My IH mill

[ChrisJ]

Good idea Mike!

Nice to consolidate IH information in one spot.

Well, I can't provide all that much yet on my IH conversion. I am still in the process on converting the mill over to CNC. Purchased IH's 3axis kit. The z axis is installed. The y axis is 75% installed, and I still need to do the X axis. I added 2" of over travel on my Y axis. I just need to find some more time to finish this already.

I lapped my ways and agree, you should not avoid this step.

I decided to build a metal bench. I have all my steel in the garage and I have started cutting each section for welding. Using mostly 2-1/2"x0.120" square tubing. Only problem is that the darn bench is going to weigh close to 300 lbs when it is all assembled. It will have a metal pan under the entire frame that the mill sits on. I plan on adding a plexiglass splash guard all around the top to contain any splashing of the coolant and to contain flying chips. To make the most use of the bench, the bench will have 8 drawers for tools and there is enough space behind the drawers to locate the coolant tank and a PC. Bench is 45" deep by 84" wide. These dimensions were necessary to contain the mill and servo motors with the maximum travel on the X and to contain the Y axis servo motor.

Here is a picture of the bench. Modeled in OneCNC. I didn't put any detail into the model, just the basics to get an overall feel of how it would look and function.

Chris

[JFettig]

Looks pretty good, your probably gonna want to angle some stuff for coolant to drain. How tall are the walls on this? Are those drawers there under it? that might not be the best places to have stuff stored when using coolant and all, chips everywhere.

I will probably have a little more input later, tired now. I have had some experience building and rebuliding my enclosure for my mini a few times and working with enclosures on haas and milltronics mills.

Jon

[MikeAber]

Hi Chris,
It looks like one of my projects, you have to do a bunch of things before you can do what you wanted to do in the first place!

Aaron's kit is as complete as they get - first class all the way - .

I agree with Jon, don't be suprised if everything in the drawers and under the bench gets "contaminated" with coolant and mill dust. Most machines running coolant have the computer and control circuits mounted in NEMA enclosures to keep the crud and coolant out. I wouldn't store anything I cared much about under my mill. A good excuse to get a heavy duty rollaway tool box for all the tooling. Good looking bench!

I look forward to hearing of your progress and don't forget to take some pictures!

Welcome,

Mike

[ChrisJ]

The pan is going to be the full width and length of the top frame. I was planning on making it 2-1/2" deep, the same as the tube steel.
I was planning on having someone bend a sheet of aluminum on the four sides and maybe ask them to add some pitch to the bottom if he can, towards the drain. Is 2-1/2" deep enough to contain the coolant? I can make the pan deeper near the center portions of the bench if necessary.

The pan would be placed inside the frame first then the cross members that the mill sit on get bolted to the top frame second. This is my potential leak spot is where the bolts pass through the pan, but I figure some gaskets and silicone should do a pretty good job.

If the pan is sealed and the perimeter of the mill is also sealed off with a 24" high acrylic sheets, with two pieces hinged as doors for access, am I still going to have a problem with the contents of the drawers getting soaked? or dusty? I really would like to make use of that space under the mill.

The control box is Nema 3. I started drilling all my holes for my wires through the bottom. The only holes on the sides are for two cabinet fans and my push buttons.

Thanks for the input. More input is welcome, before I make something I will regret later.

Regards,
Chris

[MikeAber]

There is nothing wrong with your plan Chris, I think it's well thought out and it looks like you have a huge coolant basin. Jon is right about the draining characteristics, the idea is to have as much coolant as necessary for operations without any more coolant than is necessary in the storage tank. Aaron's kit includes the NEMA boxes you need and his instructions are excellent.

There will be a cloud of coolant mist around the machine when it is running. That mist will end up inside everything near the machine and the mist will carry very fine particles of swarf with it. When the mist dries you will end up with mill dust on everything.

