Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build


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Thread: Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build

  1. #1

    Default Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build

    Part I:

    Hi,

    I finally decided to post an in progress build log. I have been reading the posts on this site for a while and have really appreciated the positive reinforcement and inspiration the other build logs gave me. Also I haven't seen a new build on here for a while so here is mine! I started this project about two years ago. I was going to CSU Chico at the time and I just recently graduated from there with a BS in Sustainable Manufacturing woot! I have been working on this in between work, homework, and school projects so its taking a bit of time . Still not done but im getting there, you'll see!

    I liked the Momus CnC plans for the size and scalability. I also liked the detailed drawings, a lot of the free plans I came across were seriously lacking in detail. I started by doing the CAD in Solidworks, this look me about 6 weeks working on it in my free time. The only part I didn't CAD was the router I pulled from grabCAD. Anyway this is the base rendered:

    Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-img_1546-jpg

    I started on the wood base next. I pick up two 4x8ft 3/4in Maple plywood pieces and then stored them for another three months before I actually started on the project

    Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-wood-base-1_small-jpg

    I made all these cuts with hand power tools outside on my workbench. I currently don't have a garage so the weather had to be playing nice.

    Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-wood-base-2_small-jpg

    I have made a tiny bit of room in my one bedroom house for this guy to hang out so he can be out of the elements.

    Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-wood-base-3_small-jpg

    Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-wood-base-4_small-jpg

    Next I skipped forward to the brackets for the router. I have a slightly larger Porter Cable router so I had to redesign the brackets to fit. I did this for a tooling project at school and was able to cut them out with one of the school's Haas mini mills. While I built the wood case at my house I was able to do all the metal fabrication in the machine lab at my school so that helped a lot.

    Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-cnc-bracket_small-jpg

    This was the only set of parts I made on the Haas mini mill, the rest I milled manually using my buddy Mr. Bridgeport, more on that later.

    Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-router-clamp-3_small-jpg

    Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-router-clamp-2_small-jpg

    Looks like I have maxed my picture limit so I will continue in the next post. I should be able to get up to the current point of my build in that one. See you all next time! I know I haven't posted much yet, but let me know if you have any questions.

    Similar Threads:
    Attached Thumbnails Attached Thumbnails Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-img_1546-jpg   Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-wood-base-1_small-jpg   Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-wood-base-2_small-jpg   Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-wood-base-3_small-jpg  

    Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-wood-base-4_small-jpg   Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-cnc-bracket_small-jpg   Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-router-clamp-3_small-jpg   Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-router-clamp-2_small-jpg  

    Last edited by SteppenRzr; 01-06-2019 at 06:38 PM.


  2. #2

    Default Re: Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build

    Part II:

    Once I had the brackets milled out I went back to working on the case. I started preparing the case for paint with some Bondo to hid some of the larger flaws. I picked up a new to me belt sander and that thing really moves material.

    Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-wood-base-5_small-jpg

    Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-wood-base-6_small-jpg

    Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-paint-1_small-jpg

    I set up a little temporary paint booth and rattle canned it.

    Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-paint-2_small-jpg

    Sweet paint job right Yes, the answer is yes....

    Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-paint-3_small-jpg

    I got the case to a pretty good place and started spending a substantial amount of time in the machine lab on this bad boy:

    Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-bridgeport_small-jpg

    It was also a pleasure to cut all my stock on this band saw so thank you CSU Chico!

    Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-band_saw_small-jpg

    I was able to get one to three parts done a week and just started installing them on to the base one part at a time. I didn't take a picture of every part so here are just a few to show the progress. I learned a lot during this process only having spent a few hours on the manual mill before this.

    Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-chips_small-jpg

    This is where I learned that this particular six fluted end mill leaves terrible surface finish, but.. meh clearance hole. More in the next post!

    Attached Thumbnails Attached Thumbnails Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-wood-base-5_small-jpg   Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-wood-base-6_small-jpg   Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-paint-2_small-jpg   Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-paint-3_small-jpg  

    Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-bridgeport_small-jpg   Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-band_saw_small-jpg   Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-chips_small-jpg   Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-paint-1_small-jpg  



  3. #3

    Default Re: Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build

    Part III:

    Some of the more observant people here might noticed that both the aluminium plates have stepper mounts cut out, why you ask? We'll that was definitely intentional, it certainly did not have anything to do with forgetting to zero out the diameter of the edge finder on the milling machine. A mistake I certainly didn't make more then once... cough...





    got the rails on.



    At this point I got the rail on and finally got to test some slide action! so cool I have some binding issues, at the moment is not super smooth and catches a little, this is basically a combination of things not being perfectly square and bearings being a little to tight, don't worry i'll fix it. One of this machines greatest design strengths is also its greatest weakness, in the sense that it is designed to be fabricated with hand tools. To counter the human error that will compound and creep in when working with hand tools there are multiple areas to adjust for slack. However each one of these adjustment points creates another plane that needs to be synced up 3 different axis. You get a compounding error with every plane and it just makes it very difficult to tram everything properly. Ok little rant over, I love this project the design is awesome! moving to some sweet close ups.





