Should I gear

[rocks101]

Hi guys,

I am currently building a 30"x30"x5" CNC router, the gantry will weigh about 30-40 lbs riding on some linear bearings. I am using a 5/8 ball screw with a 0.2 lead, and the hobby cnc driver kit with the 200 oz/in motors. My question is should i gear the motors, or will they have sufficent torque to do the work. I think the y axis and z will be fine, but I am worried about the x. Also I am not looking for superfast cutting speeds and will be cutting into aluminum and wood, maybe some light steel. Any help would be greatly appreciated,

Thank you

[ger21]

When you start cutting wood, you may realise you need to faster than you think. gearing may slow you down too much. You're motors may be a bit on the small size, though, and gearing may make them more useable. If you go with gearing, you can always change it to 1:1 or higher if you find you want/need more speed.

[ViperTX]

As ger21 stated....give yourself some room to change pulley ratios...you'll need the torque for the aluminum and steel. Also, the gantry is pretty light weight for steel...hope you're using 1" for the upright and cross piece of the gantry.