Newbie looking at 6040 (China CNC) for polypropylene 15mm sheet

[Snapper]

No idea where to start creating a jig plate for these cases.

If it's specific for one part then your imagination is the limit. You just need a method to quickly and accurately place the part on the jig, some sort of reference to touch off, and a way to hold it. As a couple of examples, if you have holes or can find somewhere to put extra holes for dowels on what will be the bottom face that's a really easy and accurate way to do it. You could cut a pocket in the plate for the part to sit in. Could even just have a straight edge in each X and Y to butt the part up against. And just a way to hold it down, step clamps, bolts directly through any through holes etc.

The amount of time this could save you compared to flipping and touching off each part in the vice for every single op could be substantial, leaving you only needing to set up for each op once at the start of the day. So you'd use some sort of reference in your vice to line stock up with and cut so many parts from one side in the vice, then set up once on the jig plate and do all the flip side. If you see what I mean. Save your work offsets for your vice and jig work as G54 and G55 then when you start your machine the next day all you have to do is chuck up your edge finder/probe or whatever you use and make tiny adjustments to account for the error in the home switches at the start of the day.

For batch work on a machine like this with the tools you have I can't think of a better way to do it.

[JOGARA]

If it's specific for one part then your imagination is the limit. You just need a method to quickly and accurately place the part on the jig, some sort of reference to touch off, and a way to hold it. As a couple of examples, if you have holes or can find somewhere to put extra holes for dowels on what will be the bottom face that's a really easy and accurate way to do it. You could cut a pocket in the plate for the part to sit in. Could even just have a straight edge in each X and Y to butt the part up against. And just a way to hold it down, step clamps, bolts directly through any through holes etc.

The amount of time this could save you compared to flipping and touching off each part in the vice for every single op could be substantial, leaving you only needing to set up for each op once at the start of the day. So you'd use some sort of reference in your vice to line stock up with and cut so many parts from one side in the vice, then set up once on the jig plate and do all the flip side. If you see what I mean. Save your work offsets for your vice and jig work as G54 and G55 then when you start your machine the next day all you have to do is chuck up your edge finder/probe or whatever you use and make tiny adjustments to account for the error in the home switches at the start of the day.

For batch work on a machine like this with the tools you have I can't think of a better way to do it.

Or get a propper machine vice? :p


What I can't work out with my part is how to clamp it down with a jig.
The part I want to chamfer are the outer edges and then the button holes and bolt holes.
If I was to hold the part using any of these, I add time to my operation.

I am thinking just get a decent vice that is meant to CNC and make my soft jaws for it.
They work well as work holding though obviously, I do have a slight bend in the material due to the design.
Not helping myself atm holding the part lengthways instead of widthways.

[Snapper]

Yeah, you'd clamp from say the external and do all the internal chamfers then clamp from inside to do the external. Moving a couple of bolts and clamps is measured in seconds, compared to chucking up and adjusting your probe if you're finding need for it. And it reduces or entirely negates the chances of twisting your piece. You might also find that you're taking so much meat out of the part in the first op that the vice is distorting the work anyway once it's cut down so much.

Just a suggestion anyway and something to think about.

[magicniner]

What about a tooling plate and edge clamps?

https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=mi...w=1278&bih=660

[JOGARA]

The only way I can think of doing it is to get a bit of 15mm and have my part sit in it.
Then when the vice clamps down, the slight bend in the aluminum locks that part in place. I am talking a tiny tolerance that will not bend enough to cause problems, but enough to grip onto the part.

I'd model it up but my laptop has crapped out on me. Thanks, Windows.


Also, looking to add a solenoid valve to the machine to turn the air on and off.
Fed up with having to reach in and turn it on and off. That and I run the machine and leave it for a bit. If it errors our or finishes the op before Ig et back, would rather it switch off the air.
12v is what the X6-2200L uses on control board right?

[JOGARA]

Here is my idea.

Block with the case silhouette cut out of it. When the vice clamps down there should be a slight bend in the block resulting in it clamping the part.

[Zeeflyboy]

Still relying on your vice...

Make that piece (except minus those channels you added to allow it to flex inwards) out of something nice and sturdy - either alu or something like SRBP. Add a couple of threaded holes either side to allow clamps to hold it externally, and maybe two threaded holes internally underneath those cut outs. I would also add a zero reference hole (the probe works better determining zero from a hole probe than from an open edge probe), though I would ream it rather than just drill/mill it.

That then allows you to clamp internally with just a screw and spacer, run your external ops, then switch over to clamping externally with screws and a clamp piece to run your internal ops. Only takes a minute to undo two screws and screw in the other set for switching from internal to external.

depending on what you are doing operations wise, you can also consider the external clamping from both the ends and the sides to allow you to run different operations with external clamping but it doesn't sound like you'll need to.