BUILD LOG: El Beast - Initial design phase, comments and critique welcomed! [Archive] - Page 2

Zeeflyboy

12-01-2018, 12:30 PM

Sorry, qmarjov - I don't yet have numbers to share for cost. I will do a rough estimate nearer the end though.

As you guys may have noticed, not much has happened last month or two. What with christmas and work commitments I haven't had time to do anything substantial on the project... The extra work related stuff should abate mid february and that is when I expect to pick this project back up more in earnest, though I may continue to do little bits and bobs along the way.

The reason for this post is that I just got a cool new toy to play with and thought it was too cool not to share the results.

When I say "I", I actually bought this for the wife so she could start a little home business to allow her to turn her hobby into a little side income stream. Of course, I get to play with it so I'm just going to count it as one of my toys!

So what is this new toy? Why a 45w CO2 laser of course!

https://i.imgur.com/JhMWxdx.jpg

We've actually done quite a few little test projects over the last day or two (including some cool stuff like etching slate coasters) to test out the machine and get the wife acquainted with operating it. But today I thought I'd have a little play with the sort of thing I actually want to use it for:

I tweaked my Logo design and did a quick test in wood to see how it looks:

https://i.imgur.com/hGbaNFY.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/2jGIC4x.jpg

Decided it looked nice, so went hunting down some anodised aluminium to try etching.... only thing I had to hand were the thorlabs angle brackets. I popped it and and had a guess at some numbers, came out beautifully! I had to remove the honeycomb tray as the brackets are a little thick to sit on top of that, so that is why the bracket is sat on some chopping boards. This job took about 4 minutes to run through.

https://i.imgur.com/1ILvU91.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/pad1Icy.jpg

I'm pretty ecstatic with the result there.... definitely opens up some new possibilities in terms of finishing items I make once I've got the anodising rig setup and working.

Aaaaanyway, back to real life work! Sad times.

Nickhofen

12-01-2018, 01:05 PM

Nice logo and the laser you bought is a good move for someone who wants to start a home business!

Zeeflyboy

12-01-2018, 01:22 PM

Well we shall see how it works out, I'm not expecting to be able to retire any time soon but I'm hoping she can make enough money to pay off the expense of the machine/maintenance and generate a little income from something she enjoys doing. Obviously this stuff is becoming more and more accessible so there are a lot of options out there for people looking for bespoke laser created items but I do feel its the sort of low volume thing that fits a "cottage industry" type operation rather well. I think going around and getting some tie-ins with local wedding dress shops and flower shops etc would be a good way of generating some business in a crowded online market.

But more importantly, I get to play with a frikkin laser!

Desertboy

12-01-2018, 04:42 PM

Zeeflyboy

12-01-2018, 04:46 PM

20"x11.5" I believe, although in theory as long as the material isn't too thick (the slots are quite narrow) you can use the passthrough slots to feed a longer piece of material 20" wide through the machine though I haven't tried obviously.

I believe the plan eventually is for it to take care of the passthrough automagically using the cameras for alignment and continuation of the pattern but that isn't available yet in the beta software. I believe it can be achieved manually you just need some way of indexing and aligning.

Wal

12-01-2018, 05:42 PM

That's very cool..! Any links to the laser you bought? What are you doing for extraction? I ask because the ones I've used in the past have had pretty expensive filtration set-ups attached to 'em - and given the smoke they generated on some of the jobs they really needed them too...

Excellent work though, man and best of luck to your wife in her new creative endeavours..!

Wal.

Sent from my HTC One M9 using Tapatalk

JOGARA

12-01-2018, 06:57 PM

Would like to know what machine that is.

I have the K40 and the steps are quite visible when engraving anodized aluminum.

Zeeflyboy

12-01-2018, 07:11 PM

JOGARA

12-01-2018, 07:17 PM

Just loaded YouTube and the newest video was LinusTechTips showing off the Glowforge xD

Looks alright. And yes it is not cheap.
Interested in the filter. New workshop does not have extraction and I am not allowed to bore a 4" hole in the wall. Not even for the tumble dryer -_-

rcriss

12-01-2018, 09:46 PM

ZeeFlyBoy would you be willing to share the fusion 360 files ?
This thing is truly amazing in every aspect!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

rcriss

12-01-2018, 09:46 PM

If Not It's understandable.
Thanks

Zeeflyboy

15-01-2018, 11:26 PM

Haven't made any decisions on that yet, although I've been asked a few times.

I need to wait until I've got it all together to check for any design flaws or things that could just blatantly be done better before deciding about that... I've already had a few little re-designs and tweaks along the way which would have wasted people's time and materials had I already made the files available.

I do hope to be able to get back to this machine in about a month once this stuff at work is sorted out, so hopefully it'll only be a few months or so until it's all done.

Desertboy

16-01-2018, 09:20 AM

It’s a Glowforge Pro... finally arrived after buying one during the Kickstarter over 2 years ago. Thankfully that was at 50% the price that they are currently asking!

I have to say I thought that despite the marketing blurb of custom tubes etc it would be a mediocre laser but with an easy user interface for the non-technical missus to get to grips with, but first impressions are that it is actually a high quality bit of kit capable of some stunningly detailed results AND pretty easy to use.

Extraction wise, they have some fancy activated charcoal and hepa filter unit thingy but that is even more delayed than the laser itself and won’t be ready until the summer. It has pretty effective (and noisy) extraction fans and a hose connector on the back for drier hose. Currently that just gets shoved out the window to kill the squirrels.

Word of advice don't cut PVC, the wife will die and more importantly the fumes will also damage the machine ;)

When you drill, cut or melt it with a laser lol the chlorine is released into the air. Chlorine gas was used as a nerve agent before mustard gas in WW1 it didn't work very well because charcoal filters it effectively but without the gas mask it's pretty affective.

How do I know this I drilled out 100 or so PVC pipes in an enclosed space and learnt a valuable lesson that day as well as taking 10 years off my life lol. But laser cutting releases a lot lot more gas then drilling.

Zeeflyboy

16-01-2018, 12:05 PM

yeah, not just PVC but any chlorinated plastic can produce chlorine gas when lasered... Apparently plenty of things to be careful about cutting due to what's released.

Desertboy

16-01-2018, 12:46 PM

Hows the anodizing coming along?

rcriss

16-01-2018, 06:27 PM

Thanks Zeeflyboy for the response on the files. I will be watching till the end!!! I love the design. I would just scale it up to a (work area of 610mm x 915mm). And Specifically for aluminum/Brass cutting. I cannot believe the results you are getting with your current CNC.

Zeeflyboy

26-03-2018, 01:52 PM

So chaps, been a while...

Good news is the work stuff is all done with and I got the promotion so happy days - work on this project can soon resume!

While I've been away I've been thinking about designs though (hard to turn off the brain sometimes!) and I was keen to get my ideas for a better z-axis down on paper so to speak. Spent most of yesterday modelling and this is what came out... I'm actually thinking of scrapping my current design and going with this one instead right away as it is in my opinion much improved.

I would love to get some feedback, opinions etc while I'm still refining the design. It's pretty much mostly there, just a few details such as limit switches and grease points to sort out.

It reuses the ballscrew/nut and a few other components from the old design, but will require new rails/carriages.

Headline changes:

- 2:1 ratio belt drive (25mm HTD 5M) to isolate the Z-axis stepper from the hefty vibrations and also give it a better gearing advantage for the now pretty heavy Z-axis.

- Extended rails/front plate which now results in a permanently sealed/protected unit at all positions

- HGH25HA carriages (the size is more convenient) spaced much further apart in all directions for improved rigidity

- Rear mount HGR-T 25 rails for easier installation (increased size also will improve the rigidity of the Z-axis front plate when extended down).

- Ability to tram the entire axis while mounted with only the need to remove the bottom plate to do so.

- Marginally more compact with a reduction of 5mm in stick-out from the X-axis.

will share more details when it's completely finished, but as mentioned I'm keen for any input in the mean time.

https://i.imgur.com/KMJqQnp.png

https://i.imgur.com/iitjLJV.png

https://i.imgur.com/Ss0MUEp.png

https://i.imgur.com/s5hDScB.png

Nickhofen

26-03-2018, 02:00 PM

Congrats for the promotion.
The Z axis design looks gooood!!!

Zeeflyboy

16-04-2018, 02:13 PM

Cheers Nick!

So I fleshed out the design with all the details...

This is the pulley system. I added a manual knob on top as I do find it quite useful to sometimes be able to manually move up the Z-axis while setting up. I also added proper bearing support so the pulley system is properly supported.

https://i.imgur.com/phmh6FP.png

https://i.imgur.com/phmh6FP.png

Better view of the tensioner idler. I had thoughts of more complicated setups, but this is a simple design - simply an oversized centre bore that allows you to push the tensioner into the belt and then fasten down to clamp it in place.

https://i.imgur.com/pT6T5gZ.png

Moving on, here you can see the seals and the (to be 3d printed) magnet holder on the HD16 ball screw mount

https://i.imgur.com/rEjhuKR.png

https://i.imgur.com/QVAElmd.png

Got a little time to make a start on things too. So first up was modifying the large pulley... I decided to get rid of the ballscrew nut and just make the pulley into the retaining system.

First up I centred the pulley in the lathe and drilled a 10mm bore (the size of the ballscrew mounting shaft).

https://i.imgur.com/IbvWe2x.jpg

I then mounted it to a 10mm shaft with loctite to allow me to work on the other side where I needed to open the bore to 11mm to allow me to tap it to m12x1 to match the ballscrew.

https://i.imgur.com/QeClpls.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/cMneU16.jpg

Ideally of course the ballscrew shaft would extend all the way into the counter bearing, but I had already ordered my screws for the old design and I'm not re-ordering a c3 ballscrew! To solve that problem I made a small press-fit extension shaft:

https://i.imgur.com/TRIXmZo.jpg

end result:

https://i.imgur.com/u3MDlX8.jpg

Zeeflyboy

16-04-2018, 02:13 PM

I now just need to machine a slightly longer collar for the FK12 so that the pulley doesn't bind on the housing.

With that done, I moved on to the motor shaft extension.

