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Author Topic: The discouraging state of DIY CNC  (Read 11600 times)

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Re: The discouraging state of DIY CNC
« Reply #10 on: June 25, 2013, 11:29:31 AM »
Interesting side note: In today's news an American CEO is being held captive in a Chinese factory over better wages and severance pay. Guess the workers finally realized they are be exploited...lol.

Offline Jeff_Birt

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Re: The discouraging state of DIY CNC
« Reply #11 on: June 26, 2013, 08:39:04 AM »
It is also discouraging to try and make/market a good quality product and loose sales because the 'other guys' are $5 cheaper. Most new consumers will only look at price, if the experience of buying a POS product does not turn them off to the hobby then they will generally try to learn enough to ensure they buy a good quality product the next time.
Happy machining , Jeff Birt
 

Offline BR549

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Re: The discouraging state of DIY CNC
« Reply #12 on: June 26, 2013, 11:15:56 AM »
I believe that DIY CNC is in the BEST shape it has ever been. There are MORE products to choose from than there has ever been.

Most of the problem today is the instant grits syndrome. They want to be experts on CNC machining right out of the box.  With DIY there is a HUGE learning curve to overcome to learn the total package.

(;-) TP
Re: The discouraging state of DIY CNC
« Reply #13 on: June 26, 2013, 10:42:04 PM »
It amazes me the number of cnc products sold on Ebay and other outlets that are basically garbage. People are selling "cnc systems" that consist of Chinese $29 4 axis controllers, $25 power supplies, $50 ball screws, $19 motors along with bogus Mach 3 software. The DIY person looking for a Walmart deal then cries on this forum looking for help because the supplier didn't send documentation, the controller won't work, no support phone number in China, the Mach 3 is a demo version with no license and the supplier disappeared with the money. The only thing in the "Best Shape" as BR549 puts it is the people selling the crap.

Offline BR549

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Re: The discouraging state of DIY CNC
« Reply #14 on: June 27, 2013, 11:50:54 AM »
It amazes me as to the huge supply of quality products that HAVE documentation that people whine and cry about costing too much or instructions written in detail that they don't understand BUT the DIYer will NOT spend the money OR the time require to learn HOW to put it together in working fashion. They then BUT the cheap stuff , can't make it work, THEN get on a forum and look for FREE help then complain because no one wants to help them, Mainly because they have junk to work with and most FREE HELPERS on here KNOWS THAT.

Please don't complain when you want to PAY for chopped liver ALL the while wanting Prime Rib. You either have to BUY the PR already cooked OR learn to cut and cook it yourself.

(;-) TP

Re: The discouraging state of DIY CNC
« Reply #15 on: June 27, 2013, 08:59:57 PM »
I got my PMDX-126 board today.  WOW! Mounting holes! REAL Documentation! A nice thick epoxy circuit board! Industrial grade terminals! Mounting holes for the Smooth Stepper too! A power supply built in! 30 amp relay for the spindle! 10 amp relay for other stuff! 24vdc capable I/O!  Was it expensive? Lets see, I have to tear my machine control panel all apart because the other stuff hasn't worked out, and toss most of that stuff. I had to add extra relays and a power supply. NAH! Cheap was expensive, Quality is cheap! I'm going to drill all the mounting holes with my 35 year old Milwaukee pistol drill, the same one I've drilled and tapped thousands of holes with.
Re: The discouraging state of DIY CNC
« Reply #16 on: June 27, 2013, 09:21:55 PM »
Hi Gary,
You have learned a hard lesson and I am glad that you are making progress. It happens to many people in CNC. When we say for example, get a G540 to control your machine, they say, that expensive. They then get a TB????? board for a lot less. repair it a few times, then go out and buy what they should have gotten in the first. Replace a cheap part is a lot more expensive than getting something that works in the first place.

Your milwaukee is a cse in point. in its day it was cheap but it is still running 35 years later. I have had a few cheap cordless tools that haven't made it past year 2.

Mike
We never have the time or money to do it right the first time, but we somehow manage to do it twice and then spend the money to get it right.
Re: The discouraging state of DIY CNC
« Reply #17 on: June 27, 2013, 10:31:25 PM »
Mike,
Just so you know I wasn't doing cheap. I've built this machine from lots of surplus and some new parts. 4 THK GL20n linear bearing slides with 5mm balls screws and 18" travels, one is a spare. Table is a hand scraped 24" x 24" Cast iron surface plate with 5" ribs. 4-800 in/oz stepper motors with a common 1500 watt 68 volt power supply, and 4 Leadshine 7 amp drivers, one 8.5 amp driver. 80/20 style aluminum base frame with complete 3' x 5' enclosure, LED lights and sliding plexiglas doors. Two nema 4 steel electrical enclosures. All shielded Igus energy chain cables. It has everything properly fused and grounded. All wiring in place for an extruder stepper motor, heater and thermister, plus a 12" square heated bed to allow 3D printing. It has a DL06 20 input 16 output PLC with a 4 channel analog input card for I/O. There is an air filter regulator and 4 gang manifold with 4 way air valves installed, and a cooling fan for the electronics. I also have a mini lathe bed with headstock and tailstock and that I am driving the spindle with a large stepper to provide turning and 4th axis positioning.  The mill spindle was a Sherline but is being converted an R8 spindle with treadmill motor and TTS tooling. The spindle can be rotated to make it a horizontal machine for long parts or deep pockets. I have tapped 144 holes in the table for holding down and I have two 4" CNC vices and two good size angle plates.

Don't ask me how much I've spent, my wife might find out! Oh yeah, I'm doing this with my 9 year old grandson.  We did our first paying job last week, 200 plastic wheels with holes and pockets in them. He ran the machine one night.  The next day when I got home from work he already had the PC fired up and the correct G-code program loaded to finish the job!
Re: The discouraging state of DIY CNC
« Reply #18 on: July 01, 2013, 12:08:16 PM »
The good news is there IS a DIY market.  Look back 20 years in Wood and Wood Products and you will see 4 x 8 and larger machines costing $30,000 and up, and weighing thousands of pounds.
 
That said, a box I bought to hold a gecko board has wiring instructions that neglected to mention the Estop switch.  At least there was a photo.
Re: The discouraging state of DIY CNC
« Reply #19 on: July 01, 2013, 10:30:56 PM »
Which CNC4PC SS interface board did you get?  I am not defending Arturo, but my C23 has atleast 5 mounting holes.  It had a cold solder joint on the E-Stop connector, and the area around the mounting holes is so tight you can't use a metal standoff without a plastic spacer to keep traces from touching, but it does have mounting holes.  The C23 is not cheap as breakout boards go either, although I have heard of a number of people who have decided to go with teh PMDX-126 instead or changed out to the PMDX-126 and said their machines worked better.  I may if I have problems, but for now its working.  
« Last Edit: July 01, 2013, 10:33:03 PM by Bob La Londe »