My New 24x24 V-Groove Router Design Log

[.xXACEXx.]

widgit ...your one of the few and the proud..who i have mentioned a volstro to..and they even know what it is! "super-v" sound good..looks good......is good....

[widgitmaster]

Back in 1979 I worked in a Swiss owned German machine shop in N.J., where they had a multitude of unique accessories like the Volstro. One item that really impressed me was a specialized boring head the opened up, so a contoured template could be inserted. Then the boring head could actually bore a hex hole! The tool bits were rather uncommon, as they would hook upward in sharp corners! I have never seen another like it in my lifetime!

Most of those items were created Pre-CNC, as the same jobs can be done in much easier setups with a CNC machine. CNC has made a profound change in how things are made! But I still like the old-fashioned methods!

Widgit

[.xXACEXx.]

prolly getting off topic a lil but..yeah... i used manual machines for several years before i got to use cnc equipment, the old radius attachments for a lathe,the volstro head,cnc to some extent has changed alot because you had to have some pretty neat tools to do alot of thing that cncs can do alot more easy, but on the other hand,there arent alot of machinest any more ,as it is so easy to "program" a cnc to machine something not alot of people have a clue how to run tools or what to do hare or there...back when ya had to "start out slow and increase speed a lil bit at a time to get the result you needed" you had to be easy on tools even if it is a drill or a tap..you had to learn from your mistakes...which sometimes meant after you broke the tap...you had to resharpen it and still use it...but on the other hand alot of "cnc machinest" can run circles around an old machinest and do things with one tool that are amazing...
technology can help ya sooo much or turn and bite ya on the behind sry bout this long ..off topic post

[widgitmaster]

Easy day today! No shop time, just hours of CAD work!

I have been designing a nice method of incorporating the Y & Z axis limit switches within the Y-Axis slide block. All that will be visible is the ends of the trip-pins, and a black coiled wire!

The top of the Y-axis slide block has a large cavity, which will be covered by the top bearing plate. inside this cavity, there will be a bracket holding the Z-Axis limit switch, and a small 4-conductor barrier strip. The barrier strip will be fastened to the bottom side of the top plate.

The Z-Axis limit Pin will fit in the radius groove down the front of the slide block, and have 50% of the diameter removed except for a small portion on either end. the pin will have a shallow hole in each end, which will contain a little compression spring. The springs will keep the pin in the neutral position, and a small dent on the opposite side of the flat on the pin will be the resting position for the limit switch. When the pin moves up or down, the limit will send a signal to the breakout board.

The bottom of the slide block will also have a cavity, which will be matched by an opposing cavity in the bottom bearing plate. Inside the cavity, there will be a limit switch, and a partially exposed limit pin. The Y-Axis limit pin will have two small pins screwed into it, which will attach to tension springs. The springs will also keep the limit pin in the neutral position.

A 3/16" dia hole will be drilled the entire 12" length of the slide block, allowing a wire to reach the lower limit switch and the barrier strip in the upper cavity.

The Slide block will also have a 1/2" dia rubber bumper protruding 1/8" from each side, this will soften the impact should the block exceed it's limits at any feed rate. The bumper will be made from soft gum rubber which was purchased from McMaster-Carr.

This sure is a fun prototype!
Widgit

[widgitmaster]

Little more progress today!

First I finished drilling and tapping the small holes inside the top cavity, then I put a vise back on the mill so I could drill the cross hole for the Y-Axis limit pin, and the spring clips.

Then I put the block back on the angle plate and finished the lower cavity for the Y-Axis limit switch assembly. Then I drilled as far as I could from both ends of the block using a standard jobber's length drill, then I had to re-position the angle plate so the part would fixture lower than the mill's table. This was necessary so that my 12" long #2 drill would fit in a collet, and still be able to get the part on location.

The 12" drill went a little more than 50% from each end, with a slight mis-match where the holes connected. After floating the drill bit in and out a few times m the burr went away, and now the 2-conductor wire goes right through the block!

All that's left to do on this block is bore the hole for the ball nut!

Widgit

[widgitmaster]

Something different today, I decided to do a little lathe work and finish one end of two of the ball screws!

