Urb's first attempt at the JGRO

[jckstrthmghty]

Matt, your build looks fanastic in black. I had dismissed black as a valid color but after seeing yours I'm reconsidering that choice. Your cutting bed looks solid. Is that angle iron for support? Nice choice in spindles, Hitachi?

Thanks. I really like the y-axis supports on my build. The screws are just finger tight but make a night and day difference in flex. Sieg's method of supporting the x-axis works great as well. Something I would suggest to any jgro build. I think it would be easy to modify your bracing to include adjustment bolts if you so desired. I would very much recommend adding a drill rod through both sides of your support to stop any outward flex. I used 1/4" all screw and it works great.

Here's is where I got the idea, Tajord's idea.

My JGRO build

I wish I could afford HDPE but it's just out of my budget at the moment. If the bolt fix I used gives out then I'll have no choice but right now I'm using my budget for nice leadscrews and a decient stepper and controller kit. What leadscrews did you end up going with?


Thanks for sharing the picture. I hope you start a thread of your own with your build log. I love seeing everyone else's build progress.

[SteveC68]

I've been looking at the JGRO for some time now, and will probably build one after I finish my CNC foam wire cutter. I have a question about the gantry uprights. On both sides of the gantry there is a 1" diameter hole that is shown on drawings dtl16 and dtl17. For the life of me I can't see what is the purpose of that hole. It is located 11" from the bottom of the gantry and 1.75" from the forward edge. It isn't for either of the x guide pipes or the x axis lead screw. Does anyone know what that hole is for?

Thanks,
Steve

[jckstrthmghty]

It's for the x-axis adjustment block screws to pass through. Gives you another 1/2" of travel. It wasn't obvious to me until I built my gantry.

I've been looking at the JGRO for some time now, and will probably build one after I finish my CNC foam wire cutter. I have a question about the gantry uprights. On both sides of the gantry there is a 1" diameter hole that is shown on drawings dtl16 and dtl17. For the life of me I can't see what is the purpose of that hole. It is located 11" from the bottom of the gantry and 1.75" from the forward edge. It isn't for either of the x guide pipes or the x axis lead screw. Does anyone know what that hole is for?

Thanks,
Steve

[matt888]

It's for the x-axis adjustment block screws to pass through. Gives you another 1/2" of travel. It wasn't obvious to me until I built my gantry.

So true. I didn't figure it out until I actually moves the x-axis all the way to one side. That's when the light bulb in my head went on.

I did start a thread on my build was did an awful job of updating it. I'll just hijack yours! J/K! Yeah, that's a Hitachi with mdf mounts that I just whipped up in freehand and with a jigsaw. I need to cut out new supports in HDPE as soon as it's running.

[kylemp]

Hi guys,
Nice build! i'm working on the same router right now and having a few problems with it.. mainly i have scrapped tapping MDF because it seems like a dumb idea and won't hold any pressure anyways, so i am planning on going with weldbond and #8 screws to hold everything together.. unless someone can give me another idea?
I have 75% of my pieces cut and as I am writing this I am putting together my slide bearings.
I haven't used any 1/2" MDF because I figured I could just use 3/4" to do the same job stronger.
It looks like you used a 1-1/2" holesaw to do the adjustment blocks jckstrthmghty, had a problem with burning so I decided to scrap that and just buy a proper spade bit after putting up with burning MDF for bout 27 seconds.. not the best smelling or tasting stuff in the world..
Can anyone tell me if it is actually important to have the hole in the gantry backing?
And on the x and z bases does it mater if I use a Dado blade to cut the slip in's for the bearing blocks, etc. and go from beginning to end of the piece rather than going only 1/2 way or whatever the drawing says? I don't have a good router and bit for this so I would rather just use the dado for speed and accuracy..
I will post some pics when I get mine a little more together..
It is becoming REALLY obvious how much I wish I had a cnc alread just to build one so when I finish if anyone needs parts cut for their first machine I would be willing to do that rather than trying to do it with hand tools, etc. since I now know how much it sucks...

[jckstrthmghty]

I hear you on difficulty with hand tools to make your table. It's supposed to be that way. Makes you appreciate your table even more when it's completed.

Really it doesn't matter what you use to fasten your pieces together. Wood screws, drywall screws, bolts, ect. The design seems to minimize pressure on the fasteners for the most part. The only place you should be concerned about is the adjustment blocks. I'd recommend hdpe there.

I used a hole saw initially to cut my adjustment blocks but like you purchased spade bits to do the job right.

The hole on the gantry brace is to lighten the gantry. Less mass with little affect on rigidity.

For the tongue and grove parts if it fits you'll be ok. MDF is super cheap so if you make a mistake you can remake the part. I have a huge stack of "test" parts.

[Ayjay]

I'm ready to order my leadscrews and have decided to go with 1/2" 8 with 2 starts. I'm going with McMaster-Carr...

JC

Just read through your thread and I really like what you are doing. I am finally getting around to blowing the dust off my machine and making a concerted effort to finish it after about 18 months of idle time on it). I originally put it together with 1/4" allthread for the screws, but I really think I should upgrade to 1/2" Acme. I was wondering if you ordered and received your Acme thread from McMaster-Carr? I read on some other threads here that they don't ship to Canada. If you did get them, how well were they packaged (any damage) and how was the service in general?

Also, did your get your AB nuts from dumpstercnc?
Thanks,

Ayjay

[jckstrthmghty]

Unfortunately it's true that Mcmaster-Carr will not take new orders from Canada. I had to get one of my cousins in NYC to order them for me and I'm still awaiting the shipment. Hopefully soon since my own table has been sitting there for over a month waiting on parts. Haven't ordered the dumpster parts either. Waiting to see how the new Gecko drive works before I order electronics as well. I suppose waiting is all part of the economical route I have chosen.

btw all 3 companies have excellent reputations in here and that's good enough for me.

