Powerful precise and mobile CNC for steel milling

[jackjr-123]

"The proof is in the pudding" Is it suitable now? https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCA...XLsU7Jg/videos

Sorry but I'm not really sure what it proves except that it sounds terrible and the chatter is through the roof. The first culprit being probably the crappy Chinese spindle.

[mactec54]

"The proof is in the pudding" Is it suitable now? https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCA...XLsU7Jg/videos

even if you filled the extrusion with EG it would still not be a productive machine to mill steel, with extrusion you have the web thickness which does not change even after you fill it with EG mix, that said EG does help to dampen the machine frame but not much else in your case

Keep working at it a light weight machine to cut steel parts of any use is a tall order but not imposable Design and Material used in the build is key, Aluminum Extrusion is not one of them

[3d_cristian]

Can you post a video of a CNC using Dremel to cut steel?

[3d_cristian]

With terrible sound and chatter or not, I still have build the "1st steel milling CNC made with T-Slot Extrusions"!

[mactec54]

With terrible sound and chatter or not, I still have build the "1st steel milling CNC made with T-Slot Extrusions"!

First No there are many that have been doing this with extrusion built machines with the same result, for a number of years this has been a hobby builder's dream to use there wood routers to cut steel, that is why we know what the outcome is, some have worked quite well check YouTube

[mactec54]

Can you post a video of a CNC using Dremel to cut steel?

There used to be video's on YouTube of people using Dremel's for the spindles, if you want to cut steel with one just use a straight carbide bur and they cut through or mill steel with ease some snips of carbide bur's below you could even use these in your spindle

[mactec54]

With terrible sound and chatter or not, I still have build the "1st steel milling CNC made with T-Slot Extrusions"!

Here is a Video of an Extrusion built machine cutting steel, the one main difference to you is the expensive spindle,( around $4000 ) being used is designed to cut steel and use's 30 Taper tooling even though it still has problems with chatter because of the machine construction it does quite well

[3d_cristian]

That is an excellent video, and all finding are very true, However:
- Cutting steel with a carbide tool and a router is a health hazard https://carbideprocessors.com/pages/...ety-risks.html
- It is possible to mill steel using high RPM, small drill bit size and lots of cooling:
- It will create chips so small you will have them in your skin for a long time.
- The milling feed and speed needs to be developed from scratch. That takes time and lot of broken bits. In the past I have broken so many bits that I have decided not to use anything smaller that 0.5".

My machine cuts at max. 6,000RPM and uses max. 0.827" diameter tool. I have designed the spindle assembly using an ER-32 spindle and a 4HP, 3 phase, motor. The 3 phase motor can be run on residential power using an adapter.

I have designed and build the "1st steel milling CNC made with T-Slot Extrusions"! that is NOT a HEALTH HAZARD!

[mactec54]

That is an excellent video, and all finding are very true, However:
- Cutting steel with a carbide tool and a router is a health hazard https://carbideprocessors.com/pages/...ety-risks.html

carbide can only be a health hazard from the dust when Grinding it, HSS cutters have the same Health Hazard, so now you have no cutters that you could use with your cnc machine including drills, because when they are ground there grinding dust is a health hazard

My machine cuts at max. 6,000RPM and uses max. 0.827" diameter tool. I have designed the spindle assembly using an ER-32 spindle and a 4HP, 3 phase, motor. The 3 phase motor can be run on residential power using an adapter.

Nothing new with doing this I have built many spindles, like this there are some posted here on the zone, ( Power adapter ) VFD Drives are what most hobby machine builders and the Chinese machine imports have to run there Spindles

The Power adapter you are referring to is called a VFD Drive

I have designed and build the "1st steel milling CNC made with T-Slot Extrusions"! that is NOT a HEALTH HAZARD

Keep Dreaming there have been many before you do this with the same type of build

[machinedude]

the color of your chips are a pretty good indicator for how well your tooling is going to hold up. once you get into to blue chips it's not long before the tool fails. you see video's on cutting steel often but you have to factor in tool life when it comes to evaluation. most tools cut great when they are new but as they dull the cutting forces required to push them through the material also goes up. i think spindle speeds at 10,000 and up fall into the high speed machining realm and your tool paths get into high feed rate light cuts. not to mention once you get in the high speed machining range you need holders balanced and rated for the speeds your running. feed mill insert cutters work well for this and the push the cutting forces straight up into the spindle. but insert cutters tend to need a rigid machine since they push more than a conventional end mill.

[mactec54]

the color of your chips are a pretty good indicator for how well your tooling is going to hold up. once you get into to blue chips it's not long before the tool fails. you see video's on cutting steel often but you have to factor in tool life when it comes to evaluation. most tools cut great when they are new but as they dull the cutting forces required to push them through the material also goes up. i think spindle speeds at 10,000 and up fall into the high speed machining realm and your tool paths get into high feed rate light cuts. not to mention once you get in the high speed machining range you need holders balanced and rated for the speeds your running. feed mill insert cutters work well for this and the push the cutting forces straight up into the spindle. but insert cutters tend to need a rigid machine since they push more than a conventional end mill.

