INTERESTED IN A MACHINE

[BOATDUDEGUY]

Im trying to gather info on what all ill need to attempt to construct a home made cnc router

i know ZERO about machine building
what all am i going to need, as far as hardware, interface, computer.controls?

[jjacstcy]

My advice would be to start reading some build threads and pick a machine type that you are interested in building and then start with the questions. Your hardware, interace and computer will all be based info of the info you provide.

[Djurdjevic]

Look here:
Build Your Own CNC Router, CNC Machine, or 3D Printer

[BOATDUDEGUY]

Look here:
Build Your Own CNC Router, CNC Machine, or 3D Printer

ya i found that place and asked about the bluechick
but they said ill still need the computer router and to put a control togther
those are the things ill need to know
same with microcarve, he told me the product is just the mechanical
i need drivers/computer and i dont know where to even begin
no ones giving me a strait answer
what will i need,
i found a machine, i have software, wat else do i need

[louieatienza]

ya i found that place and asked about the bluechick
but they said ill still need the computer router and to put a control togther
those are the things ill need to know
same with microcarve, he told me the product is just the mechanical
i need drivers/computer and i dont know where to even begin
no ones giving me a strait answer
what will i need,
i found a machine, i have software, wat else do i need

I don't think it gets as straight as that. I think some more research is in order. Don't confuse control and driver. In most our DIY machines here, the controller is the computer, and the driver is what interfaces your computer to the drive motors (steppers).

I'd suggest reading through builds here, and you can see how it all goes together, the components needed, etc. before making a decision on a machine. Buy a kit like xylotex or probotix which is as plug and play as you're going to get. If you can't prod straight answers from vendors, then maybe you shouldn't deal with them. But the truth is that the electronics side is very open-ended, there is no straight answer, and dependant on your needs, capabilities, and budget.

[OCNC]

Things you need for a cnc machine.

1) A certain amount of money as yet to be determined.

2) The X-Y-Z axes mechanical structure. Specifics (structure, bearings, drive methods: screws, belts, or R&P) depend on intended use and usually the available budget.

3) A spindle. Typically in DIY this is a router motor.

4) Motors to drive the axes. Typically in DIY these are stepper motors. You need at least one for each axis though X is sometimes driven with two synchronized motors. In that case you would need four for an XYZ machine.

5) Software and a computer to generate the electrical signals to control the motion of the machine. Mach3 is an example of the control software required for this. It runs on a Windows machine. TurboCNC is another example of control software. It runs under DOS.

6) Stepper drive hardware. These are electronic hardware units that convert the signal level output (5V) generated by the control software and computer into power level output that can activate the stepper motors. The stepper drive hardware sometimes needs external provision for cooling usually provided by small fans and heat sinks. GeckoDrive's g540 is an example of high quality stepper drive electronics.

7) A power supply. You need a power supply capable of producing the amperage and voltage required by the combination of the drive electronics and the stepper combination. A 24V-10amp supply would be a fairly common example for a small DIY machine.


Beyond this you need a way to generate G-code which is what the control software processes as it's instruction set to produce useful (hopefully) output. If you understand G-code you can write machine instructions with any simple text editor. The other method is to draw the part to be made in a CAD program and then use a CAM program to automatically (or rather with minimal input) generate the G-code instructions for the control software.

I should also mention that I haven't included the hardware component referred to as a Breakout Board (BOB). They are supposedly designed to condition the computers output signals and reduce the chances of damaging the computer from spurious inputs but my own experience with them is that they're a nuisance and the source of things not working. I don't use one and am not inclined to recommend their use. I'm sure others will disagree with this practice.

Chris

[Walky]

Read, then ask, then read again. Researching equals money well spent. If 3 years ago I had known what I know right now (learned by researching and asking people, every single day, several hours a day for the last 3 years), I would have spent a lot less money and built lot better machines at the time. I know this will surely happen to me again as years pass, as one never really stops learning. Building a CNC (or even buying one) is not the kind of thing you figure out by googling for a week and reading a bunch of tutorials.