6x26 cnc retrofit

[plane magic]

Hi Guys,
I've been watching here for a couple of months now and made the plunge and bought a warco VMC turret mill. I think you guys call it a 6x26.
I've been badgering Kong about doing this for the last couple of months and his advice has been great.It seemed to take ages for the mill to finally arrive after the initial order.6 weeks i had to wait.
anyways i have been gathering the bits for the mill and here is a list to what i have so far....the bits were all purchased new from RS components
Warco VMC turret mill
3 off mclennan 150watt servo motors RS part no 441-0439
3off encoders hengstler Rs part no 499-7841 which replaced 304-9755
1off 25amp 24v PSU Lambda sws600 RS part no 494-4673
3off Gecko drives 320
1off campbell breakout board
6 off NSK ballnuts RS part no 267-5892
2 off 500mm ballscrew 20mmx 5mm RS part no 267-5915
1 off 1000mm ballscrew as above
1off rittal 300x400 control cabinet
Various limit switches etc
If there is anything i have bought that seems out of place or you dont think it will work please let me know
I cannot update too regularly as i work onboard an oil platform which only allows 2 weeks on 2 weeks off rota but i will update as regularly as i can.
My main hobbies are woodworking but i do a little bit of metalworking which i would like to get into more hence the cnc mill project

regards

Ian
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[mxtras]

WOW - Nice floor!

In fact - NICE SHOP!!!

That is a good looking machine, by the way. ...now I am jealous...damn - I hate it when that happens.

Scott

[plane magic]

Finally made a start,
Been busy over the weekend building the control panel. Man its hot over here in the UK, not used to this heat.
The control box is a Rittal AE series….size is 400mm x 500mm x 210mm deep. I used a Lambda PSU….part no sws600 which is a 24v dc output.. 25amp. The gecko drives are mounted onto 12v heatsinks and fans. I used a thin piece of metal din rail to bridge the 3 off them together…I slackened the screws that hold the fan onto the heatsinks and slide the metal bridge across the 3 sandwiching them, then tightened the screws back up being careful not to buckle the fans. The heatsinks are then supported onto the backplate of the control panel via nylon spacer screws allowing me 15mm of back clearance.
I used the Campbell designs breakout board to link to the pc via the parallel port. Very nice board and straight forward, all clearly marked with no problems encountered
The fuses are mounted on the side of the panel as It will be getting side mounted onto the mill and gives better access. I also fitted the Estop and an on/off switch here as well.
I predrilled the baseplate ready for the motor and limit cables and have wired a separate junction block so as I don’t need to disturb any wiring.
The PSU has its own cooling fan but I also side mounted another to pull more air in…just in case…this allowed me to have the geckos mounted mid panel rather than mounting them on the sides. I used 17amp tri-rated automotive cable for the psu and to the geckos and the 240 volt circuits, this was about as heavy a cable I could wire into the geckos…the rest is 8 amp automotive cable.
The encoders will be wired direct once the control unit is mounted. As these are already shielded I didn’t want to risk any noise.

I haven’t wired the 12v heatsink fans as yet…I was toying with the idea of using the breakout boards home switch power supply to these as I wont be putting home switchs on I’m going to rely on my limit switches ????anyone any thoughts on this?

So far so good

Now to get started on the ballscrews and motor mounts

Regards

Ian

[wisp]

your controller is looking great. nice and clean. keep us posted, I have always wanted to see a how a retro of that size knee mill would work out. They are available from harbor freight here in the states for $1599 I believe.
Do you plan to use the knee or the quill for you Z axis?

cheers

[plane magic]

Hi Wisp,
Yes i beleive the mill is available from various sources with different coloured paint schemes and the odd change here and there.
its a nice mill with a few rough bits around the castings but nothing i can't handle....its a heavy brute though for its size and it fits into the home workshop just right....not too small and not too large.
I havent really wound it up yet its only been used for cutting aluminium so far but will eventually be doing stainless

my plan is to z axis the quill. the machine came with a power feed fitted on the x but its interchangable with the knee. i thought on fitting it to the knee and getting a small single DRO for the knee for tool changes.
my plan is to have the x and y running so i can mill the parts for the z

I'm glad someone has asked a question i didnt think the post was very popular going by the reponse and views but for now i'm home and i will try to keep up some progress shots.

cheers

Ian

[MIKE JEFFERS]

nice ideas all round
awaiting delivery of an x3 (september) its good to see other machines being done
though like the powered knee idea. btw be carefull re-installing the feed unit
the bevell gears in these units are made from re-constituted cheese thus a little
soft
mike.