First up, centred the smaller pulley (had to remove the top cap) and bored to 6mm.

https://i.imgur.com/AiPhUf8.jpg

For the shaft I centre drilled first as this is going to be quite long/thin so needs support at the far end from the live centre.

https://i.imgur.com/p2R3c5G.jpg

Turned down to 6mm

https://i.imgur.com/SIY7ZvE.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/19r8IRi.jpg

Flipped, re-centred and then did the work on the other end. It's critical that this is a really precise fit on the motor shaft and that it's concentric to the outside as any error will either cause the motor to bind or damage the bearings. To that end I used a 7.8mm drill followed by 8mm h7 reamer and then turned down the external diameter.

https://i.imgur.com/0AIyf2c.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/Y0FgW4C.jpg

I did all this work and then ended up turning down the external dimension a hair too far, so now it's a loose fit in the bearing. Frustrating doesn't quite cover it! Will have to put this on the re-do list once I get back from holiday.

While all this was going on, the 3d printer was at work on the seals.

https://i.imgur.com/3Pxa0FG.jpg

Who says 3d printers can't be accurate - this was spot on! (I did adjust by 0.8% for thermal expansion before printing)

https://i.imgur.com/ccQrPyz.jpg

The big bottom seal next (6hr print!)

https://i.imgur.com/SZXNxAm.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/TTj9Vcr.jpg

Very nice fit - smooth and doesn't stick at all along the rails, but close enough that it should keep the nasty stuff out.

That's all for now. Hope to re-do the shaft extension and get the idler done when I'm back next week.

routercnc

16-04-2018, 10:03 PM

Nice work there well done. Those seals are looking great. The ones you made for me work well and are just tight enough but not too tight. You might have seen in the last video I put out that the steppers have no problem moving the axis so a big thank you for that.

Missing a critical dimension is annoying. Sometimes I aim a few hundreds of a mm over size, check with the micrometer and use sand paper strips to get it to final size. Takes a while but quicker than starting again if you overshoot

I assume you didn't fancy slots for the stepper to tension the belt? Also do you have bearings in the top plate for the end of the pulley and the end of the stepper shaft? If so I would make one of them floating in a separate small plate which bolts to the main plate. This will allow both bearings to sit where their respective shafts dictate - otherwise the pockets have to be machined very accurately. Something to think about. Have a good break and don't think about CNC too much.

Zeeflyboy

22-04-2018, 07:35 PM

The ones you made for me work well and are just tight enough but not too tight. You might have seen in the last video I put out that the steppers have no problem moving the axis so a big thank you for that.

Glad to hear it - haven't caught up on your work for a while actually... need to go see what's happened while i've been gone!

Missing a critical dimension is annoying. Sometimes I aim a few hundreds of a mm over size, check with the micrometer and use sand paper strips to get it to final size. Takes a while but quicker than starting again if you overshoot

Thanks - that's what I did this time and it worked well.

I assume you didn't fancy slots for the stepper to tension the belt? Also do you have bearings in the top plate for the end of the pulley and the end of the stepper shaft? If so I would make one of them floating in a separate small plate which bolts to the main plate. This will allow both bearings to sit where their respective shafts dictate - otherwise the pockets have to be machined very accurately. Something to think about. Have a good break and don't think about CNC too much.

Cheers for the thoughts. I was originally going to go with slots, but it makes it difficult to use a seperate bearing setup for the stepper motor which I wanted to do for the sake of my motor bearings, and the tensioner has the benefit of engaging more teeth on the small pulley.

I will think about floating the bearing above the ball screw - that's a good suggestion thanks.

So I re-made the shaft extension (it worked this time, I won't bore you with pictures as the process was much the same) and also made the knurled knob that allows me to manually move the Z-axis up/down. My thoughts are this is also an easy place to install a brake if the Z-axis proves heavy enough to slide down on it's own.

So started off by turning the alu stock down to size

https://i.imgur.com/34TQKaC.jpg

Knurled and parting

https://i.imgur.com/m2FaBGY.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/k1TeCH4.jpg

Meanwhile, 3D printed a drill jig to make drilling the retaining grub screw hole easier.

https://i.imgur.com/ubCL7QA.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/j8sWBi4.jpg

Pressed into place

https://i.imgur.com/sfawxH2.jpg

To save damaging the collar (plus it's a pretty small thing to clamp) I then mounted a 6mm rod in the lathe and used that to mount the knob to do the top side operations:

https://i.imgur.com/xqYFovz.jpg

Final part:

https://i.imgur.com/XLlTfsx.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/5CIkbi6.jpg

This is the assembly:

https://i.imgur.com/cbbj2Gr.jpg

Nickhofen

22-04-2018, 07:57 PM

You are a bad guy!!! I have lathe envy now!

routercnc

22-04-2018, 10:17 PM

You are a bad guy!!! I have lathe envy now!

I waited a long time before I bought my lathe as I wasn't sure I'd make good use of it. Now I couldn't be without it! Along side a mill / router, and a pillar drill there isn't much you can't make.

Zeeflyboy - more great work there with a nice finish to the parts. One thing to bare in mind is adding thumb wheels or other discs adds to the rotational inertia and knocks a bit of performance off the stepper. Not a big deal on yours as the diameter is quite small and for most work the Z is not flying up and down. Just thought I'd mention it in case you were adding some to the X and Y.

Desertboy

22-04-2018, 10:52 PM

there isn't much you can't make.

I saw Pacififc Rim the other night and thought one of those 400 foot robots could come in handy for shopping and the like any chance of making me one of them?

Lee Roberts

23-04-2018, 07:06 PM

Here is an idea for your lathe to-do list's:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hq1-cRtu1ZM

A pen type die grinder or dremel like tool may be less involved for smaller stuff, chuck/collet size being the issue.

Zeeflyboy

25-04-2018, 10:59 PM

Oh that's pretty neat! I can add it to the long list of projects lol...

Enough of this manual lathe nonsense, today I fired up the CNC at last and made the top plate for the new Z-axis.

First fixture:

https://i.imgur.com/NVVbHTw.jpg

Roughing pass (6mm 3 flute roughing bit, 8mm depth of cut with 1mm axial engagement, 12,000rpm and 1,500mm/min

https://i.imgur.com/ifVAwEy.jpg

Finished top side (3 flute, full depth pass 16mm skimming 0.1mm off each pass with a repeat finish pass, 12,000rpm 1000mm/min and a chamfer pass):

https://i.imgur.com/Wb4Vv42.jpg

Then I drilled two holes for 6mm dowels to align with machine axis, and probed for zero:

https://i.imgur.com/ecRK6ND.jpg

Backside ops done:

https://i.imgur.com/LSAPzoq.jpg

Finished part with seals and bearing:

https://i.imgur.com/JEquvfQ.jpg

Zeeflyboy

26-04-2018, 06:34 PM

Guys, has anyone got any experience or knowledge of these spindles I stumbled across?

They are 80mm body and 220v/2.2kw/400hz so should be a straight drop in/drop out replacement (ideal as it makes it relatively easy to switch to 24,000rpm spindle if needed for composites etc). The difference is that they are 1,500-12,000rpm which would be a lot more suitable RPM range for milling plastics, foams, metals etc and opens up the potential to look at thread mills, reamers and makes drilling more viable.

Only downside is they are significantly more expensive than the 24,000rpm garden variety... which makes it less appealing to take a punt!

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/Low-Speed-2-2Kw-D80mm-AC220V-drilling-Metal-spindle-motor-1500rpm-12000rpm-water-Cooled-metal-milling/32532549219.html?spm=a2g0s.8937460.0.0.rut9B3

Desertboy

26-04-2018, 09:44 PM

Zeeflyboy

27-04-2018, 08:47 PM

Managed to sneak in a little play time after work today... made the bottom plate for the Z-axis

https://i.imgur.com/PkSNzxY.jpg

Top side done:

https://i.imgur.com/3qYbzjx.jpg

Rear side - just used 3 dowel pins to locate it this time

https://i.imgur.com/0pvUyI6.jpg

Finished part:

https://i.imgur.com/vo7SdsD.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/9NQic7f.jpg

Next up will be the back plate, hopefully have time to do that tomorrow after work.

I also re-designed the top bearing support plate as per the advice of routercnc to allow one of the bearings to float into place. For now I've just 3D printed the bearing float plate... Thought it was interesting as I'm using my favourite material for actual functional parts - a PETG Carbon fibre infused filament which is brilliant to work with. Very stiff and strong (as the actress said to the bishop!) and very dimensionally stable too. Finishes nicely with a little light sanding too.

https://i.imgur.com/BUB0kKS.png

https://i.imgur.com/O7JCSB8.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/VT98DTI.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/2pWWiGa.jpg

TadasM

28-04-2018, 08:02 AM

Ollie78

01-05-2018, 01:07 AM

Muzzer

01-05-2018, 11:56 AM

How did you create the belt in your assembly? Fusion doesn't (yet) have the rather neat belt / chain create / mate function that you can find in the likes of Solidworks, so the only way I could see to have done it would be to model the locus of the belt and extrude it. Then use bitmap to create the text for that finishing touch! Finessing the belt length so that it ended up as a standard length must have been a bit of a fiddle and is one area where the SW belt / chain function is a real bonus.

Nice work!

Zeeflyboy

02-05-2018, 10:58 AM

Wow. Just Wow.

This is next level stuff. I have just joined this forum and hope to build a machine myself. Your work is very inspiring.
I love the way it is coming together just like the renderings and the 3d printed gaskets are the icing on the cake.

Cant wait to see it in action.

Ollie

Thanks, good luck with your build!

How did you create the belt in your assembly? Fusion doesn't (yet) have the rather neat belt / chain create / mate function that you can find in the likes of Solidworks, so the only way I could see to have done it would be to model the locus of the belt and extrude it. Then use bitmap to create the text for that finishing touch! Finessing the belt length so that it ended up as a standard length must have been a bit of a fiddle and is one area where the SW belt / chain function is a real bonus.

Nice work!

I used a belt calculator to work out the distance between locus for a standard length belt and then did it as you suggest. A belt/chain wizard would be a welcome addition to fusion for sure - might be worth putting in feature request (if it hasn't already been submitted)... my experience has been that they are very active on implementing requests that get sufficient interest.

Desertboy

02-05-2018, 11:16 AM

Thanks, good luck with your build!

I used a belt calculator to work out the distance between locus for a standard length belt and then did it as you suggest. A belt/chain wizard would be a welcome addition to fusion for sure - might be worth putting in feature request (if it hasn't already been submitted)... my experience has been that they are very active on implementing requests that get sufficient interest.

Seems more like an api plugin to me for the store, there's some cool plugins but can't remember if I saw a belt one.

Muzzer

02-05-2018, 12:27 PM

I used a belt calculator to work out the distance between locus for a standard length belt and then did it as you suggest. A belt/chain wizard would be a welcome addition to fusion for sure - might be worth putting in feature request (if it hasn't already been submitted)... my experience has been that they are very active on implementing requests that get sufficient interest.

