Did some more work yesterday on this build. I'm getting there. I also decided to build a new gantry.
Wow, it's been since October of 2017 since I've been here!
Anyway, since my first build I haven't used the machine a whole lot. But now, since I'm building a new home and aquired a sawmill ......
I've come to need a newer, larger build for some things I want to use my CNC for. I need to surface slabs mostly but have a few other
reasons for a larger build.
My original CNC was built out of MDF and has a working area of 3' X 4' and this was fine mostly because I really didn't have a lot
of use for it but had a strong interest in learning how to use a CNC and I like to challenge myself and build things.
The main purpose was to repurpose most of the parts from the original CNC and make it longer as I don't really see a need for it
being wider all while utilizing the original carriage. So I purchased 2 - 2900mm linear rails and dual ballscrews hoping to get a working area of
around 9 feet long on the Y axis. My original build uses dual belt drives. I also decided to order a ballscrew to upgrade the belt drive
for my X axis.
I decided to build the main table from tube steel and I used 4" steel locking casters on the feet. The table measures 10 feet long by 46" wide.
After more thought about this build and really wanting to rebuild the carriage assembly also so I stopped by my local steel supplier and looked at
aluminum and think I've come up with a simple way to rebuild it and make it better.
I attached a couple photos of the table build so far. My new linear rails and ballscrews arrive on Monday. I'll post more as I make progress.
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Did some more work yesterday on this build. I'm getting there. I also decided to build a new gantry.
Last edited by TheHandyman; 03-29-2020 at 12:43 PM.
Made some progress today on the gantry.
Do you happen to have more pictures of how you have the gantry uprights attached to the bearing blocks?
I'm in the design phase and have a bunch of 8080 aluminum extrusions I'm going to use.
I like your layout of the gantry supported on the top of the table and driven on the side.
Thanks,
The gantry is fastened to the 1/2" aluminum stock and bearings from underneath with two 1/4x20 bolts threaded through the 1/2" plate into the gantry cross member. I hope the following photos help you.
I was going to redesign the side plate to look more professional after I got everything drilled out, but I decided that it only has to be solid and work...doesn't have to look pretty to be accurate. That's the reason it's a boring rectangular shape side plate.
The CNC is finally operational to a point. I rebuilt my controller box and installed a new BOB. I still have to install and wire up my limits, e-stop and probe. Do a little more painting etc. I also purchased a new Z-axis as the one I have was starting to get worn out and had slight play in it. I got a heavy duty z-axis off EBay and should be here by Monday. I'll post more photos soon.