    I just wanted to add that I was very sceptical of the lags bolts, i had a plan to do through bolts if these didn't work, but they worked just fine. One more post and this will be all caught up.

    Last edited by SteppenRzr; 01-06-2019 at 11:34 PM.


  4. #4

    Default Re: Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build

    Part IV:

    The carriage fabrication and assembly was the most stressful part of this build so far. Putting those permanent pins in was really maxing out my anxiety. I just could not get the pieces to be level and square until I used two sets of gauge blocks to get things parallel and anther gauge block as a spacer against the vice. Once I figured out this little set up everything went together just fine and in the end it came out beautifully. I am curious to how other people got past this little hurdle so please let me know.

    Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-carriage1_small-jpg

    Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-carriage2_small-jpg

    In terms of botching parts the other one I messed up besides the X-Axis plate (part #31) was the Z motor mount (part #21). Did the same thing and forgot to reset the digital scales on the bridgeport for the diameter of the edge finder. Two super important holes were off by .1in booooo! I did have enough stock left to make another one so not a big deal I just like complaining.

    Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-full-carriage_small-jpg

    So now we are all caught up! I finished the metal fabrication the day of my last final so the timing worked out really well.

    Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-img_4254-jpg

    Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-img_4256-jpg

    Attached Thumbnails Attached Thumbnails Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-img_4254-jpg   Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-img_4256-jpg   Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-carriage1_small-jpg   Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-carriage2_small-jpg  

    Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-full-carriage_small-jpg   Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-img_4254-jpg  
    Last edited by SteppenRzr; 01-06-2019 at 10:48 PM.


  5. #5

    Default Re: Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build

    So now that I have caught everyone up I am looking for some good stepper motors, drivers, and breakout board to buy. I am however on a pretty tight budget at the moment. My goal is to have enough torque to comfortably mill aluminum with a high accuracy and repeatability. ahhhh the dream. If i can't get that quality off the bat I am ok with upgrading over time. I would also like to run mach3 with a breakout board that uses a usb or ethernet connection. The torque reason is why I am looking at Nema23 motors around the 570 oz/in size.


    I have done some research and I was wondering if anyone could tell the difference between these two kits:

    Price: $520ish

    https://www.probotix.com/CNC-CONTROL...tor-Driver-Kit

    Price: $373ish

    https://www.automationtechnologiesin...-3-axis-kit-1/

    They look pretty close to me but the price is very different. So why is there such a discrepancy? Has anyone dealt with these websites? Also I will have to contact them about getting a mach3 usb breakout board. Any comments or suggestions are welcome, please let me know!

    Last edited by SteppenRzr; 01-06-2019 at 10:20 PM.


  6. #6
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    Default Re: Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build

    I have always had great dealings with Automation Technologies. To have a similar kit from Probotics, you would have to spend $75 more to upgrade from their 24v power supply. I'd say the difference in pricing would be in vendor supply pricing and markups... and when the vendor purchased their stock compared with recent changes in tariffs imposed on products purchased from China.

    My vote would be to buy the kit from Automation Technologies, upgrade the kit to include the ESS, and be about $520 plus any shipping or tax.

    Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk



  7. #7
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    Default Re: Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build

    I forgot to mention... great build, keep up the great work.

    Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk



  8. #8

    Default Re: Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build

    Thanks for the solid advice JohnZ! I went with what you suggested, I had similar logic. I ordered the ESS too, its seems like a pretty solid solution to not having a parallel port on my computer. The fact that the ethernet adds an extra layer of isolation and the ESS has a microcontroller embedded are big pluses in my book as well. Everything should show up in the next few days!

    I have a question on the Z-axis ACME rod, I dyslexically ordered the acme four-start precision rod instead of the one-start. So this means my z-axis is going to be built for speed instead of accuracy. I was building this with accuracy and precision in mind and not speed. So my question is, should I reorder the one-start rod now or is the difference in the thread not as big a deal as i'm thinking? Another thought I had is to keep the 4-start and get both, and then I can kinda manually switch the rod and backlash nut if i need to gear up or down, is that feasible? Any advice is appreciated!



  9. #9
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    Default Re: Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build

    Even if that nut had two rotations per inch of travel, with 1/4 micro-stepping, you would have 0.00125" per micro-step, which would be quite reasonably within the expected accuracy of the rest of your build. I would go ahead and build your machine with what you have already purchased and once the build is complete, determine from actual use of the machine if you need to switch to a one or two start acme screw instead of what you have already purchased. The real goal is to have a completed machine that you actually use.



  10. #10
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    Default Re: Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build

    I had a 1-start on my z-axis at first because I also wanted accuracy. I had it set up for 20,000 steps per inch. All was great until I realized how much it slowed down my x and y axes. The z axis couldn’t travel fast, so when coordinating the 3 axes together, x and y were bogged down.