I submitted it 2 years ago but obviously they are focusing on the core functionality first. https://forums.autodesk.com/t5/fusion-360-ideastation/drive-components-belts-amp-pulleys-or-chains-amp-sprockets/idc-p/7755765#M30496

The way Solidworks does it is really powerful and cool. Hopefully when the Fusion team turn their thoughts to it, they will make a good job of it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=9&v=Xmyryo9kVlc

Zeeflyboy

02-05-2018, 10:00 PM

I added my vote and a new comment to do my bit ;)

Got the back plate for the Z-axis machined out today.

Most of the top side done, including second fixture work

https://i.imgur.com/8PQ8CRQ.jpg

Side clamps removed and attacking it with my big 10mm roughing bit (10mm Depth of cut, 1mm axial engagement, 9,600rpm, 2000mm/min)

https://i.imgur.com/XAMb2Ei.jpg

Top side machining done:

https://i.imgur.com/vlF0yKT.jpg

Again used dowels here to locate and align the work for the back side. 6mm roughing bit here hogging out the centre channel (7mm DoC, 1mm axial, 10,000rpm, 1500mm/min) followed by some tidying up and a final contour with a 3mm to get a tighter radius in the corners

https://i.imgur.com/UNqLgXV.jpg

Finished with some chamfers

https://i.imgur.com/2kjfer0.jpg

Still need to make a jig to drill the top and bottom to attach the end plates, but here's a quick semi-assembled pic:

https://i.imgur.com/6WwEW2n.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/GnwK2bv.jpg

routercnc

02-05-2018, 10:52 PM

Nice work there Zeeflyboy. Starting to take shape and I really like those heavy chamfers.

Snapper

04-05-2018, 01:28 PM

Zeeflyboy

04-05-2018, 03:15 PM

Got some bits and bobs done

First up - I printed a drill jig for the back plate. Just wanted to show how nice the print was after I left the filament in a food drier for 12hrs... makes the prints come out perfectly! This is printed in the CF filled filament which is perhaps a bit fo a waste but it's the most dimensionally stable and strongest stuff I have.

https://i.imgur.com/nyHaFZR.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/VKdf4WD.jpg

Anyhoo, also done on the 3D printer I made some sealing plugs for the front plate which allows access to the m8 bolts that fasten it to the X-axis. I need access to these as being a sealed unit there would be no way to adjust tram without first loosening these bolts... Printed in the same red semi flexible Cheetah filament as the main seals and with a fully functional m12x1.75 thread right off the printer!

https://i.imgur.com/8mDrRCC.jpg

I also made a few other parts on the printer, the drill jig for the part I'm about to show you and also the sliding bearing plate you will see in the next pics. This is the internal floating bearing for the Z-axis ball screw and due to a lack of space I had to custom make this to fit within the narrow confines of the Z-axis. It has the ability to adjust so that alignment with the ball screw is perfect.

https://i.imgur.com/cpEtSo6.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/1ryih6F.jpg

Drill jig (could have done this on the CNC as the part is small enough but saves fitting the vice and any zeroing errors running the part :) )... I also had some bushings lying around from previous parts so was just a case of printing the jig.

https://i.imgur.com/mrMAs39.jpg

Finished part and floating bearing plate

https://i.imgur.com/yJuZrdF.jpg

Perfect fit:

https://i.imgur.com/TrffCoQ.jpg

Nickhofen

04-05-2018, 04:26 PM

Beautiful!!!

Zeeflyboy

04-05-2018, 06:34 PM

I wouldn't hold your breath waiting for Autodesk to implement such a feature, there are some rather basic things people have been asking for for years (lathe back chamfer on part off, stick text engraving etc) that still haven't been done.

Great work by the way, love watching this machine come together.

Cheers.

I certainly won't be holding my breath!

Just one final update for today with an assembled shot of the v2 Z-axis so far. Coke can for scale as I find the HGR25H carriages and 25mm rails make it look smaller than it is in pics when you are used to seeing 20mm.

https://i.imgur.com/KVq8Xy5.jpg

Not quite sure what will be done next.... either the side plates or the top counter bearing plate depending on what I can find in my aluminium stock pile. I think I'll need to make an order for more plate to complete the front plate and tramming plate.

Zeeflyboy

19-05-2018, 12:05 AM

Little bit more progress made during the week.

So first up I made a little extended collar for the ballscrew bearing mount. This is just to allow the pulley base to clear the top of the bearing mount.

https://i.imgur.com/o9vxHGt.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/xQkVcGD.jpg

Next up I printed off a set of jigs for the sides of the Z-axis. I also made some bushings in silver steel and experimented with hardening (heated up till cherry red then quenched) to try and get some nice long lasting bushings that I can use for multiple projects... seems to have worked well.

https://i.imgur.com/mRG6k78.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/vFhxaHy.jpg

Sides all drilled, tapped, deburred and quickly tickled with some sand paper to remove any high points (with the side plates mounted these edges serve as the reference edge for the carriages).

https://i.imgur.com/0QofcOa.jpg

Unfortunately my 3d printer is too small to make the side seals in once piece so I split them into two instead.

https://i.imgur.com/V4N5pgL.jpg

Next up was machining out the side plates from 5mm plate

https://i.imgur.com/wxLnT2P.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/ZtD23Sn.jpg

Machining the seal retaining slot on the back side. Out of interest I noticed Fusion has a new option on adaptive clearing which is "machine both ways" so I tried that out on this slot... basically it just climb mills one way then conventional mills the way back with a slightly lower axial engagement. Works nicely and means you aren't wasting time with a travel move where you have a lot of back and forth like this slot.

https://i.imgur.com/0JYx24X.jpg

Finished parts:

https://i.imgur.com/47NztPQ.jpg

Zeeflyboy

19-05-2018, 12:06 AM

Seals are a beautiful press fit into their slots:

https://i.imgur.com/UdH6QBl.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/Hnng0ee.jpg

All seals done and fitted:

https://i.imgur.com/UyoPDFL.jpg

I think next up will be the top counter bearing plate, then I'll move on to the face plate and tramming plate.

routercnc

19-05-2018, 06:34 AM

Nice work there. That 3D printer is proving to be very handy.

Nickhofen

19-05-2018, 07:24 AM

Jewlery...I can't wait to see it finish!!!

driftspin

19-05-2018, 01:58 PM

Art!! , that is what it is.

So ... do you dare use it? First scratch is gonna hurt bad on something as beautiful as this.

Grtz Bert.

Verstuurd vanaf mijn SM-A320FL met Tapatalk

Wal

19-05-2018, 02:52 PM

So ... do you dare use it? First scratch is gonna hurt bad on something as beautiful as this.

That's why you ALWAYS use a hammer to put it together. Pre-empt the pain..!

Wal.

driftspin

19-05-2018, 07:35 PM

That's why you ALWAYS use a hammer to put it together. Pre-empt the pain..!

Wal.Hahaha best advice of the day ! :-)

Grtz. Bert

Verstuurd vanaf mijn SM-A320FL met Tapatalk

Zeeflyboy

19-05-2018, 10:47 PM

Hah thanks guys. Either going to anodise or powder coat, both should keep it looking nice through some gentle abuse!

Little micro update (been busy barbecuing today!)

3D printed a mount for the homing switch magnet and fitted. To set the activation range I just hooked the switch up to 24v and moved things around until the LED switched off at the right place.

https://i.imgur.com/qf3hZgV.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/ORAlUWr.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/VK3sCoM.jpg

Zeeflyboy

20-05-2018, 10:19 PM

More work done today... Didn't have any suitable materials for the counter bearing plate so got cracking with some of the other stuff!

First up, 6mm spacer for the ball nut mount to make it reach the front plate:

https://i.imgur.com/vl4u5cu.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/0vJaVUA.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/XjENf9X.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/Gm9aicd.jpg

And then on to a big piece (so big it takes up most of my poor little X6's bed!) - the front mount plate

Externally clamped and all the interior parts done

https://i.imgur.com/PStZXgJ.jpg

external clamps removed and finished part:

https://i.imgur.com/rFPximR.jpg

Fitted along with the previously printed plugs. Other large hole will be for ball nut grease port which I'm currently working out the finer details of.

https://i.imgur.com/EP2cjwe.jpg

Full up:

https://i.imgur.com/zoTq8UZ.jpg

Full down:

https://i.imgur.com/0nuvtCl.jpg

Zeeflyboy

24-05-2018, 03:20 PM

Decided to re-vist my original plans for a belt tensioning system.

I whipped up this design

https://i.imgur.com/ZXGArBm.png

And then set about making it. The idler I made from alu tubing which I turned down and bored out for the bearing pockets.

https://i.imgur.com/pdZFrZF.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/SUILdza.jpg

I also needed to make the upright piece which the whole assembly rolls around. Turned this from silver steel:

https://i.imgur.com/NrbJTbU.jpg

Final part that needed turning was the little rotating piece through which the threaded rod will go... Made a small jig to make sure I drilled it centrally, which could also then be flipped and guide the tap straight through.

https://i.imgur.com/vwUnAIL.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/nwabCHU.jpg

I decided to try 3D printing the main parts in the CF composite material I use for functional parts and I must admit I was amazed at just how strong it's come out. I upped the infill percentage and used extra perimeters to beef up the part even more and the result feels like it could survive being run over by a truck... my backup plan was to make the frame parts from alu plate but it won't be needed.

Even more surprising is that I modelled the M6 thread in the bearing tube mating part and it printed fully functional... didn't even need to run a tap through it. That's the smallest thread I've tried printing so far and I'm suitably impressed :)

Final bunch of parts:

https://i.imgur.com/gDYZxJ9.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/Ed7AndP.jpg

And test fitting

Untensioned:

https://i.imgur.com/qHPo4yF.jpg

Tensioned (can't fully tension for two reasons - screw thread isn't long enough, and the smaller pulley pulls in towards the bigger one without the top bearing counter plate.... but it gets the gist across):

https://i.imgur.com/0yhamwg.jpg

Pretty chuffed with that little bit of design I have to say... worked out nicely. Still need to make a knurled knob and order some m6 threaded rod to make the proper tensioner adjustment, and I also need to make the little collar that goes on the m5 standoff to help capture the rod end.

routercnc

24-05-2018, 08:10 PM

It is very OTT but you look like you are having fun so go for it!

How about 3D printing the adjuster knob - put an internal thread in it and secure with a lock/jam nut.

Zeeflyboy

24-05-2018, 08:32 PM

It is very OTT but you look like you are having fun so go for it!