To do this I needed to bore a soft 5C collet to the exact outer diameter of the ball screws, and make a plug from Delrin for the other end of the spindle. The plug also has an exact bore, which will keep the long screw centered at high RPM. The reason for the 5C collet is that the diameter of the ball screw is an odd size, (.61753") and the ball nut will bind if the bearing diameters are not perfectly concentric with the nut! The nut can not be removed, as that would require a factory to re-assemble it! So I used some black electrical tape to keep the nut from spinning off.

Now these are case hardened and polished ball screws, so I needed to turn the 1st diameter to .375" to get under the case hardening. Then I turned the bearing diameters. Next I used a small groove tool to undercut the .375 dia as it will be threaded 3/8-24 UNF. With a split die, the threading went quickly.

These ends will be pre-loaded in a small 303-SS block, which will contain one standard ball bearing, and one needle thrust bearing with two hardened washers. The nut will snug up the bearings, and the block will be fastened to the router's aluminum plates with 4x 1/4-20 UNC SHCS.

The other end of the shaft will float in a bearing that's pressed into the aluminum end plates.

Now I need to calculate the overall length, and finish the other ends.

Widgit

[widgitmaster]

Today I bored the bearing hole in the rear plate, now I need to transfer that location to the X-Axis slide block. To do this I had to partially assemble the X-Axis slide block with the outer rails and the front plate. Then I clamped the whole assembly to the mill table. Then I had to rotate the mill's turret, and extend the ram, so that I could dial in the existing bore, and drill & bore a hole in the Slide Block underneath it!

The reason I choose to transfer the ball nut location is that I do not have a large enough surface plate to accurately measure the assembly, and I suspected an accumulation of error would exist at this point. My suspicions were correct, as after the Slide Block was dialed in on the mill table, and the DRO was zeroed over the bore. I switched the DRO to incremental mode, and used my edge fined to get to the assumed coordinates of the bore. The X-Axis centerline was out .0009", and the Y-Axis was out by .0167". This is due to the centerline of the V-Tracks and bearings, was reversed engineered from the assembled block I purchased from McMaster-Carr!

After putting the mill back to normal position and tramming the head, I clamped the X-Axis slide block to the mill's table. Now I need to dial it in, and the datums are 24" apart! After rapid speeding the table back & forth a few time, the block is nicely dialed in, Then I set the spindle to zero over the temporary bore.

Next I drilled a hole about .050" smaller that the finish bore size, the full 4" depth of the block. Now it's time to bore the hole so the Ball nut will slip fit snuggly.

While the mill was boring the deep hole, I setup the lathe to finish both ends on the Z-Axis ball screw!

That's enough for one day!

[BobWarfield]

I just caught up again. Good stuff, Widgit!

I'm not sure anyone but you could afford to make such a nice router. It will be fascinating to see it in action. It ought to really augment your shop's capabilities and productivity. I'll bet it'll be able to do quite a lot of interesting work such as cutting the side supports for the smaller routers.

Best,

BW

[widgitmaster]

Thanks Bob!
I'm not sure how well it will make thick aluminum parts, but I do have many plans for wood & plastic stuff!

- - - - - - - - -

Today I decided it was time to put the rotary table back on the mill, in order to cut the pocket out of the X-Axis slide block so the ball nut would be recessed.

First I dialed the Ro-tab in and set the DRO to zero, then I used some 1-2-3 blocks to raise up the part so that my fat hands would be able to turn the crank! Then I strapped the part down snuggly, and dialed the bore true to the Ro-Tab. When I was happy with the concentricity, I tightened all the clamps and checked it again.

Now, with a new 1/2" 2-fluter end mill, I calculated my offset which is the target diameter - the end mill / 2. Then I set the tool end to zero, using a small .100" block. With an end mill, the bore was finished in 3-turns. and now it's time to drill the mounting holes!

After a little trig, I have the coordinates needed to match up with the ball nut. First I dialed one side of the part parallel to the mill's table, and locked the Ro-Tab. Now I can use a drill chuck to center-drill, drill, and countersink the six holes for a #10-24 UNC thread. Then i put a small point in the drill chuck, and dropped the table so my little tap handle would fit.

