans, and a slot to let the air out to the fins under the geckos.
Next a long connector strip.
Then several 12 volt relays. One will be the eStop relay. It'll be energized closed, and will have up to 7 more sets of points available to remove power from other things when the eStop is hit.
Then several 120 volt solid state relays. They'll control the coolant pump, mist, and shop-vac.
The computer, mounted in a POS (Point of Sale) box, will stand on the floor of the cabinet in front of all the relays, etc. A sheet of plastic, mounted on stand-offs, will keep it from getting into the 120v at the solid state relays.
Although my rig is not yet finished, it has run, and made several parts. This was with the various bits and pieces scattered all over the shop. Now the task is to get everything mounted on the one plate and back in the cabinet.
Haven't rigged it up yet, but there is a 9" 120v fan in the power cabinet door. (It's a bit noisy) I'm leaving it in place, but mounting an air conditioning thermostat in the top of the cabinet. If the cabinet heats up, the thermostat will turn on the fan. I'm predicting that it will seldom run. Time will tell.
For a better idea of what I'm doing, visit me at:
Tom Wade -- Machinist Section -- New CNC Mill
Tom