Newbie at CNCing

[CanAm1]

Hello All,

I might as well try posting to this new forum.
My 12 x 12 is basically up and running with a couple, three projects under its belt. I had to force myself to quit cutting stuff to hook up the homing switches and of course learning by the road of hards knocks the software....

Have a good one.

Mark

[bluemax]

I ordered a 12x12 also and it is due wednesday. I think I'll probably need some help.

[CanAm1]

Bluemax,

These are great little machines. If you're mechanically inclined then you should not have any real problems assembling. The manual that I had to use to assemble was a little rough around the edges and I did have to do some head scratching. I have not checked, but maybe there is an updated one now on the Zen site.
There are a couple of tricks that I found to get things more accurate which can be done later..
Give me a holler when you have questions and I'll try my best to answer them.

Mark

[bluemax]

Canam1
Thanks for the encouragement. I know I will need some help with the wiring. Elec Eng was not my strength at Mich. Your pictures on the switches look like they will help. I ordered the whole package from Zen so hopefully I'll have everything I need. It appears that the people that own these machines ( Zen Toolworks) are very helpful with us newbies. It is one of the reasons I picked this machine. The other was customer support from the owner and it is a U.S. company. I don't mind spending more money if I can get support and it stays here. Anyway Ilike a challenge and this looks like one.

[CanAm1]

All,

Finally have all the electrics done. Home switches work great....

Just for kicks to test everything out I found a fret work drawing and converted it over to machine it.

I have included a pic of my finished wiring (The only thing missing is my 9 VDC wall wart to power the relays) and the finished fret piece. Turned out pretty good..

Mark



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[kas]

Hi CanAm1,

Thanks for sharing your experience

I just ordered a 7X7 bench and have some question for you
Please let me have a direct link to your Stepper driver and power supply
Not too sure to understand the purpose of your relays board (safety device ??) please elaborate
Finally, How is the spinddle speed adjusted ??

Thanks for your help

[CanAm1]

Hello Kas,

Let me start by saying that you have ordered a great little machine plus the help from Zin and Clint at the Toolworks is the best.
Let me see if I can answer your questions.
The stepper driver and power supply I am using are the newer units the Toolworks offering. The stepper driver is their 2010 enclosed unit which only needs one power supply source and the power supply is a 24 volt unit that puts out 12.5 amps. (The Toolworks WIKI site shows and explains these goodies)
The relays control the home signals and the spindle power. There are 3 microswitches one for each axis. These switches feed the relays which in turn send the signal to the electronics. The forth relay allows control of the spindle power from the software.
Right now I am just using the 24 volt power supply to power the spindle. At 12.5 amps it has plenty of power and I have not noticed any performance issues with steppers. My spindle is running right around 5000 rpm and so far has been great for all my "newbie experimenting". Eventually I'll hook up higher output variable..

Mark

[kas]

Thanks Mark for this prompt response, I am sure that we will have additional oportunities to exchange experience.

Yves