Lastly, I used a 45° end mill to put a nice chamfer on the round edges. The rest of the deburring was done with a file. After the slide block was finished, I cut the excess of the end of the x-axis ball screw, and finished the turning in the lathe.

Enough for now, it's time for lunch!

[widgitmaster]

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that this router will also have the ability to mount either NEMA-23 or NEMA-34 motors!

Also, the preloaded thrust bearings will be in a separate block which will be mounted outside of the end plate. The block will be made from 303-SS, around 2" in diameter. The material is on order.

Widgit

[.xXACEXx.]

widgit you going strong,cant wait to see that thing throwing chips gonna make a movie right? that will be one sweet router man..

[widgitmaster]

widgit you going strong,cant wait to see that thing throwing chips gonna make a movie right? that will be one sweet router man..

Thanks ACE!
So far I have all the electronics except for the power supply! After several hours in Mouser.com I found some really nice 9-pin twist lock plugs for the motors! There will be a little box next to each motor, where they will plug in, then an aluminum tubing to another main box. Then from the main box, I have a large 26-pin twist lock plug that will have all the motor lines and limit switch lines . Then I will make a long patch cord from there to the monster electronics box!
All my resources are going into this project, and as Bob W. pointed out, it is expensive! I have had many people ask for large routers, but they expect them to have the price of an MDF machine! Well, with the rising cost of materials that will never happen!
Hopefully, all my efforts will produce a super strong machine, one that will be able to make those Turner's Cubes out of cast acrylic and even hard wood!

Widgit

[widgitmaster]

Another busy day, and many parts are now finished!

Starting this morning around 8:30AM, I used the band saw to cut two pieces of 2" dia 303-SS around .900" long, along with one piece of 6061 the same size. The 303-SS will become the thrust bearing ens support block, and the 6061 will become a little filler piece to cover the X-Axis ball nut!

First, I needed to put my 3-jaw chuck on the lathe, the one with split jaws. THis is the perfect job for soft-jaws, as the parts must be concentric, and parallel as there are bores on both sides! After mounting some new soft jaws, used a piece of scrap to tighten the chuck while boring the nest for my parts. After the bore was finished, I put one of the stainless parts in and closed the chuck. Then i dialed it true with an indicator and a mag-base. Then I faced the part and chamfered the edge. Now I have one true end, so I can put it in the bored jaws and seat it on the bottom as I tighten the chuck. When using aluminum jaws, its a good idea to keep everything clean as chips will press into the soft aluminum very easily!

After I finished the bores for the bearings, I put my little 3-jaw chuck in the mill's vise, so that I could drill & c-bore four holes in the stainless parts, and 6-holes in the aluminum part.

This worked out really nicely, so I quickly removed the front plate from the Super-V router, and drilled the same hole pattern in the middle of the plate. That finishes up the X-Axis parts, except for some holes for grease fittings and oil ports!

[widgitmaster]

After stopping for lunch around 2:00PM, I decided I would work on the Z-Axis limit switch trip-pin! It's made from 303-SS, .500" dia around 12.75 long.

In order for this pin to work, I have to mill 50% of the diameter away leaving .435" of the .500 dia on both ends! This is a bit tricky, but I have a plan! First I put a thin parallel in the vise, and put the stainless shaft on top of the pin. Then I used a pair of small blocks to push the pin against the back wall of the vise. Then with a 1/2" 4-flute end mill, I milled .250" deep between the blocks.

Using some space-blocks, one that's 1" long, and one thats 1.25" long, I can now move the shaft and mill another section. It took three sections to get the middle of the shaft to .250" thickness. It was convenient that the space block would square up the previously milled surface, so blending them in was really easy!

Now, with my V-Blocks and some clamps, I was able to finish the ends so the cutout has a nice square corner! This trip-pin will slide freely in the radius groove that I milled in the center of the Y-Axis slide block, the square corners will protrude around 1/8" from top and bottom. so that when the Z-Axis slide block reaches it's end of travel, it will move the pin and trigger the limit switch!