[plane magic]

Work commitments have kept the progress slow but it is coming along. I had to bore out the original end bearing housing that’s mounted on the machine to accept the new bearings. That took ages to set up. The original bearings were 43 od and the new angular contact bearings were 47 mm od so a bit of turning was required. Not much fun on a small lathe but it managed it none the less.
.
I have tried to keep as much of the original componets intact eg although I bored out the bearing housings etc the bore of the new bearings fits the old shaft so if I ever need to revert it back again it shouldn’t be too difficult.

For the X axis I used 10mm aluminium plate for the motor mount flange and bearing housing flange. These are bolted onto the existing bearing flanges.. these are bolted together with 15mm aluminium bar 55mm long which I drilled and tapped at the lathe.
The motor mounts I premilled slots to allow for some adjustment on the timing belts.
I have gone for a ratio of 1---2.5 on my timing pullies. The belts are 15mm wide.

I have only managed to turn one end of the ballscrew so far. I had to cut through the hard stuff with a grinder before the lathe would turn it…I still went through a few tips though with a few sparks flying…..safety glasses a must here. I have premachined the ballscrew nut housing but haven’t as yet fitted it. There is still another nut to go onto the housing the photo only shows one nut.
Slow but steady progress ...you can also watch progress here

Ian

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[chrispy]

Nice post, but I must ask....

anyone feel the need to go clean their shop after seeing Ian's pics?

Chris

[plane magic]

Bought myself a boring head….this has made life so much easier for boring awkward shaped pieces. Have been on holiday and updates have been slow but I still have a few days left to get cracking.
I have now completed the Y axis…..it took a bit of shoehorning to get the ballscrew nut and housing in as you can see from the photos
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I had to cut away about 45mm out of the front of the knee to allow me the same travel as I had before. Wasn’t to difficult. I drilled a series of holes then carefully cut with the angle grinder then tapped with the hammer and it fell away. I also had to cut away the sides of the ballnuts slightly to make sure there was enough clearance.
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I have tried to keep as much original parts as I can….i have rebored the original bearing housing and fitted 2 sets of angular contact bearings. The bore of the new bearings is the same as the old shaft so if it ever goes back to being a normal mill its and easy conversion back.
I have used 20mm x 5 ballscrew…turned the ends down to 12mm and made bushings to suit my bearings
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I have brought the shaft right through my motor mounting brackets as I am going to make a little bush so as to allow me to fit on the original handles in case I ever want to use the machine in manual mode..

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Getting on now with the X axis shouldn’t be too long now for an update

I will also upate my site here over the next few days

Regards

Ian

[wisp]

Nice work on the Y axis Ian. What did you use to make the cover for the Y axis belt? Looks like some thin tin/sheetmetal.

Also, the block that you are bolting the ballnut to, could you have bored a hole in it and fit the ballnut mostly inside the block? Might get you some more travel, just a thought.

That thing is going to look awsome when you are done.

[plane magic]

Wisp,
the cover is 18 guage aluminium....i clamped it around the frame to size and shape it then screwed it on.

I did think of boring the block to take the housing but the block would have to have been slightly bigger so i settled on what i did and cut the front of the knee to give me back the travel. the ball nuts are quite big compared to others i have seen....but its what i bought and now i am commited to using these

the nut on the end of the shaft is only temporary to allow me to move the axis......
first time i have used ballscrews and they run lovely.



Its starting to shape up

Ian

[plane magic]

had a busy weekend.....got the x axis installed...the panel mounted and the machine running...thanks for the help kong

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I put a drill on the axis and ran it back and forth to ensure smooth running

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the completed x axis motor mount
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and the x axis limit switch....the Y axis has a similar switch
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and the finished x and Y...cant beleive how smoothly it runs on the ballscrews......now i have to go and dream up how to do the z axis
any ideas and inputs will be greatly appreciated
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Ian

I will be away working for the next few weeks so no more updates until my return but i will be able to answer any questions