How about 3D printing the adjuster knob - put an internal thread in it and secure with a lock/jam nut.

A lot of what I do in life could be described as OTT lol...

I've done 3D printed knobs before, in fact the 3D printer is rocking one. Not quite as pretty as a nice knurled alu one though.

Chaz

25-05-2018, 07:50 AM

A lot of what I do in life could be described as OTT lol...

I've done 3D printed knobs before, in fact the 3D printer is rocking one. Not quite as pretty as a nice knurled alu one though.

Very nice stuff, wish I had such a creative mind.

Snapper

25-05-2018, 11:05 AM

A lot of what I do in life could be described as OTT lol...

I've done 3D printed knobs before, in fact the 3D printer is rocking one. Not quite as pretty as a nice knurled alu one though.

Its a very nice knurl you pulled off on the last one, how many goes did that take to get right? :encouragement:

AVF

25-05-2018, 11:57 AM

This is all looking very nice and a really wonderful build!
Would you care to share the Fusion files of the Z-axis only perhaps...? :-)
Cheers - Ard

Nickhofen

25-05-2018, 03:18 PM

Zeeflyboy this Z axis is a masterpiece, what is the travel of it?

Zeeflyboy

25-05-2018, 03:31 PM

Cheers :)

It has a total travel of 178mm

AVF - not yet, but I may make files available later.

Zeeflyboy

25-05-2018, 03:33 PM

Its a very nice knurl you pulled off on the last one, how many goes did that take to get right? :encouragement:

Just the one attempt actually! I did use a knurl calculator to arrive at a suitable diameter for the knob, so that probably helped a little. I'd actually like a coarser Knurl, need to buy some 1mm wheels for my knurling device.

Zeeflyboy

29-05-2018, 04:51 PM

Sorted out the ball nut greasing arrangement... So obviously I didn't fancy stripping down the whole thing every time the ball screw needed a bit of grease. I came up with this solution:

Made a small hex piece with an M6 thread on the lathe

https://i.imgur.com/QxvP3V4.jpg

3D printed a plug with m20x1 thread (to match the hole in the face plate) in my new PA-CF nylon/carbon fibre material and added a 4mm hose barb.

https://i.imgur.com/uR31hY1.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/bYdYmjU.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/V3garys.jpg

Added a hose barb and 90 degree connector to the ball nut (locked in with hydraulic sealant to the position required) and a silicone hose to connect the two pieces. This picture gives an idea of how the arrangement works:

https://i.imgur.com/ng7OG1S.jpg

And done:

https://i.imgur.com/h0WkuIK.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/Tk8RAUG.jpg

Nr1madman

29-05-2018, 05:40 PM

Im envious!
Looks real nice

Skickat från min SM-G955F via Tapatalk

Zeeflyboy

30-05-2018, 10:49 PM

Had a productive day or two... apart from some minor things left to do, the Z-axis is now completed.

First up I made the top counter bearing plate. I had planned this to be 10mm but I only had 12mm and rather than skim it down I decided to just roll with the 12mm instead so tweaked the design.

https://i.imgur.com/XhCn6sf.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/vjtstI7.jpg

Flipped and rear chamfer

https://i.imgur.com/BHiT6YU.jpg

I also made another knurled knob on the lathe, this time for the tension adjust. Same process as last time so I won't show it again

https://i.imgur.com/QEwNXYr.jpg

While cutting the tramming plate I had a bit of a booboo - I was trying out a full 16mm depth of cut with 0.8mm axial engagement, which was actually working ok until it turns out the stock wasn't perfectly squared up to the bed and on the far side it started taking much more than 0.8mm... caught it just as it came to a stop all gummed up. Need to give it a bath in some Lye to de-gunk it.

https://i.imgur.com/J3p8eg0.jpg

Unfortunately this mishap resulted in some machining error which I didn't pick up on until afterwards as I thought I hit feed hold in time. Thankfully nothing too serious - the holes that mount the spindle are just about 0.3mm off from the rest in X - everything else is fine so I'm not going to re-do.

So with that tramming plate done, the Z-axis is now more or less complete. I just need to shorten and tidy up the ball screw extension piece, make a small collar for the tensioner and then at some point I need to apply a finish. I'm currently leaning towards sandblasting and then anodising for a nice matt anodised finish.

Anyway, here are some assembled shots... everything is nice and smooth to turn by hand with no binding. The tramming adjustment works especially nicely now that I extended the shoulder bolt around which it pivots and the shoulder bolt that goes through the eccentric nut into the plate behind.

https://i.imgur.com/NG6kjE5.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/utYZweA.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/uv5eBjU.jpg

And here is one for reference to the current machine. This thing is huge! Gonna need a bigger boat...

https://i.imgur.com/kkRYGl9.jpg

RobC

01-06-2018, 09:32 PM

Honestly your work astounds me, I always enjoy every night clicking through to see if you have updated any further work! I would love to purchase the part files or supply the material and pay you to make them if and when you may consider such!

Zeeflyboy

11-06-2018, 10:49 PM

Thanks Rob

Definitely want to make sure everything works well before doing anything on the plans/files front. Might turn out as a bag of excrement!

I've been busy re-working the X-Axis design to accommodate the larger Z-axis unit and to give me 420mm on travel in much the same footprint. If I had left it as is, I would have lost an unacceptable amount of travel due to the wider Z. To do this I moved the motor to the back plate and added a belt drive setup, which actually was another motivation for the re-design as it will make it much easier to accommodate an upgrade to servos further down the line if I decide I want to go that route. The old design is very much limited to nema 23 sized motors and it seems most servos come in at nema 24 as a minimum.

I will need to extend the Main frame in width the accommodate this new design, but that should be relatively straight forward and just a case of getting some wider extrusions and doing some adjustments to the front plates.

Still needs a little fleshing out but this is the current direction. Similar setup to the Z-axis really as that seems to have worked out nicely. For reference this is now using the extended HGH25HA carriages (I have the space now with the wider Z so why not) and longer HGR20 rails, both of which I already have in hand. Still using a 20mm tooling plate to mount the rails, which then attaches to a 200x40mm extrusion, in turn sandwiched by a 12mm rear plate.

https://i.imgur.com/QVG2WGv.png

https://i.imgur.com/llaY7QZ.png

I still have an issue here though in that these pieces are too big for my current machine, so either I try to be clever and do them each in two separate operations moving them along the bed and dowel pins to relocate, or I just outsource the two big plates which is all I need get up and running, then cut the last plates when the machine is moving. Decisions decisions.

In other news I've started accumulating equipment and doing more research on LCD anodising, which is most appealing to me given the apparent success of it in the DIY setting plus the relatively low concentration of sulphuric acid required. I want to do a proper job though so I'm going a bit beyond the typical DIY lead cathodes in a bucket with a car battery type deal, but that means more expense and complication so I'm trying to do my diligent research.

I ordered this PSU which is capable of constant current (hoping to use it for other stuff too so thought might as well get a decentish one) here (https://www.reichelt.de/Laboratory-Power-Supplies/HCS-3400-USB/3/index.html?ACTION=3&LA=2&ARTICLE=132415&GROUPID=4952&artnr=HCS+3400+USB&trstct=pol_14)

And I really wanted to achieve thorough agitation but without the splatter that enthusiastic aeration brings, so I also ordered two of these corrosion resistant magnetic drive pumps. here (https://www.aliexpress.com/item/2pcs-12V-Mirco-Self-priming-water-pump-Mini-diaphragm-pump-Low-noise-Corrosion-proof-50W-Flow/1135202832.html?spm=a2g0s.9042311.0.0.6d944c4dkifm ua)

I intend to use both, with the 4L/min flow each I should see around 8L per minute which will cycle the bath (currently looking at about 60L) in a little under 8 minutes. They are going to pull double duty too as I will be building a couple of heat exchangers for them to pump the solution through in order to try to have some control over the temperature of the bath.

Everyone seems to say about how having a serious amount of DI water is important for really thorough rinsing, so I also ordered a 6 stage Reverse osmosis system and will be adding a DI resin filter at the end to replace the re-mineralisation stage.

Other than that from Caswell I ordered some Grey NLN and Red Bordeaux dye, plus some aluminium degreaser, aluminium oxide and smut remover, and some nickel acetate sealer.

Still got some things left to buy when some spare cash rolls round before I can get cracking with the anodising, but excited to give it a go. Needless to say there will be a few test parts first before committing any important machined parts to the process.

Zeeflyboy

05-09-2018, 03:33 PM

Hi guys,

Sorry there hasn't been any progress recently - a general mix between work ramping up for the summer, enjoying the nice weather, with a dash of laziness and a sprinkle of lack of disposable income.

Anyway, thought I'd share what little I have managed to do - the pump and agitation setup for my anodising tub. As mentioned previously I wanted something a little more reliable than bubbles and something that would reduce fumes/slpashing/condensation.

So I scrapped the two pumps I originally ordered, as after disassembling them I found that they have metal springs for the diaphragm despite being labelled as suitable for corrosives. Shame. Ended up ordering a big proper mains powered chemical pump instead which is designed specifically for this sort of stuff.

First up since the pump isn't self priming and I want to be able to put a sealed lid on the container when not in use I needed to make some bulkheads for the "tank" (the tank is a polypropylene storage container). I managed to find some fibre re-inforced polypropylene filament for the 3D printer which is perfect for making water tight sulphuric acid proof fittings.... albeit a slight PITA to print with due to warping. This is the end result, and it accepts a large Viton O-ring which then seals the fitting against the tank wall. I then 3D printed the "nut" out of ABS since it's less of a pain in the arse than the polypropylene filament and isn't exposed to the bath.

https://i.imgur.com/azNAC2P.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/kVoZnie.jpg

With pump (attached by pure EPDM tubing)

https://i.imgur.com/BK7wQje.jpg

Leak tested for a few days and nothing to see. Happy times...

I had also read a paper on using eductors in anodising tubs which sounded interesting - for those that don't know they basically work on the principle of flow multiplication... a high speed jet is shot out the nozzle and induces a flow through the cone to improve mixing. I couldn't really find any decently designed ones that were small enough for my purposes so I designed some myself. Again 3D printed these from the Polypropylene with a G1/4 mounting thread. I also needed something to hold them at the right angles for a good spread and designed a block for them to screw into.

https://i.imgur.com/T11peaQ.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/QGm7EBJ.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/idD928Z.jpg

And then connected them up with 12mm PVC tubing which is a tight push fit.

https://i.imgur.com/z2cDny0.jpg

To test whether this work achieved anything at all I figured it would be interesting to put some food dye into the tub and see how effectively the liquid is being circulated and mixed. Pretty happy with the result! I like the second view in the video, looks cool and you can see the eductors doing their thing quite nicely.

https://youtu.be/XsndPOM06Fs

Got a bit more work to do on getting a nice setup for the cathodes and bus bar, but shouldn't be too long now until I can try some anodising.

