Yet another Chinese 3020 CNC upgrade thread!

[Pointy]

Hi All,

I have a cheapo 3020 router which I bought for making PCB's. It has performed really well other than the z axis coupling coming undone 3 times, and one dodgey connection. I have already made a few mods to the machine, including making and addon PCB for the control box which adds...

Limit switches with LED indication.
Home switches with LED indication.
Probe with LED indication.
EStop LED indicator.
Spindle control with 5 seconds warning buzzer.

The control box itself has 3 x Tonsen drivers and a Tonsen BOB and I am not sure if these are any better than the normal Yoocnc ones. So far I have not had any problems with the control box, but wondered if it was worth upgrading while I was doing the planned enclosure.

Here is a pic of what I had in mind...



I have already made something similar out of MDF, but it obviously makes it dark inside. The plan is to use some 20mm x 20mm aluminum extrusions to make the frame. Then I would like to use clear perspex for the top half and aluminum panels for the bottom. In the bottom part I would like to house the electronics, new or old, and add a joystick and or buttons to control the axis. The rough dimensions would be 450mm wide, 550mm deep and 500mm high. The bottom part would be around 100mm in height which is comparable to my current control box, should I wish to just simply move everything.

So I am looking for any advise on making the enclosure (I planned to get the parts from Valuframe and have been quoted £160ish for just the frame and fittings), still need to source some perspex and aluminum sheet, which I could probably get locally. Anyone used Valuframe with the no drill connectors? Any better or cheaper alternatives?

I am obviously look for some advise for the electronics as well, I have seen other people use 542H stepper drivers are these the best idea? I don't want to spend a fortune if I don't have to and also don't want to upgrade if I don't have to. As it's working ok should I keep it as it is?

Any thoughts or suggestions welcome.

Regards,

Les