Posted on 01/20/2016 8:18:38 PM PST by Utilizer
Already at the age of 12 I was dreaming of making a machine which could make things! A machine which would give me the opportunity to create products for in and around the house. Two years later I stumbled ont the words 'Computer Numerical Control' or more specifically the CNC milling machine. After I found out people were able to build one themselves in their own shed, I knew it! I had to build one, I yearned to have it!! For three months I tried to find the proper parts (A dremeltool, drawer slides, pieces of wood, etc.), but I didn't really know how to build a CNC. The idea fell into oblivion.
In August 2013 the idea to build a CNC milling machine captivated me again. I just finished the first year of my bachelor in Industrial Design, so I was confident enough to start a build. The real difference between now and 5 years ago was, I learned to work with metal on manual milling machines and lathes and above all I had the right tools to design a machine.
This Instructable will show you how I built my CNC milling machine. I know a lot of CNC dreamers do not have the knowledge or tools to build a full metal machine. I still think and hope this Instructable inspires you to make your own machine. I include all of the necessary steps I went through in designing and building this CNC milling machine. All of the drawings I used to build my machine will be available.
(Excerpt) Read more at instructables.com ...
Anyone interested feel free to PM me in regards to CNCs. Been doing it for 20 years now (geesh) and have made a few of my own.
I learned how structurally sound 3/4 ply can be when I built my son a bunk bed styled after a castle from plans I found on the internet. The real lesson came when my son grew old enough that he no longer wanted it. Tearing it apart gave me a new appreciation for the word “solid”.
I helped build one from a kit. It was used by a high school robotics team I used to coach. This one used a router rather than a Dremel. I think it had a 3-4’ cutting area.
https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/DIY-CNC/info
https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/CAD_CAM_EDM_DRO/info
Okay. Maker Shop is not for everyone, but they have the big equipment. My son-in-law probably spent $900 for the time we were there. He's an inventor and needed to test designs. He designed custom electronics enclosures in CAD, then cut the steel on the CNC machine which used high-speed water jets. They have like a 10 foot square table. Place your thick metal slabs on grills atop the water tank, tell it where to start and it cuts all the nooks and holes and outlines of pieces. They rent by the hour of operation. If his designs worked after powder-coating and installing electronics, he would farm out the design to fabricators to do quantity builds.
Would be nice to have your own milling machine, but it is expensive (for store-bought).
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