Evening All

[Chimestrike]

Thanks Guys,

I'll have a look at Kingcreaky's build as suggested and see if it's something I could do or come close to. In respect of the numbers for the OXcnc I didn't even think of this as to be honest assumed as they seemed reputable and the machine they cloned seemed to have good reviews so maybe a little too much blind faith??

Also I think I could be a little green behind the ears with known problems (mainly them not being known by me)...

I do however have a mig welder and while out of practice I can weld to a level above 'pigeon shit' so should ok.

But any advice or direction you guy can offer would be greatly appreciated as we all know there is no replacement for experience :)

[njhussey]

I do however have a mig welder and while out of practice I can weld to a level above 'pigeon shit' so should ok.

But any advice or direction you guy can offer would be greatly appreciated as we all know there is no replacement for experience :)

If you can weld just above "pigeon shit" then you're at the same level as me!!!

Advice is to go look at some of the builds here, knock up something in whatever CAD program you use (or learn to use, sketchup is what I started with) start a build thread and don't be afraid to ask questions. Don't buy anything (especially electrical items) before asking as although lots of the cheap "kits" of electronics seem like a good idea they're usually compromised in some way to get down to the price.

Whilst you'll be steered generally towards using linear profiled rails, high end controllers etc. by the good people on here you can do a decent hobbyist build for machining wood panels with supported round rails and cheaper BOB's etc.

[Chimestrike]

I've been having a look through the builds people have done and I'm starting to think I may be out of my depth a little with designing my own machine aspect as most of the builds I've seen look very professional and not in a league of something I think I could do (although could be wrong )

[JAZZCNC]

I've been having a look through the builds people have done and I'm starting to think I may be out of my depth a little with designing my own machine aspect as most of the builds I've seen look very professional and not in a league of something I think I could do (although could be wrong )

Don't be intimidated because it's not so difficult if your prepared to listen and do some prep/research.

Your needs are not exactly challenging so the level of accuracy doesn't need to be massively high and like Neil says you can get away with lower grade components to some degree.
Don't be put off when you see people talking about Epoxy leveling etc. For Wood router going to this level isn't required. With carefull attention when building and with design that allows for adjustabilty then it's very possible to build machine without doing any of this and still give more than enough accuracy for routing wood and plastics.

What is more important is repeatablity and Stiffness. Repeatabilty mostly comes from Component quality so going too cheap will cause issues. Stiffness is soley down to design and materials used.

This is the Issue with those Kits. The design is weak and the Component level poor, ie V bearings running Soft aluminium = Wear and Slop = Bag of shite.!!

Nice stiff steel frame and Gantry running on Supported Round rail using Ballscrews not Timing belts will Knock those kits into Next month.

Steel is cheap and if you can weld then the design part is easy.? There's only so many ways to build these machines and there's no need to re-invent the wheel so just copy some buggers else design. That's what most on here have done.!!

Size will detemine the design to small degree but if your not wanting massive cutting area then design can be very simple and easy to weld up.
I'll gladly help you with design of machine and steer in right direction on the Key areas.

Electricly then again you'll see people going to great lengths building Control boxes. Again you don't need to go to this level at first. There is a minimum level that's required but it's not rocket science and again we can advise on this.
What is VERY important is the quality of the Electrics used. It's here were most machines are let down or fail. Again we can advise and with careful buying you can have quality electronics with reliable and safe control box for not lot money.

If you can weld and have little patience along with eye for details then you'll easily build machine that will do everything you require. Key is not rushing and Not buying anything without fully understanding what your buying and why it's right for your needs..! . . . If unsure the ASK.!!

I've helped many many people to build machines and If your prepared to Ask questions and LISTEN to what advised then I guarantee you will succeed and have great machine for same money as those kits.

[Chimestrike]

If you are willing to guide me then I will be more than happy to listen to your advice on this as I want to do it right and as I mentioned earlier I've wanted a decent sized machine for years and if this means I have to wait a little longer it wont hurt as I've taken 6-8 years in total to get where I am and you made a good point that I would just just throw good money after bad with a off the shelf job.

I think my main concern though is not knowing where to source parts and in some instances the right name to search for for parts.

Also after thinking my other issue was making the plates to hold say the gantry, but then I remember this is a forum full of people who could cnc it for me for a price lol, and thinking of repairs would it be worth my wild to be able to mill aluminum too?

But yes if you are willing to help me I would be greatly thankful of this.

So the question is what would you need from me to start?

[JAZZCNC]

Ok Good you know it make Sense Rodney. . . Lol

Start by giving sensible cutting area and maximum material thickness you'll cut. Just realise that the larger you go the harder and more expensive it gets.

Wouldn't advise going larger than Quarter sheet for First build on budget. Even then I'd only go with this size if really needed and would be limited to soft materials only. Ie No cutting aluminium.
This is mostly because with low budget you'll want to keep the machine restricted to using Single ballscrew on the long axis. Going wider than this or wanting to cut harder materails will require 2 ballscrews. This means other than the extra Ballscrew and bearings you'll need Extra motor, drive, coupler and larger power requirements. These bump the price quickly.

If you go with smaller cutting envalope of say 900 x 600 or 600 x 400 then you'll build much stronger machine that is very capable Cutting aluminium.

[Clive S]

So the question is what would you need from me to start?

Enthusiasm And you seem to have plenty of that. Welcome aboard and remember most of us started just with just a dream. You have found one of the very experienced guys on here so that's a good start. Good luck with the build.

[njhussey]

.....most of us started just with just a dream.

Look at what I came up with as my first attempt at a CNC machine.....I was definately dreaming then :)