I wrote an article over at Instructables about my CNC experiences. It not so much a how to, as it is a what to, and what not to, when it comes to cheap CNC machines. A topic that I like to think I am somewhat experienced with.
Mostly written tongue in cheek. Go check it out for a laugh.
http://www.instructables.com/id/Cheap-CNC-Dos-and-Donts/
I assume server rack mount slides will work?
@Rob_Shinn
you assume correctly. That is precisely what I use in fact. Commercial slides are generally high end hardware. When it is the company’s money folks tend to splurge then. Look closely at the slides, if you see the word “Accuride” engraved on it they’re good stuff.
I took a behind the scenes picture that shows some hidden detail of my machine’s construction http://i.imgur.com/PWdzxoU.jpg
In it you can see these funky spring loaded follower trucks I made to keep the X axis table from juddering around at the far end of its travel. I noticed my machine doing that during trial runs, so I came up with that solution on the fly.
A little shimmy like that can be bad at speed. Slow ya down and what not. I’ve run my X axis up to like 200 inches per minute, which for a drawer slide special is almost unheard of.
It’s a runner!
@Paul_Frederick incredible. When I first heard of drawer slide machines, I immediately thought of using server rails, but I couldn’t figure out how to get around various problems you apparently have already solved. You, sir, are a genius.
@Rob_Shinn
genius? Not me. I outsmarted myself the first 3 machines I tried to make. They were all terrible. When problems are right in front of you, then you’re in a position to find solutions.
Trying and failing on those other builds taught me the value of going with a very simple design. I made a conscious decision this build to take the easiest route I could think of at just about every turn. Nothing too fancy, or clever, that could potentially outwit me.
I adopted a completely reductionist philosophy this time around. KISS