Chaz

05-09-2018, 05:56 PM

Nice, Ive just got my old 3D printer going for some prototypes but its a bit long in the tooth and not worth upgrading. What printer are you using? Build volume?

Nickhofen

05-09-2018, 07:38 PM

Great work!

Zeeflyboy

05-09-2018, 10:43 PM

Thanks - hopefully the effort will be worth it and I can get some good consistent anodising results.

The 3D printer I use is my old trusty Makergear M2. I think they have an M3 out these days but it’s been an absolute workhorse over the last 6 or 7 years.... work area is 200x250x200mm

I’ve always meant to replace it with a bigger badder printer (ideally self designed) one day but just haven’t found an overwhelming need as it works great. I have changed over to a duet WiFi from the old Rambo board, and it rocks an e3d v6 and Titan for hotend/extruder and I like to use printbite as a build surface, but other than that it’s remarkably unmodified.

routercnc

06-09-2018, 07:02 PM

Nice work Zeeflyboy. That food dye test bodes well.
I’ve gone for eau naturelle finish but will be following with interest.

Zeeflyboy

17-09-2018, 08:31 PM

Got a few hours to play this afternoon at long last!

Whipped up a little design out of some scrap plywood to finish off the anodising tank and cathode/anode setup.

https://i.imgur.com/YB2jOF3.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/wtRUkWJ.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/gkdPcR3.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/hnGRkCR.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/X4e31gM.jpg

Off on holiday now, so that little bit of work didn't last long.

jarjar

01-10-2018, 07:07 PM

Awesome work and project Zeeflyboy!

Do you mind sharing some details about your Z axis? For example, what are its overall dimensions and what's the length of its rails and travel?

Still needs a little fleshing out but this is the current direction. Similar setup to the Z-axis really as that seems to have worked out nicely. For reference this is now using the extended HGH25HA carriages (I have the space now with the wider Z so why not) and longer HGR20 rails, both of which I already have in hand.

25 rails or HGH20HA carriages?

Zeeflyboy

05-10-2018, 08:03 PM

Sorry, mis-typed there. The gantry is using HGH20HA carriages and HGR20 rails.

Travel is 178mm and the other dimensions I will grab for you later when I get a chance.

Got some time to play today and try my first ever bit of anodising!

First up I got to try out my new toy on the lathe to thread some titanium rod.

https://i.imgur.com/u9OdUJF.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/PPmP9JV.jpg

Then I thought for a first test I'd try one of the knobs. Cleaned, degreased, De-oxide and desmut bath, then into the anodising tub preheated to 20 degrees c and using 6amps per square ft for 2 hours.

The part after degreasing:

https://i.imgur.com/s2Sn34e.jpg

The agitation system I'm happy with... as you can see from the pic the surface is rippling but no bubbles and splashing which is what I was trying to avoid with air agitation, but no bubbles building up on the part and good mixing.

https://i.imgur.com/XV1eidj.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/FBLjbSV.jpg

fresh out the anodising tub:

https://i.imgur.com/sCzDeVm.jpg

Dyed using caswell bordeaux red and sealed using boiling water with nickel acetate sealant:

https://i.imgur.com/40pSCsz.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/vSvyEaB.jpg

Finished part (well, I might laser etch the top for fun). Very happy especially considering this was the first run.

https://i.imgur.com/IHoVXuW.jpg

Zeeflyboy

05-10-2018, 10:37 PM

Just wanted to prove to myself it wasn't beginner's luck so quickly did up the second knob too... this is the other end of the rod that I cut to m4 thread. My plan is to have various threads cut on the ends of 6mm titanium rod and some 90 degree angled pieces to allow me to jig up various parts together to do batches of parts since it's quite a long process using the LCD method (2hrs just for the anodise bath, let alone the prep work!).

Anyway, second part came out well too:

https://i.imgur.com/Mk5dtGg.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/cWMjwoD.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/f99yWlw.jpg

Zeeflyboy

06-10-2018, 10:00 PM

So moment of truth - moved on to a larger part and the eco-cast tooling plate. Wasn't sure how well it would anodise given that I don't really know what the alloy is (I believe some sort of 5000 series?) so easiest way to find out... Try!

I thought I would offer up the tramming plate as a sacrificial lamb to the anodising gods and keep my fingers crossed (don't have time waste on test pieces!).

Happy to say it came out way better than I could have hoped. The pics don't really do the colour justice - it's a nice metallic looking deep red and it's got a light brushed effect from the scotch pads I used in the prep... perhaps when I can take some daylight pics it might look better.

Here it is getting some little fun details lasered on with the wife's laser

https://i.imgur.com/iClNqKj.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/evYLmDZ.jpg

Fitted (I'm one bolt short dammit!):

https://i.imgur.com/ZMlaotN.jpg

Chaz

07-10-2018, 12:20 AM

Superb workmanship.

Nickhofen

07-10-2018, 10:36 AM

Jaw fall!!!
Where did you purchase the anodizing kit from?

Zeeflyboy

07-10-2018, 01:07 PM

Didn't buy a kit - it's all home-brew I'm afraid... I can perhaps do a more detailed post on all the equipment/stages if there is interest?

Problem in the UK is that they have now made it pretty much impossible to buy or possess battery acid/sulphuric acid without a special license, so if anything happens to my anodising solution I'm a bit stuffed (thankfully I bought and mixed my bath before the ban). It would be legal to sell it in concentrations less than 15% which is still more than needed for the LCD process I'm using... but I haven't seen anyone doing that yet. I have seen some people having good success using Sodium Bisulphate (NaHSO4) which is readily available as a pool PH adjuster, but there is much less info out there. In theory it should be similar to sulphuric acid anodising (it's sulphuric acid + a sodium base) but I have no idea if there is any downside to eg the durability of the coating. It is something I may have to experiment with at some point to ensure I can keep anodising for a long time!

Nickhofen

07-10-2018, 02:57 PM

Didn't buy a kit - it's all home-brew I'm afraid... I can perhaps do a more detailed post on all the equipment/stages if there is interest?

I am interesting,lol!
If you have the patience and time of course!

Zeeflyboy

07-10-2018, 08:52 PM

Ok, I'll try and do a more detailed dive at some point.

So something something no time for test parts? lol.

I done gone goofed - anodised the bearing top plate today trying the other dye.... it was meant to come out a nice dark gunmetal grey but it is actually as black as the night. I left it in the dye bath 10 mins like with the red dye, which clearly was far too long.

Wife told me it looks good that way and I should just do the whole thing red/black. What do you guys think?

Brushed finish with purple scotch pads.

https://i.imgur.com/6pQsMCc.jpg

Bubble bubble

https://i.imgur.com/07ioekM.jpg

That ain't grey....

https://i.imgur.com/WgrLxBa.jpg

Fitted pics - what do you think? Just go for all black?

https://i.imgur.com/u34W2h6.jpg

JOGARA

08-10-2018, 01:32 AM

Black and red looks dope.

Nickhofen

08-10-2018, 08:23 AM

Looks good to me!
24897

Zeeflyboy

08-10-2018, 02:31 PM

Yeah it does look good and is growing on me. Saw it in the daylight today and it does look nice...

Next time I get a chance to play I will anodise a scrap piece to 0.6 mil and see how that looks, I suspect at 1mil the dye colour is just too strong and causing the blackness but the only way to be sure is to try!

Zeeflyboy

08-10-2018, 04:01 PM

Oh and speaking of daylight, I got a better picture that is more representative of how the red looks in person - you can sort of see the deep metallic sheen here... must say I love the colour.

https://i.imgur.com/pKLc4B1.jpg

Nickhofen

08-10-2018, 05:03 PM

Ferrari red! : )

AlexDoran

18-10-2018, 02:10 PM

Fantastic

Zeeflyboy

21-10-2018, 06:19 PM

Thought I would do one more experiment based on a suggestion from dharmic, I took 0.5L of my already-mixed-to-instructions dye and diluted it with a further 1.5L of DI water... so waaaay more dilute than specified. The part being anodised was my tensioner roller, I anodised as before with 6amps/sqft to a theoretical thickness of 1mil and then used the diluted dye at 60 degrees celsius followed by a nickel acetate seal.

Any guesses as to the colour?

BLAAAAAACK.

So as far as I can tell, with my particular setup/dye/pixie dust, grey is pretty much impossible for me to achieve.

https://i.imgur.com/awTJdlv.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/KVX1jie.jpg

routercnc

22-10-2018, 09:20 AM

Black it is then !

The contrasting text looks nice. When you machine each part is there a reference block or fixture so after anodising it can go back on the CNC in the right place to engrave the letters ?
What engraving tool are you using and to what depth ?
Great work by the way.

Zeeflyboy

22-10-2018, 09:30 AM

Cheers.

To etch the lettering I'm chucking it in the CO2 laser - because it's a Glowforge it's a bit of an unusual one for zeroing a part. You can drag stuff directly where you want it using the top down camera but that's not quite perfect yet, so I tend to burn some reference marks into a piece of card/paper and line the part up with that if I need accurate alignment.

routercnc

22-10-2018, 10:16 AM

I forgot you were that tooled up!

I wondered how you got such crisp edges and maybe the anodising was helping but laser makes sense now.

Don’t forget to make something on the new machine and not just more parts for it (!)

Zeeflyboy

23-10-2018, 11:55 PM

Technically its the wife's ;)

You are assuming I ever finish... seems along way away. Fun journey though!

I've been busy anodising some the Z-axis parts... all that's left to do are the big front plate and the side plates (for which I need to cook up a clever way of holding them in the tub).

Top and bottom plate:

https://i.imgur.com/nTmTdi6.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/AeqZz5R.jpg

Here's my Dye tub (30L) and immersion heater with thermostat

https://i.imgur.com/5gwDQVF.jpg

And my big steel hotpot that fits most stuff for sealing:

https://i.imgur.com/dJNzkKq.jpg

Largest part so far - the back plate. This one ran at 10 amps and is the first time I've actually observed the anodising bath increase in temp during a run. Only by a degree or so but noticeable.

https://i.imgur.com/glib76b.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/OEIY8De.jpg

Too big for my hot pot, so I found a steel ash container and sealed it with silicon to make it watertight.

https://i.imgur.com/sWnd2fl.jpg

Final parts after a quick light buff with some automotive polish that helps remove some the haze I'm getting on the surface after sealing with the nickel acetate:

https://i.imgur.com/WDP7kcn.jpg

Hope to get the last few bits done in the next few days and then I can assemble and see how it looks. Might do a touch more laser etching too because it's addictive....

