Lionclaw LC50B

[Lionclaw]

I've finally gotten myself moved in and have my new shop mostly setup here in Dayton. Before I moved I was able to complete many of the parts for my new machine, and I'm hoping to begin assembling it over the next week or two. I apologize to those who have either messaged me and not heard back, or who have recieved delayed responses. I've been trying to catch back up on PM's and e-mails.

The LC50B is a modified of version of my last machine. One major change with this machine is that it is being constructed entirely with mdf, hdpe, and aluminum parts. While I still prefer the strength of plywood, it became very difficult to find good plywood with uniform thickness. I found myself digging through as many as 10 sheets at the lumber yard for every 1 good sheet I deemed satisfactory. I've made other changes to aid in ease of assembly/disassembly as well, such as adding dowel pins to the stacked sides and using captured t-nuts to all mounting points.

The new design includes mounting points for my 4th axis, as you can see in the picture below. As soon as I get the new machine rolling I'll start working on the 4th axis.

If anyone has any ideas or suggestions for the design please let me know! My models, albeit incomplete, can be downloaded from http://www.comptonsoft.com/cnc/LC50B_081007.zip

Be warned, the download is ~12mb.

[mvaughn]

It looks good to me.... I actually had the same problem when I was designing my new machine. I really wanted to use baltic birch but had trouble finding satisfactory stock.

One question, do you envision having troubles using 4 bearings in a row on that aluminum angle?

[Lionclaw]

I don't think there will be any problems. It's possible that not all the bearings will always make contact. On my JGRO and my current machine I've found that the bearings have worn out pretty quick. The new gantry is even heavier than the last, and I'm thinking the problem would be even worse. I'm hoping that by distributing the bearing load I can make it last longer.

[mvaughn]

Makes sense to distribute the weight among more bearings without a doubt. If the bearings are wearing out quickly, how is the pipe holding up?

Any thoughts to adding a tool changer?

[Lionclaw]

The pipe has been holding up quite well. The bearings have been failing internally. After I take them off I can feel lots of slop between the inner and outer races, and they do not spin smoothly. Some of this may be due to dust and chips getting into the bearing, and sealed bearings might have been a better choice.

I really like the tool holders I've seen Joe and others build. I haven't really found a need for one myself however. One thing that worried me was the 10k RPM limit on the tool change hardware, since I've been mostly cutting wood. As soon as I learn to use a more advanced CAM tool though my thoughts might change.

[edmond]

Hi Andy

Im currently building your first version of the Lionclaw Router.Im constructing it entirely out of 12mm MDF and 6mm MDF because decent plywood is unavailable here in South Africa. I used dowel pins to keep all the stacked parts aligned when gluing them together, I have also used captive T Nuts for all the bolts, so much easier than tapping MDF.Is the bearing wear a big problem im using 608Z sealed bearings or would angular contact bearings be a better choice for the linear bearings.I have one question though, can I use a full size plunge base router on the machine.The new design looks good.

Kind Regards
Edmond

[Lionclaw]

Hi Edmond. I saw your thread the other day and it looks like you're doing a wonderful job. I think the 608Z bearings should be fine. The old ones took about a year to wear out. The only modification to the rail itself on the new design is the addition of 4 more holes, so if it works out, you can easily modify yours as well. I'd like to come up with a shield and sweeper for the bearings on the gantry, as that would reduce the amount of crud that makes it into the bearings.

As far as mounting a router, you should be able to use a fairly large one. I still have the 1.75hp craftsman plunge router attached to my current machine. I purchased a hitachi variable speed router for the new machine. The electronic speed control and variable speed features are very nice, although the two wrenches make changing bits somewhat of a hastle. In any case, I believe you'll find that the gantry is sturdy enough to handle a fairly substantial tool.

I'll post some pictures of the completed router carriage and some of the other parts as soon as I manage to dig up my camera. We still have a lot of stuff hidden away in random moving boxes...

[spalm]

Hey Andy, welcome back.

Looks good. Not much to offer right now, but I will keep peeking in.

Steve

[edmond]

Thanks Andy.

Cant wait to see some pics of the new machine.

Kind Regards
Edmond

[Marm]

Nice job Andy. It is too bad that there is no consistency in any type of plywood, I think that plywood is stronger and easier to work with.

Looking forward to the pictures.

[Lionclaw]

Thanks guys! I'm really having fun with this machine. I used dowel pins on the latest side I put together and it made things so much easier. The parts stayed together nicely without slipping. A friend brought up the idea of just screwing the parts together until the glue dries, and then removing and patching up the hole, which probably would have also worked very well.

I assembled the Z-axis carriage last night. It went together pretty well. Some of the fits were a bit tight, which caused some minor splitting in the mdf. After a bit of glue and putty everything seems to be ok.

I'm attaching a few pics of my progress. The only major task left is sanding and painting. You can see the new table in the background in one of the pics. I'm going to use the machine to cut out the circles and t-nut mounts before painting it.

[edmond]

The new machine is looking good so far Andy.The dowel pins make life so much easier, I also use screws on all my stacked parts due to the lack of clamps.Is the whole tool carriage made out of HDPE.Keep the pics coming.