Chinese 3040T Arrives

[futura]

Once again thank you very much for everyones feedback and time.

The linux project sounds fairly well refined. It is very interesting to hear about your experiences on that. As recommended I will stick with Mach 3 for now and leave that as spare weekend project sometime ;)

Im starting to understand now with the software choice I guess it will be a case of experimenting and seeing in terms of CAD what software I get on with. So far Smartdraw and Corel Draw I have found really easy to use. I also like Logo Designer. They all have a very similiar user interface.

For CAM im still unsure about this so I think I will keep looking at the vcarve demos and maybe test that. I have also noted the suggestion on CAM BAM. maybe this weekend i will also look at a few other options. Kkam Artcam Mastercam etc.

So to keep on topic here are some pics of my Opened UP stepper control box and also some pics of the machine.


3020 Router/Engraver


3020 Router/Engraver Rear


Spindle Motor


Sketchey Motor Connection LEads


Stepper Controller Front


Stepper Controller Rear


YOOCNCPW3618 & YOOCNC NT65-3X


YOOCNCPW3618


YOOCNC NT65-3X


My end goal and target with my home CNC project :)



In terms of tool when my traffolyte plate arrives I assume they all have different roles?

My guess would be the spear looking shapes are used for engraving?

The paddle looking shape is more for engraving / cutting?

And the drill clearly just drills holes of that diameter?


I am also wondering what peoples thoughts are about the Spindle Motor MOD making it PWM control via Mach3 as opposed to the switch and speed control pot on the control box?

I can see advantages and disadvantages for both options.

Looking at the board there sure is a free pin labelled PWM thats on the board with the 555 timer on it.

The boards I have are:

YOOCNC PW3618
YOOCNC NT65-3X

The transformer I have is Torroidial 220V Primary
Secondary 0-18V
Secondary 0-36V

Semiconductor Component list as follows (well most of em lol) :

PW3618

4N25
EL817C328
NE555

NT65-3X

TB6560AHQ
EL817330
EL1373201501-50 1304AL
SS14


If required I can also knock up a layout in Corel just so you can see what IC goes where.

There are also x2 74HC SMD components but I cannot find my magnifying glass right now to see the exact number maybe its a 14 but not 100% atm.


Finally I did check the earthing and yes as warned its pretty sketchey. The main chassis is earthed but half the motor out pins the metal shield is not earthed and also the fan covers are not earthed.

I assume most of thes eissues are caused by powder coating the box then fitting the stuff without exposing the metal.

I guess another reason why this is kit is cheap.

However, so far for what I paid from what I can see it seems quite good value.

However.. theory and practicality can be very different..

I should have more results this weekend :)

[Gregor]

Hi All
A quick update on what i have been using my cnc machine for. I have Been using Sketchup and Cambam and I am starting to get the hang off it, The Machine has been working well although I haven't been pushing it to hard and I think if I was buying one off these again i would go for one with a faster spindle.I have took the good advice off the member's off this forum and I have not change the cables and don't intend to change until they go faulty.Here is the machine cutting Phenolic board.

[Pointy]

I have took the good advice off the member's off this forum and I have not change the cables and don't intend to change until they go faulty.

Very wise.

I have just rewired my 3020 and it was a real pain to do.

Regards,

Les

[Gregor]

Hi All
Well its been 6 months since I received the 3040 cnc machine and it has been running between 7 and 10 hours a week cutting mostly hard woods and I did cut one aluminium bracket at very slow speed which turned out pretty good but I will not be cutting anymore aluminium with it as I think the machine would not last to long.I haven't had any faults with the machine and it seems to be running ok ,the cable seems to be ok and so do the bearings, as most people have said if you don't push it hard it should be ok . I have seen some horror stories about these machines but maybe I got lucky or maybe they are pushing there machines to hard. I like to thank everybody for there advice and help and I hope to build a slightly bigger machine which will be able to cut aluminium in the near future probably something like 6040 size But will be late August before I will be able to start it.
Thanks

[gorbo]

I brought a Chinese machine 2 years ago and I have had no problems with it, even the Driver board TB6560 has been faultless, I did put 3 fans on the driver from day one so that may well of helped,
I cut hardwoods to.
The low cost of the machine has enabled me to get on the CNC ladder and I have learned enough to build another from scratch for a friend

[NB70]

Nice pickups Gregor! Have you got a CNC coil winder too?
I used my cnc router & 3 hall sensors to scan a pickup's magnetic field. The one and only benefit of having a rubbish MDF machine is that it does not distort the magnetic field!

Link to project

[Gregor]

Hi NB70
No I don't use the cnc to wind pickups I have made a pickup winder so I can scatter wind them it takes about 6mins to wind them at about 1200 rpm

[jimbo_cnc]

Well its been 6 months since I received the 3040 cnc machine and it has been running between 7 and 10 hours a week cutting mostly hard woods and I did cut one aluminium bracke.....s

Hi Gregor, what speed/depth of cut have you been using for the phenolic board? Have you tried cutting nylon or delrin?

I'm trying to work out if one of these chinese machines will make the plastic parts I want.

What size tool would I use for bulk material removal?

[Gregor]

Hi jimbowley
my spindle on my machine only goes up to 8000, the cut depth is 0.8mm and it cuts the phenolic board pretty good, I did cut some plastic with it and it melted the plastic but I found if a used a little bit of wd40 it was fine I haven't used it on delrin. The end mill I mostly use is 1.5mm but have used 3mm for removing material. I am sure other members will give you better advice on what to try as I am really only a beginner.

[JAZZCNC]

What size tool would I use for bulk material removal?

The largest you can fit in the spindle.! . . . . . . With cutting plastic like Gregor mentions heat will be the problem but this is just a function of chip load and finding the best setup that suits machine/material/cutter unfortunatly it's not an exact science and very M/M/C dependant. Often when people are melting they are cutting to shallow or too slow and with RPM too high or some combination of all three.
If you use the correct type of cutter with a decent spindle and 10-12mm cutter then there's no reason why you shouldn't rough out 16mm nylon in 3 passes. One problem with nylon is that it can wrap around the tool so having air blowing helps clear this and also gives a slightly better finish. Taking deeper cuts makes bigger chips and this also helps but means going slower so soem experimenting is needed to find best balance.