A brief explanation of the composition of my router

the effective cutting area is 54 in by 18 in by 5 in

three main pieces
1 the machine
2 the drivers
3 the computer

The Machine
Gantry,
Lead screws
Steppers
Transmission system
The Computer
OS Unbuntu/linux
Software EMC2
The Chips
Drivers
Wireing
Steppers
power supply

some helpful sites

So I figured I should post some of the sites and how to videos that got my brain going on this machine. The first site was...

http://buildyourcnc.com/default.aspx

Buildyourcnc.com has some machines for sale and they also sell kits and plans. The really nice thing about this site is that it has step by step instructions and videos for how to assemble a simple 3 axis system on a budget. Its really a fantastic site.

http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-Make-a-Three-Axis-CNC-Machine-Cheaply-and-/

Another great site! This one has diy's (do it your self's) for all sorts of things. Subjects included computers, software, model planes, generators just to scratch the surface. The link above has step by step instructions on how to build another simple 3 axis system.

http://hackaday.com/category/cnc-hacks/

And finally Hackaday.com one of my personal favorites! this site has a hack for anything. CNC, pcb, leds, graphing calculators and xbox's. If you think of it they probably have a hack for it. I have been browsing this website for about 4 or 5 years now and its only gotten better with time.

enjoy the sites, and use the knowledge wisely.

Lead Rod more power and an Angry Beaver

So the machine from here on out will be referred to as The Angry Beaver.

On to more serious business. She runs at dirt slow speeds. i have spent the last day trouble shooting and i believe i have a solution. firstly I need new lead rods. preferably with less than 13 threads per inch and rigged. My leads have a lot of warps and i think it is do to assembly and poor handling essentially they are cheap. Secondly I need more power. A 40 volt supply would be perfect. thirdly an all aluminum and/or iron frame would be spectacular.

each axis working smoother

Diy cnc router. all 3 axis moving with explanation

So I did little bit of tuning on my motors and lead screws. and I got it to turn. My cnc is now operational!!! All it took was a bit of oil and some shim jims! Really though it turns out these machines need alot of tuning. I'm anxious to see how it does on its first cut. I may need the help of master Roshi(dad) to accomplish this.

My steppers wont turn

So I turned everything on and tried to test my axis' with emc2's stepconfig tool and the steppers wouldn't spin. im not sure what the issue is. the steppers turn when not hooked up to the machine frame. could the nuts on the end of the lead screw be to tight? could my amperage be to low? I double checked my wiring. I'm stumped. I need to sleep on this.

Steppers Installed finally

Today I mounted my stepper motors and router. To do this I need to run for inch bolts through the motor mounts. This is what binds the motor to each rail and lead screw system. Fyi mount the lead screw couplers on the steppers before mounting the steppers to the motor mounts. this will save you some nut twist in the long run. I have also extended the wires to my steppers by using some 18 and 16 gauge wire i found hanging around my garage.(make sure to label the wires as you go so you dont have to ohm them at the end. This was quite the process with only two hands.