You could build a moisture proof cabinet to put all your drawers into under the bench with a door that seals well (like a NEMA enclosure) and if you are diligent at keeping the door shut the contents would be ok. I just believe it is much easier to store things away from "the cloud". Your experience may be different.

Keep asking questions Chris.

Mike

[MikeAber]

Chris,

I see you are using OneCNC. Would you please give us your opinion of the software and the price range? I am using TurboCadCam and would like something better. I know GibbsCam but there is no way I can afford it for hobby use.

Thanks,

Mike

[ChrisJ]

Mike,

I like your idea of sealing off the drawer area. That should be very doable. Just more sheetmetal.
I have no experience with CNC machines. This will be my first. So the coolant mist with swarf will be a learning experience.

I dove into the solid modeling and CAM thing all at once, so I had a steep learning curve, just learning how to construct 3D models. I only have experience with Autocad for the last 20 years or so. It took a little while but I got the hand of it.

Regarding the CAM functions. I haven't actually cut anything yet, but I have simulated the toolpaths on many parts in OneCNC. I think the program is great! I picked up most of it pretty well considering I had no prior knowledge of CAM software. I started off with the Advantage package and upgraded to the Expert. I mainly wanted the ability to model in OneCNC. I have no regrets making the financial investment in OneCNC and the upgrade to the Expert package. In fact, in my short use of OneCNC have never heard any OneCNC user ever complain about their decision. Regarding price I would rather you call them and see what they can do for you then layout some prices that may not be accurate and up to date. I can say that if your are considering something like Visualmill 5.0 or SprutCAM Expert, you will be in the same ballpark in price as OneCNC Professional.

I still have one more challenge though and that is integrating Mach3/OneCNC with my IH mill without destroying anything crucial. Hopefully I will hear my machine hum sometime soon. With the strength of this forum and Mach2/3 forum, I hope to get all the support I need to keep myself from making too many mistakes.

Regards,
Chris

[ChrisJ]

Major typo! sorry for making that mistake with your name Mike.

Edit: I was able to edit it and correct my mistake. I thought it would be too late, but I guess not, which is good.

Regards,
Chris

[MikeAber]

Chris,

The process of learning Mach2/3 and setting up your machine will never end. CNC is not easy, nothing good ever is. You have the IH kit, it will be easier for you than most and your right, there are plenty of people here in the CNC Zone with the experience to help thru the rough spots. Dont forget to use Aaron - he is very good at support and the Yahoo Mach1/2/3 usergroup is very helpful as well, that's where Art (ArtSoft) hangs out.

I just can't spend as much on the CAM package as the machine, There's just too many other toys to play with.

Thanks Chris,

Mike

[MikeAber]

Originally Posted by ChrisJ Major typo! (chair) (chair) sorry for making that mistake with your name Mike. Regards, Chris

I've been called worse Chris, -- "No Worries Mate!" --

[metalchipper]

Chris, I have to follow up with Mike’s question about OneCNC. I have been using VisualMill for quite some time. Tech support is getting worse and at best is below average. It takes forever to correct issues that never fully get resolved. MecSofts answer to bug issues is a work around or an expensive upgrade to their latest versions. These upgrades never fix the issues and only add to the problems. Have you had the need to use support for OneCNC?

[ChrisJ]

Metalchipper,

I think I spoke to the OneCNC office in florida once, other than that all my support that I receive is via the OneCNC forum.
The OneCNC forum is second to none. The moderators are very knowledgable, helpful and you typically get responses within hours if not minutes. A user if never stuck holding the bag.
Sometimes there is the need for a work around (from what I read on the forum), but these are rare. Even these issues are sometimes because someone was accustomed to doing these differently in another CAM program and just needs time to get used to how OneCNC does it.
The developer is also very active on the forum, reading the posts, staying abreast of any issues, requests, and in the rare case a bug.
It is my impression that OneCNC beta tests their product very thoroughly.

Regards,
Chris