Widgit

[widgitmaster]

The last few details were more time consuming, as I have been making the parts and internal wiring for the Z-Axis limit switch assembly.

The assembly consists of one micro limit switch, one long stainless pin, a 4-position barrier strip, and one mounting bracket made of Delrin.

The Delrin bracket holds the micro switch in position, so that it's little plunger sits at the bottom of a .250 radius machined into the stainless trip-pin. There are two #2-56 UNC screws holding the switch in the bracket, and two #4-40 UNC SHCS holding the bracket in the top cavity of the Y-Axis slide block. The cavity also contains a barrier strip which will be used by the other limit switch, located in the lower cavity. The two cavities are connected by the .221 Dia deep hole I drilled the other day.

The stainless trip-pin has a key slot milled on the back side, which is for the dog-point setscrew which is located in the slide block, at the bottom of the radial groove where the trip-pin slides. The setscrew keeps the trip-pin from rotating, and limits the amount of linear travel to .125" in either direction. There is a .19 dia blind hole on either end of the trip-pin, which holds a short compression spring. The two springs were cut and ground to the exact same length, as this ensures the trip-pin will stay in the neutral position during normal operation. The wiring of the limit switch is normally open, and will close if the trip-pin moves in either direction.

The cover plate will have a hole in the back, where a coiled black 4-conductor wire will attach to the barrier strip. The coiled wire is on back order from Mouser. The cover plate is pinned to the slide block, to ensure proper alignment of the end bearing for the Z-Axis ball screw.

Next, I will make all the small parts for the Y-Axis limit-switch assembly.

Widgit

[zest02]

Hi Widgit !
Forgive my Frenglishe .
Magnificent realization! What a professionalisme!

I am really very happy to have bought the midi on ebay, sure that this machine will bring me a lot of contentment.

Cheers

Thierry

[widgitmaster]

Thanks Thierry!
Hope you have lots of fun with it!

WidgitMaster

[widgitmaster]

This morning I finished the ends on the last ball screw, and made a bore in the y-axis motor side plate for the pressed in bearing. Then I bored the clearance hole on the opposite side plate, then drilled & tapped the holes of the the lead screw thrust bearing end block.

Now it's time to transfer the center of the side plate end bearing to the Y-Axis slide block. To do this I first clamped my big 12" log parallels near the end of the mill's table, so the extended off the front of the mill.
Then I dismantled the router, so the motor side plate and the two support rails & v-tracks with the y-axis slide block were one unit.

Then I placed the partial assembly on the parallels so the long support rails were hanging down, and the Slide block was sitting on the parallels. With a couple of clamps, I was able to clamp everything securely.

Next I rotated the mill's turret about 35°, and extended the ram. Then with an indicator, I zeroed the spindle over the bearing center and set the DRO to zero. Then I drilled a 1/4" pilot hole, and bored a .300" size temp hole.

[widgitmaster]

After transferring the bearing center into the slide block, I removed the parallels, and trammed the head really close so that my bore for the ball nut was really true to the slide axis.

To tram the head, I used a 1-2-3 block and an indicator. The indicator extends far enough to reach the full width of the mill's table. That allows me to sweep a full 180° circle. Instead of letting the dial indicator bounce over the t-slots, I simply set zero on one corner of the 1-2-3 block, and slide the block to three separate places while adjusting the head until all three points are zero.

[widgitmaster]

Now that the head is trammed, I removed the Slide Block from the rest of the router parts, and placed it on the mill's table along with some 1-2-3 blocks to raise it up for chip clearance.
After clamping it securely, I dialed in the precision bore and zeroed the DRO. Next I drilled a 1/4" dia pilot hole through the block, followed by a larger drill. The big drill was .050" dia smaller than the finished bore diameter.

Next, I placed my 2" boring head in the spindle, and used a long boring bar to rough and finish the bore. The first .030" was removed with a quill feed of .008"/rev, the remaining bore was done at .0015"/rev.

Now the the bore is finished, I have to put a counter-bore on one side of the slide block for the flange of the ball nut. I'll do that on the rotary-table tomorrow.

Widgit