AlexDoran

24-10-2018, 08:34 AM

Looking great as usual

Zeeflyboy

25-10-2018, 11:56 AM

Good to know - thanks for the info!

So I needed to make a little doo-hickey out of titanium to allow me to rack the side panels (note, titanium screws too!)

https://i.imgur.com/6TtuCpu.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/lk2Vh9V.jpg

Parts degreased and after a quick etch and Desmut:

https://i.imgur.com/2T84crR.jpg

Dyed and laser etched... I did two different etches here, the honeycomb was at a higher speed and lower power which has given it a nice grey effect that looks better in real life than on the camera. Was a bit worried after doing this that it was too bold and in your face, but having assembled it I really like the look as part of the overall assembly.

https://i.imgur.com/qw42GDp.jpg

That done, I put together the bulk of the Z-axis after the anodising. Only the big front plate left to do but I need to figure out how I'm going to seal it as the only suitably large vessel I have to boil it in is a 60L drum which will take a loooong time to get to the boil with a 1.5kw heater.

https://i.imgur.com/XH5rfzZ.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/NWdAxO0.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/iDiL4v2.jpg

Chaz

25-10-2018, 09:16 PM

Fcking amazing work as ever.

Magnus3

25-10-2018, 11:31 PM

Right, finally a proper bit of machining to show... I did a small re-design on the face plates as they still weren't quite going to fit on my machine and I wanted a slightly wider stance. In order to keep the structural part as a single piece, I made the main piece slightly shorter and then added removable "wings" for the extension.

I've left the wings uncoloured to make them easier to see:

http://i.imgur.com/mYZSdkr.png

Made the front main face plate today:

Started with a jig plate made from SRBP - nothing fancy, just a plate I could machine flat and put some screw threads into, and a slab of 20mm eco-cast plate.

http://i.imgur.com/Rcy7bqW.jpg

After interior roughing, contouring and drilling ops:

http://i.imgur.com/12zJDwl.jpg

I drilled though the m8 screw holes with a 6.8mm into the jig plate and tapped them to allow me to then fix the plate down through those, which then allowed me to the remove the clamps and run the exterior ops:

http://i.imgur.com/XxUgbWy.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/mE37ZFO.jpg

Top side finished:

http://i.imgur.com/zEyLVN2.jpg

Then flipped it over and re-fastened to run the rear chamfer:

http://i.imgur.com/MiXXvKH.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/I93tOvm.jpg

And done:

http://i.imgur.com/2U4EsnG.jpg
hello.. its a nice build you have don.. are maybe have any Cad printing on all the parts you did make.. if you have i wondering if you could chare it to me.

Magnus3

25-10-2018, 11:33 PM

hello.. its a nice build you have don.. are maybe have any Cad printing on all the parts you did make.. if you have i wondering if you could chare it to me.

Nickhofen

27-10-2018, 06:24 PM

Awesome !!!!!

Zeeflyboy

31-10-2018, 10:39 PM

Magnus - not yet I'm afraid.

Thanks guys.

Got a chance to do the front plate today, and I am happy to present to you the (almost!) completed Z-Axis. If I'm being picky, just need to cut down the shaft on the main pulley flush with the top of the bearing and install a small cover... oh and I'm one M8 bolt short on the tramming plate (chair)

Was considering some etching on the front plate, but decided against it as I think it would end up too busy.

Also weighed it out of interest, and it comes in at 20.3kg minus spindle mount and spindle.

EDIT - some pics in slightly better lighting (but it's still a verrrry gloomy day!).

https://i.imgur.com/mH4xdnd.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/eOWtppe.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/MlsNzB8.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/KCuNO9P.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/LQR1k6O.jpg

driftspin

02-11-2018, 08:06 PM

AndyGuid

03-11-2018, 03:51 AM

Absolutely Awesome!:applouse:

If that was mine I would almost be reluctant to use it and get it dirty!:playful:

Zeeflyboy

03-11-2018, 02:58 PM

Hah thanks, hopefully it's art that works well too!

Wasn't entirely happy with my designs for the gantry and yesterday I sat down and had a bit of a play around with some ideas. This is where I've got to so far, and I'm pretty happy with the concept... just some finer details to nail down like grease port access.

The basic idea - main plate that mounts to the 200x40mm extrusion has been bumped up to 25mm while the rear plate will now just be a cover so overall material amount is similar. Staying with the original direct drive but with the extra width of the newer gantry this can be accommodated inside the frame by a cutout in the gantry arm and a small cover. The extrusion will have a couple of channels milled in to give clearance for a 30mm polypropylene webbing belt which will move with the sliding plate.

Looks complicated, but actually is fairly straight forward... think it'll be fun to have a play with.

So the overall gantry section

https://i.imgur.com/p4hRYbj.png

Rear extrusion removed and one belt gone so you can see the roller/guide mechanism

https://i.imgur.com/82qjtcQ.png

Top sealing strip removed

https://i.imgur.com/t2pLBdB.png

Belt/clasp detail

https://i.imgur.com/xu9O9BP.png

jarjar

03-11-2018, 04:35 PM

Voicecoil

03-11-2018, 04:59 PM

+1 - you just beat me to it Jarjar as I was calculating!
I've just done the sums on a piece of 25 x 200 plate and it's something like 17x weaker torsionally than a piece of the 200x100x5 box I'm planning on using for mine: adding the bit of extrusion on the back will help depending on how comprehensively they're bolted together, but it's unlikely to achieve the same rigidity as a decent box section. OK 100mm deep might be a bit much, but there's a 200 x 80 x 6 that's nearly as stiff. And with a box you could maybe run the returns of the slot covering strips back down inside it - at least that's what I'm planning :smug:.

Zeeflyboy

03-11-2018, 05:03 PM

I like your idea for protecting the motion bits. I may steal it for my own build :)

The gantry looks rather thin to me... And thus torsionally weak. I would go with a Misumi GFS8-100200, at a minimum.

Interesting. Just to be clear the part of the gantry that is actually doing the work is 65 x 200 mm made up of a heavy 40mm extrusion and a 25mm tooling plate, not just the 25mm tooling plate on it's own. The span is 620mm... it also has 6mm plate top and bottom which will be screwed down to the extrusion and the tooling plate. Given the relatively short span I don't think it should have much flex?

I could possibly re-work the design to use a 200x100 extrusion, but I think it would almost certainly require me to order new 25mm plates for the side arms as I'd need to take it further back at the top to accommodate some of the width. It is possible though as I need to order new extrusion anyway so I will have a play and see what I can come up with.

Zeeflyboy

03-11-2018, 05:04 PM

there's a 200 x 80 x 6 that's nearly as stiff.

At misumi? I can't seem to find a 200x80 anywhere.

Voicecoil

03-11-2018, 05:20 PM

At misumi? I can't seem to find a 200x80 anywhere.

It's just a normal box section extrusion - these are my local stockists:

https://www.simmal.com/product/aluminium-rectangular-tube/

Voicecoil

03-11-2018, 05:22 PM

If you want to stick with profiles, Item do a 80x200 that's not bad as far as profiles go:

http://catalog.item-central.ca/en/product_info.php?info=p48335_Profile-8-200x80.html

Voicecoil

03-11-2018, 05:36 PM

Interesting. Just to be clear the part of the gantry that is actually doing the work is 65 x 200 mm made up of a heavy 40mm extrusion and a 25mm tooling plate, not just the 25mm tooling plate on it's own. The span is 620mm... it also has 6mm plate top and bottom which will be screwed down to the extrusion and the tooling plate. Given the relatively short span I don't think it should have much flex?

Yes, I got that, the extrusion will help, but I suspect it would need to be bolted to the plate at a lot of points to get it to work " as one": if they're not joined seriously rigidly, you won't get the full benefit of the extra thickness as they can slide over each other. If you want to stick with your current arrangement, I suspect that splitting your plate into 2 and having some in front and some behind the extrusion would also be of benefit.
OK your gantry isn't overly long, but if you're machining metal you need all the stiffness you can get. And as the rest of your machine is so beautifully made it would be a shame to compromise this surely?

jarjar

03-11-2018, 05:40 PM

Zeeflyboy

03-11-2018, 06:01 PM

problem is finding somewhere to buy it in UK.

Cheers guys, I'll have a think - 80mm would be easier to work into the design than 100mm but 100mm is easily available at misumi where I need to buy some profile anyway.

Zeeflyboy

03-11-2018, 08:13 PM

I believe I could make the 80mm work, although it would need new plate ordered for the side arms as the stock I have isn't big enough). Problem will be finding somewhere to buy it - have sent an enquiry to ITEM and to another place, will see what comes back. In the mean time I can continue to work on the design as it only really changes the side arms... will run both ideas and maybe look into simulations to get an idea of differences if I can wrap my head around it sufficiently well to simulate a fairly complex construction.

https://i.imgur.com/iWplkum.png

https://i.imgur.com/TTntTGZ.png

https://i.imgur.com/I3b70yT.png

Oh and just printed out a shield belt clasp to see how it would come out - seems to be good, can pull on both ends pretty hard and no give

https://i.imgur.com/u2nvtDD.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/3qG6JhJ.jpg

Voicecoil

03-11-2018, 08:42 PM

problem is finding somewhere to buy it in UK.

Talk to Pamela at MBS <[email protected].> they're the UK agents for Item stuff, seem to be able to get most stuff within a week or so. Not cheap, but then quality rarely is I guess, and they seem to be a good source of heavyweight profiles.

BTW, how does your tramming plate work please? is the back of it machined to a very gentle radius so you can tilt it?

Zeeflyboy

03-11-2018, 09:03 PM

Thanks - they are actually the other one I sent an enquiry to but from the look of their website was not sure they sell to plebs.

Tramming plate only trams in one axis (left/right as you look at the machine head on), the entire gantry will be able to be trammed fore/aft (the Z-axis can also be trammed left/right independent of the tramming plate) to make sure the axis of movements are correct. Plan for spindle is to tram fore/aft with shim stock then left/right using the tramming plate. The issue I always had tramming just with shim stock is that you would get one axis in, then the other would be out... this way should work well for me.

