I want to be a CNC student

[praetor]

Hello everyone,

I am a long time viewer, first time thread poster. I have been amateur machining for quite sometime now, 5 years, on a Micro-Mark Micro-Lux, 7x12 lathe, (it's a sieg machine), a Sherline 5400 Milling machine and a taig lathe for small/second machining projects and after viewing quite a few home made machines/conversions I want to learn CNC, actually I have been trying to learn. I bought a book that seems pretty good "Computer Numerical Control simplified" from Industrial Press it came with a CAD/CAM cd program but I can't seem to get it on my own, the math is what gets to me, math isn't my strong suit. I have been trying to look for courses on CNC machining at my local community colleges but the course's aren't offered or if they are the schools haven't opened yet because of a renovation program going on in my state for the whole school system. I wonder if anyone out there can possibly help me? I am trying to get into a CNC training program in my state of Htfd,CT. I tried to get information on such from Dept. of Education in my town/state but they end up giving me the run around between vocational high schools, I graduated in 1990, but I decided to give it a shot. I found that the local vocational high school offered night training classes for adults, I looked into this and found it was only training for paralegal and nursing. I know it may not be proper to ask this on this site/forum...what can I say? I'm desperate. Can any one possibly help me or guide me in the right direction in getting into learning CNC machining? Thanks

[ViperTX]

I think the easiest way to learn CNC is by building a CNC machine or converting one of your manual machines to CNC. Then as you progress you'll learn about CAD and then CAM and then you'll be debugging your G-Code. At that point if you can find a good CNC course you'd learn a bit more.

[praetor]

what's up ViperTX,
Sounds like a good idea, no better hand than the hands on experience. That's sort of what I've been doing now only not the part on building or converting my machines. Only reading. I'll look into the ads that are on this site to help with parts I need, not to mention eBay, thanx again.

[WayneHill]

I took a CNC programming class in Hartford, CT at the Pratt and Whitney company years ago. It was a training class for the new CNC mill we purchased. Maybe you could sit in on one of the classes???

[OCNC]

Gateway Community College has some CNC classes in their Workforce Development Program. They have locations in North Haven and New Haven. In the 2004 Catalog there is a program titled "Precision Manufacturing Certificate". It includes the following courses:

Math for manufacturing and CAD
Blueprint Reading
Metrology
Introduction to CAD Systems for Machining
Intorduction to Computers for Manufacturing
CNC-1 -Introduction to Computerized Numerical Control
CNC-2 -Advanced Computerized Numerical Control Programming
GD&T - Geometric Dimensioning and Tolerancing
SPC - Statistical Processing Control
TQM - Total Quality Management ISO 9000
Career Control fo Manufacturing

The contact person is listed as Ann Cohen 203-285-2302

[praetor]

I want to thank you guys for your help and info, ViperTX, WayneHill and OCNC. I really appreciate it. WayneHill, I've always said I was born to late. I wish I could have sit in on the very same classes you were talking about, man, Pratt & Whitney, that is cool. OCNC, I just called the number you gave me today, (Sunday), and left a message on Ann Cohen's voice mail, thanx. ViperTX, my best friend just purchased a machine tool manufacturing plant that he's going to renovate into an internet bar, man he let me go animal wild in there before he cleaned out the place, unfortunately there weren't any old machines left over except old typewriters, photocopiers and adding machines but there were alot of spare parts, old metal stock and would you believe ballscrews! The threading seem weird not imperial maybe not even metric, I'll look into to it, I found alum. brass, bronze and what I understand to be duraluminum, I don't know if this is correct but it seems like a good bearing material. Well any ways ViperTX I have enough material to build my own Sherline CNC conversion. When I took apart the old photocopiers, circa 1978, I found very good servo motors another friend of mine, an electrician, tested them and said that they worked fine! He even said that they have their own encoders. These motors are the size of a foldable cell phone I think they're from praxxon or maxxon. I have to clean the cellulose dust off them. The photocopiers also had precision ground steel rods under the glass platens. Man I am going to have a ball. I just need to get into the CNC training at this Gateway place and I am on my way, although I am putting together the hardware for the CNC conversion now, what fun. I deal with the other stuff when I get to it.

[ViperTX]

Cool...you have raw material some machines to work on and an eagerness...good luck!