[jckstrthmghty]

Since I have not made any progress on my table while I am waiting for parts I thought I would share some pictures of a 6" vortex dust collector I made. It's based off of Bill Pentz design scaled 1/3 in size. The main construction is 1/8" PETA. I thought making the tube was bad and then I got to the cone. Yikes! Fortunately the plastic company I buy from sells 2" rigid tubing. I wanted to buy (even more so after I started the project) from Clearvue but limited funds said my time and anguish would be necessity to save the extra $$. In total I spent $43 in plastic sheet, 2" tubing and glue. No idea of the electricty cost for running a heatgun for that long to bend the plastic in to shape. Was quite a learning experience. I made an error in the placement of the Helical thing but it doesn't seem to have caused any negative effects. The vortex works amazingly well. No more clogged shopvac filters.

[Nitroghost]

Since I have not made any progress on my table while I am waiting for parts I thought I would share some pictures of a 6" vortex dust collector I made. It's based off of Bill Pentz design scaled 1/3 in size. The main construction is 1/8" PETA. I thought making the tube was bad and then I got to the cone. Yikes! Fortunately the plastic company I buy from sells 2" rigid tubing. I wanted to buy (even more so after I started the project) from Clearvue but limited funds said my time and anguish would be necessity to save the extra $$. In total I spent $43 in plastic sheet, 2" tubing and glue. No idea of the electricty cost for running a heatgun for that long to bend the plastic in to shape. Was quite a learning experience. I made an error in the placement of the Helical thing but it doesn't seem to have caused any negative effects. The vortex works amazingly well. No more clogged shopvac filters.

Is there any way you can share the build process with us? I'm sure there are many of us that would love to attempt the build.

Jim

[kylemp]

Is there any way you can share the build process with us? I'm sure there are many of us that would love to attempt the build.

I just finished mine, its running ok, the structure itself is fine, just having motor/driver/computer problems it seems like right now..
While I was building mine I was wishing I had kept a digital camera with me so I could have posted my build..
I will be building a new one of this design shortly, now that I have one to do my cutting for me
I will post my progress, if you have any questions you can PM me or reply here and I will do my best to try and help you along with your build.

My suggestions:
1. Use a brad or pin nailer to connect larger pieces, don't bother trying to tap MDF, it is practically impossible to get it to work right.
2. I used 1/2" plexiglass for my adjustment blocks. It works perfectly and can be tapped easily.. if you use 1/2" you HAVE to space the adjustment blocks from the mounting surface otherwise you will have a hell of a time doing any adjustment.
3. MEASURE YOUR LEADSCREW AND MOUNTING NUT POSITION AS MANY TIMES AS POSSIBLE TO BE SURE THAT THEY LINE UP RIGHT! I didn't and now I have to re-cut the Z axis carriage so I can have better travel. It's worth the time...
4. Your first machine isn't supposed to be pretty.. just make it work and cut #2 using that machine.
5. If you mount your adjustment blocks on the bottom of the carriage ("x" axis) you will lose clearance.. I would suggest rethinking the carriage design because myself I have a huge amount of travel but can never use it.
6. Depending on the leadscrew and coupler you decide to use, if using 1/4" (I did) and the coupler just CAN'T tighten enough to the screw, I took a 1-1/2" bolt and cut the head off. This left me with a OD of roughly 1/4" and I could still use a nut style coupler, lock washers and 2 nuts to connect it to the rod.


Hopefully some of these tips help people.. if you are planning on building this machine you will need access to a bit of a array of tools.. tablesaw, bandsaw is good to have as well, cut off saw, drill press, things like DADO blades are awesome to have at your disposal..

I would suggest on pieces that seem to need to be plunge routed not to worry about that and cut straight across, its too much of a hassle to try and do (for example) detail 31 without having a machine and it really isn't that important.
I would suggest not leaving any slop in your holes when drilling things and make the fir as perfect as possible and if needed slop the holes a little. I notice with mine things come out of alignment fairly easily.

Thanks JGRO for the design, anyone that has built this machine can see that you have put a lot of time and effort into designing a good starter and hobby system.

[jckstrthmghty]

I believe Nitroghost was referring to the cyclonic dust seperator I made but if I am error please forgive me.

Nitroghost, measuring and cutting out the pieces was easy enough. If you buy 2" rigid tubing as I did there is only 4 parts to cut. The only difficulty was forming the PETA in to shape. I used an old gallon paint can with the handle tabs trimmed off as my base shaping form. I placed the sheet on top and heated the PETA until it wrapped around the can. The cone was entirely it's own beast. The shape forming was very rough to start since I had no template to wrap the sheet around. Once I had a rough cone shape I placed it on my table and by applying pressure with my hands on the inside (while wearing work gloves) and applying heat to the outside wall I was able to form a decient cone. I used a thick rod about 2" in od to roll out imperfections much like a baker uses a rolling pin to flatten dough. It was a lot of work getting the cone symetrical. The cone was made about 1/2" larger at the mouth so it would fit around the outside of the 6" tube. I just heated up the edge and form fitted it around.

Some tips.

1. Use 1/16" peta. Should be strong enough and much easier to work with.
2. Dry fit everything before glueing.
3. Glue the helical in before you glue on the cone.

I could've easily made this with half the budget if I had taken more time to calculate how much material I needed. Sorry I don't have any wip pictures. I'd post a build guide but since I based my plans from Mr. Pentz's I wouldn't feel comfortable. His site has a wealth of information.

Hope this helps.