    I changed to a 4-start, also had to change thread pitch, so I’m actually 5x faster on the z axis now and speed is equal to x and y. They are all at 1000 steps per inch and that is good enough for me

    I say you should pick a faster z axis thread than the 1-start. It really is nice.

    Also, for motors, I picked up the G540 and NEMA 23 motors as a kit from cncrouterparts.com. It was plug and play, so that made life easy. Connectors were already made up. Never had a torque issue. I have enough torque to pull the bit through the material hard enough to break the bit before anything else breaks. I’ve got plenty experience with that



  11. #11

    Default Re: Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build

    Thanks for the info, every bit helps me out. I am staying with the 4-start for now and I will see how microstepping pans out.

    Small update. Before I installed the electronics I pulled everything apart and spent lots of time tramming. There is pretty much no binding at this point so I moved on to test wiring the motors. I had a bit of trouble getting them moving, turned out one of the jumpers on my break out board was in the wrong spot. Once I got the test wiring done I broke everything back down and have moved onto final install. I am currently working on where I want to permanently place all of the electronic components and cable management. Lots of wiring left to do.

    Has anyone used cable carriers successfully with the momus design? I am not sure they are necessary but they sure do look nice

    Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-img_4282-jpg
    look at all this loot!

    Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-img_4355-jpg

    The shafts on my stepper motors must have been a little longer than the ones used in the momus plans because I had to thicken my spacer to make everything fit. I printed a new .5in thick one from PLA and then inserted .5in aluminum spacers, it worked really well but I guess I will have to see if it holds up under machining.

    Attached Thumbnails Attached Thumbnails Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-img_4282-jpg   Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-img_4355-jpg   Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-img_4355-jpg  


  12. #12

    Default Re: Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build

    Quick update. I have finished most of the wiring and was able to successfully test all 3 axis. I still have to wire the emergency stop and the axis limit switches. Whenever I get that done I should be able to post a test video! Here are some pictures of the wiring setup.

    Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-img_4360-jpg

    I had to wire the main power supply on the far side of the machine and run the power wires along the back.

    Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-img_4365-jpg

    I was able to 3D print some cable management brackets so that was fun.

    Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-img_4381-jpg

    I tried to wire everything so nothing touched the heat sinks but it was a tight fit. I guess I will just have to wait and see how hot they get and figure out a different placement if the wires are in danger of getting melted.

    Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-img_4382-jpg

    I 3D printed these rectangular mounting brackets for the breakout board and the ESS that worked out really well. Hopefully my next post will be a 3 axis movement test!

    Attached Thumbnails Attached Thumbnails Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-img_4382-jpg   Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-img_4382-jpg   Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-img_4381-jpg   Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-img_4381-jpg  

    Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-img_4360-jpg   Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-img_4365-jpg  


  13. #13
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    Default Re: Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build

    Quote Originally Posted by SteppenRzr View Post
    Quick update. I have finished most of the wiring and was able to successfully test all 3 axis. I still have to wire the emergency stop and the axis limit switches. Whenever I get that done I should be able to post a test video! Here are some pictures of the wiring setup.

    Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-img_4360-jpg

    I had to wire the main power supply on the far side of the machine and run the power wires along the back.

    Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-img_4365-jpg

    I was able to 3D print some cable management brackets so that was fun.

    Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-img_4381-jpg

    I tried to wire everything so nothing touched the heat sinks but it was a tight fit. I guess I will just have to wait and see how hot they get and figure out a different placement if the wires are in danger of getting melted.

    Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-img_4382-jpg

    I 3D printed these rectangular mounting brackets for the breakout board and the ESS that worked out really well. Hopefully my next post will be a 3 axis movement test!
    Looks good. Can’t wait to see another one of these machines in action. Make sure to video all your first dozen CAM jobs because we’re sure to see some tool crashes! Lol. The learning curve is fun.



  14. #14

    Default Re: Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build

    I have certainly broke my fair share of endmills on my schools Haas cnc... fun is not how I would describe that feeling when you see that end mill snap off on your workpiece more like terrifying :0



  15. #15

    Default Re: Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build

    Has anyone put a lower limit switch on their momus z-axis? I have a nice spot for the z-axis upper switch, the switch that limits how high the stepper motor can raise the router, but I am having a hard time finding a good way to install the lower switch. I feel like a lower switch would be useful, right now there is nothing keeping the stepper motor from turning the z axis mount completely off the lead screw, except good code. I know I can do a soft limit in Mach3 but I was just wondering what other peoples solutions looked like.

    Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-img_4532-jpg

    Attached Thumbnails Attached Thumbnails Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-img_4532-jpg   Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build-img_4532-jpg  


  16. #16
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    Default Re: Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build

    I did not put one. The lower limit depends on your stock height and the tool length. Changes each time. Just do your due diligence and zero out your z axis as soon as you load a new bit or part into the machine.



  17. #17

    Default Re: Steppen's Momus v2.1 Build

    I am interested in if anyone has installed 2 physical limit switches for the momus Z axis. If so, I am very curious to where are they physically placed! If you did not install two switches, that's great! I know there a lot of different solutions to this problem.



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