Zeeflyboy

05-11-2018, 03:33 PM

Talk to Pamela at MBS <[email protected].> they're the UK agents for Item stuff, seem to be able to get most stuff within a week or so. Not cheap, but then quality rarely is I guess, and they seem to be a good source of heavyweight profiles.

BTW, how does your tramming plate work please? is the back of it machined to a very gentle radius so you can tilt it?

MBS got back to me very quickly with a quote - not a cheap piece of extrusion, comes to around £200 with cut and delivery... in for a penny in for a pound though I guess!

Voicecoil

05-11-2018, 08:04 PM

MBS got back to me very quickly with a quote - not a cheap piece of extrusion, comes to around £200 with cut and delivery... in for a penny in for a pound though I guess!

That doesn't altogether suprise me :apologetic: - I got them to quote on a ~1.3m length of the 120x120 profile and that was the neck end of £200 + VAT. On the subject of the tramming plate, I assume the thing at the top LHS corner is an eccentric bolt of some kind?

Zeeflyboy

05-11-2018, 11:16 PM

Nevermind, it's done. Thought I'd go for it before I had time to think and change my mind!

Zeeflyboy

07-11-2018, 01:27 PM

Want to give a big thumbs up to machine building systems - extrusion arrived already and it was incredibly well packed (much better than the misumi ones were!) with a good wrapping of cardboard and wooden end blocks.

Quick pic comparing it to current machine, it's a beasty extrusion to be sure - thanks for prompting me to "upgrade", think it'll be worth it.

https://i.imgur.com/mnVqe3f.jpg

Voicecoil

07-11-2018, 04:43 PM

Ooooh, that is even more chunky than I thought it would be.

jarjar

08-11-2018, 08:55 AM

Looks good. Can't wait to see this beast making some chips.

Tom J

19-11-2018, 06:22 PM

This doesn't look like home made machine.
I am speechless, attention to details and general looks blowing my mind - hats off

Chaz

19-11-2018, 06:23 PM

This doesn't look like home made machine.
I am speechless, attention to details and general looks blowing my mind - hats off

I agree. Well done.

Tom J

21-11-2018, 12:48 PM

Even bearing with red seal - so nice
every colour with black will looks good - keep to colours

Zeeflyboy

26-11-2018, 02:48 PM

Hah thanks, very kind. Yes I did specifically go with the red seal bearings because OCD lol....

I tried out driving the Z-axis and while it works beautifully (there appears to be no lost motion and no backlash I can measure using my 0.01mm DTI), if I try to ramp up the acceleration higher I get a fault on the motor drive, which was surprising given it's unloaded but suggests that it's failing to follow the steps asked (closed loop drive).

I thought back to a comment about rotational mass and had another look at my pulleys, which were solid steel. The main one was seriously heavy.... so why not an experiment!

Bought some AT5 pulleys and belt, same ratio as before but this time the belt is steel reinforced and more importantly the pulleys are aluminium.

Of course we can't be dealing with stock... so modification time. I wanted to anodise the aluminium to increase wear resistance but of course that required me to remove the steel belt retainers. To make putting the belt on easier I decided to have the new ones be removable.

So first to the lathe for some slimming down of the necks

https://i.imgur.com/8B68n8Y.jpg

Next to the router for some drill holes and weight loss cut outs

https://i.imgur.com/2ZKom5e.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/FtlaXfG.jpg

Bubble bubble

https://i.imgur.com/t3aji3F.jpg

Cut out some belt retainers from some spare stock

https://i.imgur.com/XZhHDna.jpg

Fitted them to the pulley to apply a 60 degree chamfer and do some smoothing:

https://i.imgur.com/ajSKrZW.jpg

Anodised and laser etched

https://i.imgur.com/WwIK9yn.jpg

Comparison - Old steel 28T HTD pulley, unmodified 28T AT5 pulley, and the modified 28T AT5 pulley.

https://i.imgur.com/ITiLlt8.jpg

So moving to the alu pulley was a weight reduction of around 60%, then modifications to the alu pulley dropped that down by about 22% - not bad. Totally not worth the effort from stock pulley I'm sure but it's so preeeeettty...

Proof is in the pudding as they say, and acceleration is happily ramped up with no motor stall :)

Lesson learned - watch your rotational mass, especially if it's placed on a fairly large diameter like a pulley!

Zeeflyboy

26-11-2018, 03:28 PM

Also made a start on the X-axis, you may recall these belt guides... decided to get them done and out the way so I can do a proof of concept test before making a mess of expensive extrusions.

https://i.imgur.com/t2pLBdB.png

12mm plate secured down

https://i.imgur.com/poKrnBc.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/O3f1emS.jpg

Top side finished:

https://i.imgur.com/QjdZ4dg.jpg

Second operation:

https://i.imgur.com/7VPY427.jpg

Third:

https://i.imgur.com/N6QlR07.jpg

Racked up and getting a healthy dose of science

https://i.imgur.com/IZBVKnE.jpg

I cut some steel rod to length for the roller shafts and then needed to make the rollers themselves on the lathe... for this I've used some PTFE rod as it should remain maintenance free for a long time.

https://i.imgur.com/hnyDJCz.jpg

All finished and fitted, rods retained with a little loctite.

https://i.imgur.com/c3CGd7i.jpg

Zeeflyboy

07-01-2019, 12:11 PM

Hope everyone had a good break over Christmas!

I've been using my time not working on this project to continue mulling over my design for the X-axis, and I think I've decided to go a slightly different route on the protection belts.

One problem with my current design was that it prevented me from securing the 25mm rail plate to the extrusion as positively as I would like, given that the belt is running behind the Rail and covering an extrusion slot. It also means that to remove/clean/replace the belt would require disassembly of the X-Axis which isn't ideal.

So this is a result of a bit of playing around with ideas... The belt now runs through the extrusion itself, with access from the outside of the gantry arms. There will be cover plates to hide it all away and help keep out the dust, although I though some clear or perhaps tinted perspex would be quite cool too as you could see the belt mechanism at work.

Also got the Gantry tramming adjustment in there now which should allow to nicely fine-tune the alignment to the bed.

Sadly means I wasted my time with those last parts, but won't be the first or last time I'm sure!

https://i.imgur.com/MKzp9ZE.png

https://i.imgur.com/O5a20UY.png

https://i.imgur.com/TPf5vGe.png

I also took delivery of a big load of alu plate, including the bigger 25mm plates for the gantry arms so I've got all the plate I need to finish it now (assuming I don't mess up of course!).

I have a couple of things I want to do before continuing properly with this though. Firstly, I'm in the process of making a proper CNC enclosure at long last and I want to get that done before I do any large amount of milling. Secondly, I've been thinking how I can accurately make the parts that are too big to fit on my CNC and decided I can kill two birds with one stone.

I have wanted to build a router table for a while now to go with the table saw, and some recent furniture I've made has reinforced how much I could do with one... So I have designed a nice little router table lift unit using a 2.2kw spindle mostly around spare parts (rails, extrusion etc) I have lying around anyway so I can do it cheaply, and will use that to cut the larger pieces to size. The Tramming plate and spindle mount are identical to the Z-axis, so I can just borrow that one for now meaning not much machining is required to get up and running with it. The table itself will just be fairly simple - some melamine MDF with fence and rails etc.

https://i.imgur.com/HbY9KFp.png

The router table will allow me to accurately make most of the gantry parts that are too long to fit on my machine. As for the rail plate, that will require me to make the external dimensions on the router table and then my CNC can work the interior.

Good news is that the enclosure and router table shouldn't take me too long to make, and then work can properly resume on the X-axis.

Davek0974

07-01-2019, 12:19 PM

The belt idlers will be running on the toothed side of the belt? I guess they will be toothed idlers?

Tom J

07-01-2019, 01:37 PM

The belt idlers will be running on the toothed side of the belt? I guess they will be toothed idlers?

They not drive belt, they serve as protection to rails against chips/mist etc. Many of us use concertina folded covers.
Zeeflyboy has brought design to different level - read higher:)

Davek0974

07-01-2019, 01:43 PM

Nice, thanks for clarification ;)

Zeeflyboy

07-01-2019, 04:59 PM

As Tom says, these are just flat belts (polypropylene webbed belts to be precise) which are acting as shields... due to the compact nature required in my case, bellows etc would just have wasted work area which is why I'm trying to be a bit more creative with shielding/sealing.

Wal

07-01-2019, 08:26 PM

Heh. This thread continues to impress... Excellent.

Zeeflyboy

14-01-2019, 09:22 PM

Cheers!

So got a chance to make the new belt guides today.or simplicity I just 3D printed the bodies in my XT-CF20 - in this new design they don't take any real force as they are supported by the gantry arms so no need for anything stronger. Had some Acetal rod which I used this time for the rollers.

Making the rollers on the lathe

https://i.imgur.com/l30gomS.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/GLPNFDm.jpg

3mm axle rod, printed body, turned roller:

https://i.imgur.com/37Aqbod.jpg

Wash, rinse, repeat:

https://i.imgur.com/ZCiSWpy.jpg

routercnc

14-01-2019, 10:53 PM

Interesting design feature. Looking forward to seeing it in action.

jarjar

15-01-2019, 11:15 AM

Just a question:
Did you measure how flat the milled Misumi extrusions are?

charlieuk

16-01-2019, 10:11 AM

after a year or more of not being able to see the pictures on your thread for some reason I think due to something with our internet connection they have suddenly started working! The machine looks fantastic and a huge amount of progress since I saw those few bits sitting on your floor way back! would love to come take a look again sometime, the anodising setup looks like the icing on the cake!

zepiros

25-02-2019, 07:56 PM

Thats one of the most beautifull designs i have come across as it comes to a diy project.
waiting to see how the final asembly will look like and how its moves/cuts.

Lee Roberts

25-02-2019, 09:06 PM

I just 3D printed the bodies in my XT-CF20

Great work, what 3d printer are you using?

Lee Roberts

27-02-2019, 07:20 PM

Since my last post your roller idea/design has been playing on my mind, I really enjoyed seeing your innovation on this and what you had come up with, that has led me to thinking about it more and wanting to share my thoughts with you, obviously it's up to you if you implement something or not but here goes!

What about if you added a spring to the rollers, milled a slot along their length, then took some thin copper sheet and made some finals for the ends of the belt, so cut to size, fold over and crimp to the belt ends, this strip of copper could then be a sung sliding fit into the recess/slot you made on the rollers, so it would be spring loaded, under tension and want to roll itself back up.

Then you wouldn't need to run the belt through the gantry and would end up using less belt.

Think of a roller blind on a house window, without the draw cord of course.