He is not using any tool holders just a ER32 Tool holder driven by an AC motor with a 6,000 RPM spindle speed, no other details of what Bearing he is using or the design of the spindle

[routalot]

Is it worth somebody posting a FAQ thread about the probability of success it you attempt to cut steel with a wood router? This topic crops up every few days and some of the posters get quite upset when told that it isn't likely to work.Bolting a few extrusions together with sketchy,or non-existent,triangulation and hoping to control it with a bucketful of AliExpress components and no coolant facility hasn't yet worked well for anybody.It would be much less time consuming if a link to a page listing the reality of the situation could be pasted into every such thread.

[machinedude]

i think the biggest set back is spindle speed when cutting steel on a machine that is lacking flood coolant if you can get past the rigidity hurdle. what this person has i don't think is doing bad for what it is and if things were dialed back a little you might possible get ok results. but the thing to remember is you need to compare apples to apples here. this is not a commercial VMC with a 20 HP spindle and a CAT 50 tool holder so it's never going to remove material like that class of machine.

i said this before but i see value in the concept of what this person has built so far and i honestly could see i specialized need for a cnc that could be moved around and set up for field service repair work where moving the broken down item is not an option because of size and cost to do so. i personally have never had a job doing this but have had interviews from companies that do this kind of work. after seeing how much travel and hours spent away from home turned me off the idea since my kids were just little at the time. but the need is out there.

might not be for this person if health risk is a concern because the work i interviewed for a long time ago was nuclear field service repair. so glowing in the dark and growing a 6th finger and toe might be a turn off in itself

[mactec54]

Is it worth somebody posting a FAQ thread about the probability of success it you attempt to cut steel with a wood router? This topic crops up every few days and some of the posters get quite upset when told that it isn't likely to work.Bolting a few extrusions together with sketchy,or non-existent,triangulation and hoping to control it with a bucketful of AliExpress components and no coolant facility hasn't yet worked well for anybody.It would be much less time consuming if a link to a page listing the reality of the situation could be pasted into every such thread.

The video I posted shows what is possible with a $4500.00 spindle on a Hobby level machine, and a large cast iron vice the results where not that great, so it speaks for it's self what to expect when cutting steel on a machine that at best can make a reasonable cut in aluminum

[3d_cristian]

OK. Let's push the reset button.This thread is about a machine that has not been build before and nobody else (other than me) has experience with it. I am posting just results of what the machine can perform and specifications. If somebody is interested, please let me know what kind of results you would like to see. Please note that:Assumptions of "what it is" or "how is working", etc are a waste of time because you do not have the machine. Build one and let's compare notes if you want to discuss in details.The machine is not a "router" . It is a steel milling CNC machine build with aluminium extrusions. The milling head(spindle) is not a "chinese router spindle". It is a custom design spindle with a 4KW motor running at nominal 3000RPM and max. 6000RPMThe milling of steel using spindles at more than 10,000RPM is a waste of time and a health hazard. Please do not open this subject in this post anymore.

[routalot]

I look forward to the first independent test of this machine.Who knows where it might take us.

[3d_cristian]

Because Covid is showing signs of not backing up, I have decided to offer my services for free, for a limited time, to those interested to build a machine similar to the one I have build. You will pay for the components and shipping. That means you get the mechanical and electrical drawings, components list and instructions for free, including remote support until the machine is fully debugged. There will be also be limited remote free training 3D CAD , CAM and machine set-up.
The machine can be customized to anything you want: size (width, length, height), operating system (Linux, Windows or both), one or more exchangeable manufacturing heads(spindles, manipulators, holders), single or 3 phases power, etc. Based on the dimensions, itcan be shipped fully assembled, partial assembled(kit) or completely DIY.
You can contact me directly by e-mail if you have any questions.

[mactec54]

Because Covid is showing signs of not backing up, I have decided to offer my services for free, for a limited time, to those interested to build a machine similar to the one I have build. You will pay for the components and shipping. That means you get the mechanical and electrical drawings, components list and instructions for free, including remote support until the machine is fully debugged. There will be also be limited remote free training 3D CAD , CAM and machine set-up.
The machine can be customized to anything you want: size (width, length, height), operating system (Linux, Windows or both), one or more exchangeable manufacturing heads(spindles, manipulators, holders), single or 3 phases power, etc. Based on the dimensions, itcan be shipped fully assembled, partial assembled(kit) or completely DIY.
You can contact me directly by e-mail if you have any questions.

Good luck, but first you have to post photos of your machine here on the Zone so anyone that is interested can see what kind of project they are getting into, you are advertising here so have to post here

So post photos and the Build steps of the machine here not on GrabCad you will get a better response

[3d_cristian]

Good luck, but first you have to post photos of your machine here on the Zone so anyone that is interested can see what kind of project they are getting into, you are advertising here so have to post here

So post photos and the Build steps of the machine here not on GrabCad you will get a better response

I will upload more videos and pictures soon. In the next video I will use a 3/4'' 90 Deg Square Shoulder 5 flutes Indexable End Mill.

[mactec54]

I will upload more videos and pictures soon. In the next video I will use a 3/4'' 90 Deg Square Shoulder 5 flutes Indexable End Mill.

Videos don't do much for anyone they need to see the details of the build if you want anyone to have any interest in your project