3020T Capabilities

[TT901]

Thanks for the reply Zeeflyboy.

Some great info, which is much appreciated and also lots to think about there.

I have been considering a DIY machine but the main issue I have there is that I don't have access machinery to produce the parts. A bit of a chicken-and-egg situation. However I do use Solidworks at work so designing parts isn't an issue. Are there any worthwhile, relatively simple DIY builds that you are aware of?

[Zeeflyboy]

There's always the option to throw out an RFQ for bits you need machined for you on here. I haven't personally used it yet so no idea what the sort of cost people charge is but I would guess you would get some pretty reasonable quotes.

There are no shortage of DIY builds out there, you could browse the diy machines on here for inspiration - there are some amazing machines guys have built on relatively modest budgets.

If you do decide to go the DIY route then a bit of research on here will give you enough info to get started. Get a design whipped up and then ask for critique on here.

[Clive S]

but the main issue I have there is that I don't have access machinery to produce the parts. A bit of a chicken-and-egg situation.

How about taking a leaf out of Joe's build and you will see what can be done:-


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pZo2...S3i705fuSogBXT

[TT901]

Thanks. Some nice ideas there. Perhaps a little bigger than I had in mind though.

A few of questions:

I appreciate that there is no definitive answer and that part quality, precision & tolerance is down to the choice of components. However taking into account my original requirements of being able to machine PCBs, profile sheet aluminium, and carbon fibre sheet on a machine with a 200mx300mm bed what sort of spec stepper motor (NEMA 23?), spindle and slide rails should I be looking at?

Would I be better off with a 12mm supported round rail, something like SBR12 or a 15 'square' rail with slide blocks such as MGN15 ?

Thanks

[Zeeflyboy]

MGN is miniature, more suited really to lighter duty machines like 3D printers, laser etc

You want HG really, and HGH20 is a very common size which will be more than sufficient for your needs but easier to grease than HGH15 (15mm).

HGH20 is common on places like aliexpress and available fairly cheap, won't cost much different to MGN15.

As to that vs 12mm supported rail, well that's really up to you. HGH20 will be superior, but it will cost a little more. You have to do a cost benefit analysis on that yourself really... so to answer your question, your machine would definitely be better off with HGH20, but your wallet will be worse off.

Definitely go nema23, nema17's are good for 3D printers but don't have the power to do any decent milling imo and you'll end up chasing your tail and ruining stock with missed steps from motors that aren't up to the job.

Spindle wise, either a 1.5kw or 2kw water cooled spindle will do a good job and you can always move it across to a better/bigger machine later on if you want to. Given your relatively modest requirements there is the option to go cheap on this and use a dremel type router, but I find this to be a false economy as I went through 2 of them in short time on my first machine (and that was proxxon which supposedly had better bearings than dremel) before deciding it was pointless.