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Hi Everyone,
New to the blog. Looking to machine out of styrofoam a kitesurf board dimensions 136cms x 45cms x 5cms. Have designed the board on BoardCAD (cool software www.boardcad.org).
If you are interested in participating in the project and have a CNC machine that has xyz axis, please join me if you think is a fun project. Obviously I will cover the cost of material.
Cheers,
Martin
My machine would just about be able to do something that size (I think its maximum length is about 1400mm - although it could be put at an angle). Width and height are no problem (machine is designed to do 1200x1200x100, but can do more than that).
Three problems I can think of:
1) It would require someone to look after the machine while it's being made - and their time isn't free. How long it would take depends on the accuracy you need. This can't be you (since it needs someone who built the machine to realise that it's gone wrong).
2) Is it flat at the top/bottom (2.5D), or do both sides need to be machined (3D)? Also, are there cuts that need to be made to the side (4/5D)? 3D would be a lot more work, as it would need to be carefully aligned. And I can't really do 4/5D work on the machine as it stands.
3) It's not finished - when would you want it?
Thank you Tribbles for you response.
1) Accuracy would be a router pass every 0.50 cm.
2) Both side would require 3D. Top is domed and bottom varies (concave to double concave to a "V" on the tail
3) Not in a rush. When do you think you will have finished your machine? How much do you think time would cost?
Many thanks,
Martin
Hi wavedinamic & welcome
There was a member on here building a foam-routing machine to do part car-body full-size models. I would have thought his cutting area was bigger than you would need and the foam is probably a similar density stuff. As I recall this was his second machine to do the job, bigger than the first; he worked for a firm that protoypes specialist car bodies.
Can't find it at the moment but I'm sure some time spent with the search tool will find the thread.
Irving: That was probably before my time - although some of the description does fit me :smile:
My machine is designed to make a car body, but in pieces using extruded polystyrene. It's also my second machine, but it is smaller than the first machine (which was too big, and as a result too unstable). I'm doing it with a kit car manufacturer.
Wavedinamic:
The time would depend on the complexity of the cut. 0.5mm is a finer cut than I've been aiming for (but perfectly achievable). A very rough estimate is 2.1 hours per side.
Assuming I can get to 10m/min per long run, and excluding side-to-side movement time, then it's 8.4 seconds for a 1.4m run; 450mm wide @ 0.5mm spacing would multiply this by 900, so 7560 seconds, or 2.1 hours. Then it'll need flipping, realignment and then the other side doing. I think the plan was for £10 per hour, so that'd be £42.
However, I won't know for sure until the machine is ready, which should be shortly in the New Year (just a bit of tidying up to do and painting it).
I'm a little concerned about flipping it and making sure it's aligned correctly though - especially for a reasonably complex shape. It might be easier to leave some bits uncut which it'll rest on, and then hand-finish them.
My apologies tribbles, it was you I was thinking about but I couldnt recall the user name and I got some facts wrong (it was from memory after all!)
That's okay - I was wondering if it was me, or someone else who had done exactly what I wanted to set out to do :smile: (Big case of "my ears are burning")
Seems that I got lucky and got Tribbles as my first response. Thank you both.
Tribbles, when will you have your new machine running? Cheers
Shortly in the New Year is the aim. It's just a bit of wiring, tidying up and painting that's left (and some calibration).
Hi waveD,
I like your project...
I built my router to make foils for sailing boats. I sail an international moth, sadly not a foiler but perhaps, perhaps, perhaps... I'm working up to it...
How will you finish the board? Will you vac bag carbon on? Moth foils are generally made from skins vac bagged into female moulds, then joined at the CL.
Anyway, nice project! :)
Tribbles, let's talk in the new year; and all the best in finishing the machine swiftly. Hopefully some day I will have my own.
Tom, seems that we have a similar interest for CNC applications. Definetly a lot of fun, addictive I would say. Yes I will vacuum bag it and may do veneer sandwich which looks great.
All the best, WD
Also interested in this as the main reason for making my mill the size it will be is so I can machine Longboards and kiteboards for land and kiteboards for the sea :) any base plans knocking around for any of the above? I have boardcad but my kiteboard still comes out looking like an old school surfboard :D
Unfortunately, the snow just before Christmas prevented me from doing any more work on the machine during my work holiday - as a result, I won't be doing a great deal more to it until I've got some more time to take off - which will be end of February/March time. I may go down to the machine (it's 60 miles away) for a couple of hours on the odd Saturday in the meantime.