Voicecoil

27-02-2019, 09:23 PM

Lee Roberts

27-02-2019, 10:28 PM

I thought about this one a while ago and it's kind of 6 of one and half-a-dozen of the other.... Sure a spring loaded roller assy. uses less belt, but it's likely to be a lot more bulky potentially in a spot where "a lot more bulky" may not be cool. You can buy ready made spring roller blind units made for machine guarding, but for narrow widths all the ones I've seen are a bit cumbersome, whereas running it back through the extrusion the bulk of the belt is all stored in what otherwise would be dead space.

On another subject Zeeflyboy. what kind of % power do you find is best for laser "engraving" stuff on your anodised bits please?

All good points, I get what your saying about potentially bulky...

Yea that reminds me, the other question/thought I had, your home anodising results are some of the best I have seen, it would be great to see your setup/procedure for doing this..

would be a great addition to the Metal Finishing Techniques (http://www.mycncuk.com/forums/273-Metal-Finishing-Techniques) sub forum.

Zeeflyboy

01-03-2019, 10:32 AM

Sorry for the lack if updates and replies, I've been busy doing other things recently but hoping to get back to it soon. I've managed to run an external air line to the Man cave and mostly finished building the big CNC enclosure, just need to re-wire up the CNC machine and get things rolling again.

Lee - to answer your earlier question I use a Makergear M1, with an e3d v6 hot end and an e3d titan extruder.

I must admit I hadn't considered doing the belts in the way you describe, so cheers for the idea. Having pondered it for a bit I think that would work better in a design that had a bulkier gantry arm for the roller to sit inside. Certainly would have been better than the v1 here where the belt running behind the front plate might have compromised it's attachment to the extrusion, but since switching to the thicker extrusion which allowed running through the dead space I think it's a relatively simple design with few drawbacks.

Voicecoil - that's a difficult question to answer, as the glowforge I got for the wife doesn't really work that way. It is a 45W CO2 laser, but the power scale runs from 0-100, and then full power. The full power one is easy enough to figure out but the 0-100 is not a percentage value (obviously, since full power is not the same as 100), but a seemingly arbitrary scale. Equally speed is an arbitrary 0-1000 which does not directly correspond to any unit such as mm/min etc.

It's generally fairly forgiving though. Start on the lower end and if the engraving isn't sufficiently defined you can run over it again without moving the part... I have found different colours (ie the red and the black) respond slightly differently due to the propensity to absorb/reflect the IR laser's power.

If you do it too many times/too much power you completely burn through to clear aluminium which for me had a slightly gold tint. I actually took advantage of this on the side plates to create some differentiation between grey/white/metal.

DaMaDo

19-03-2019, 06:53 PM

Gorgeous build!

Are the Nema23 closed loop steppers you're using 2Nm or 3Nm?

Lee Roberts

01-11-2019, 08:03 PM

Anxiously waiting for an update on this build 😁

Shinya

15-01-2020, 05:15 PM

This build goes from debate thread to pure engineering art and visual satisfaction is just joy to watch. Hopefully you can share the complete design with us in the future, I say that your work on the design itself worth the money and I’ll be more than happy to pay for it :)
cheers

I_Wanna_CNC

10-05-2020, 12:04 AM

Where is Zeeflyboy these days? HIs build seems to have come to an end.

Voyager

23-05-2020, 11:48 PM

Where is Zeeflyboy these days? HIs build seems to have come to an end.

i wish i knew, this build and the engineering detail have been a revelation and helped me out so much.

i hope Zee is doing ok and am a bit concerned due to the lack of updates, come back dude we miss you.

RobC

01-06-2020, 11:17 AM

Hello all, I reached out to ZeeFly on another site to check if he was still ok and well of which he is. He hasn't stopped the build but has had to take time away but did say he hopes to continue with it soon!

Zeeflyboy

01-06-2020, 11:27 AM

Very sorry guys!

I am in fact still alive... I've been busy with family life as my son is currently of the age where my attention is constantly desired. I can usually set foot in the man cave for only a few minutes before the little man comes along and asks what I'm doing! I also had some other higher priority projects and house DIY that have demanded the CNC went on the back burner.

I am however hoping to get back to it to some extent this summer, I have the finished Z-axis out on show staring me in the face every time I go in the man cave so it reminds me that I need to get started again so that I can put the bugger to work!

The fly in the ointment now is that I'm currently furloughed (and the company is facing large scale redundancies that I don't know whether I'll be impacted by or not)... so ironically now I have somewhat more time due to a big financial hit over the least couple of months and the prospect of further hits I don't have the ability to spend as recklessly as before on non-essentials until I know with a little more certainty what the future holds. The good news is that I certainly have most of what I need to continue to make progress without spending too much, just need a really good chunk of time free of distraction to organise everything, re-align the CNC after the enclosure build and get a plan together.

Actually I don't think I posted anything about the enclosure... I'll pop a pic up once I've had a chance to clear the mess from the few little projects the CNC has been working on.

routercnc

01-06-2020, 06:04 PM

Good to have you back !

I hear what you are saying about family, finance and furlough. Some things just take priority- what you must do over what you would like to do.

By the way your 3D printed rail guides on my Z axis are still holding up despite being right next to the cutter and being covered in WD40 and chips!

Would welcome updates on your progress when ready . . .

routercnc

14-01-2021, 07:43 PM

Sounds like something a bot would say but if not please start a new thread and elaborate.

Voicecoil

14-01-2021, 09:42 PM

Looking at the link I would guess it should be in the Manufacturer's News section???

Lee Roberts

21-01-2021, 04:24 PM

Sorry about that guys I must have hit the wrong button when moderating on mobile :-/, now removed.

FailFast97

23-05-2021, 06:39 PM

Really enjoying reading through your build and getting inspiration for my next design. Any chance you have sourcing suggestions for the MBA12-C motor mounts and the flange style bearing supports? I'm having trouble sifting through the endless number of aliexpress suppliers for one that looks reasonable.

Zeeflyboy

23-05-2021, 08:27 PM

I have no association with them so can only speak from my limited personal experience, but have used TOPPER(HZ) for all these parts, plus some further parts for another project and have no complaints around quality. From a customer service standpoint they also sorted a problem with the original order with no argument (they specced couplings that didn’t fit within the MBA-12C). Rather than trying to find all the various parts you can just email them with your needs and they’ll quote you and create a custom single order.

One advantage is they are actually seemingly making parts like the screws on demand so custom machining requirements are easily accommodated.

I have actually just put in another order with them for some ball screws for a motion sim I’m building, so fingers crossed they are still up to snuff!

TOPPER(HZ) LINEAR MOTION COMPANY Store
https://a.aliexpress.com/_vkkx8z

jasing

21-07-2021, 01:58 AM

Zeeflyboy, it is an art work! Where do you download the ballscrew and slide 3d model？I would like to design my own one.

MorallyBankrupt

26-12-2021, 08:18 AM

I’m sure you get asked this all the time but do you have a detailed parts list and build sheet so someone can duplicate your machine or make one similar, to fit their table?

Lee Roberts

07-01-2022, 08:03 PM

I’m sure you get asked this all the time but do you have a detailed parts list and build sheet so someone can duplicate your machine or make one similar, to fit their table?

I don't think he dose, Zeefly hasn't been active here for a few months now....shame as there isn't even a pic of his finished machine with the bed on etc...

According to his YouTube channel non of these videos are listed publicly and he's moved onto building a motion rig simulation thingy you sit in with movement and fedback etc, shame really as he's made the parts himself and hasn't lost the ability for creating parts that look great so would fit in on here to...

Can find the build log for that on the PC Forums...

Zeeflyboy...come in flyboy...

Zeeflyboy

07-11-2022, 08:02 PM

Zeeflyboy...come in flyboy...

Hello 🥸

Lee Roberts

07-11-2022, 08:25 PM

hello ��

woop woop he's alive !!!!

Zeeflyboy

07-11-2022, 10:45 PM

Still ticking, for now at least!

The reason why there are no pics of the completed build are because the whole thing got shelved - not real reason other than lack of time with the young'uns, and to be honest mercurial interests taking me temporarily elsewhere!

I haven't been completely idle, as mentioned by Lee I built a full motion rig for VR during the last year or so (along with my own design of pedals, wheel etc), and also built a new mahoosive 3D printer (a 400x400x400mm V-core 3) which is frankly an awesome bit of kit which can print about 4x faster than my old printer and with better quality while it does it. I have some plans to mod that printer further too, but that can wait somewhat for now.

Anyhoo, reason for posting is that I have finally dragged the beast back out of hiding in the depths of the man cave and been quietly doing some work on it as time permits (something that has been in sadly short supply recently as work has been busy!).

So I had reached a small impasse where due to changes I needed to stretch the old design width wise, but didn't want to completely waste all the work I had already done, plus the increased width just added new challenges with the size limitations of my current machine. I had a think about what I needed to do to repurpose the existing parts and came up with a plan to get things built up and working to a point that I can use the new machine to make the final replacement parts.

So... here's the first bit of progress in a long time:

First things first, I needed to extend the front and back faceplates. To do this I chucked them back in the CNC, turned them into separate pieces, and 3d printed a spacer block... again this entire piece will eventually be replaced with a single solid part once the beast is up and running.

https://i.imgur.com/UFY738j.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/qK6WoOq.jpg

Next up I need to extend the internal cross extrusions, and I again turned to the 3D printer using one of my favourite new materials which is CF reinforced ASA - incredibly stiff and strong, high temperature and UV resistant and machines quite well! I printed the blocks slightly over sized and then finished them off in the CNC to keep tolerances as tight as possible. This will also be a candidate part for being re-made in aluminium once the full machine is up and running.

https://i.imgur.com/s5eybqX.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/6KDSAHl.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/Jcx2QEl.jpg

And then I created some threaded rod inserts on the lathe, press fit and further secured with sleeve lock.

And with that, the bottom section is almost completed:

https://i.imgur.com/Ad3b2S1.jpg

The only thing left to do before moving on is remake the side mount plates in 20mm plate (previously 16mm) and make a cross brace for the ballscrew mounts. I have Just finished one of the new side plates today and hopefully get the second one done this week.

https://i.imgur.com/eUGPe8k.jpg

Bonus videos:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=InN85zrd-G0

As an aside, I've been using thread mills to tap the parts during the milling operation and it's been a bit of a revelation! So much better than using a tap like some sort of troglodyte!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9YHz_rgMx4Q

In other news, it's also all being slightly tweaked to accommodate 60mm 400w AC servos (fairly easy just by changing to MBA-12D mounts and tweaking some clearances).