Ouch that has to suck. I thought the breakouts would prevent issues like that from happening.

I actually had a vid of Robin cutting some alum but I deliriously deleted it by accident. It cuts great!

We kept having this annoying glitch on the Z that caused the Z to suddenly reverse. We had the wiring apart and loose at the motor while testing. We found the problem, replaced the bad wire, then blew up the Z.

I am looking forward to seeing this thing in real action. Any idea on how long until you guys start shipping those out to us, the grateful peasantry?

Those spindle combos look great! Minus the genius of Chinese miss-translation, of course. On the plus side, the foot pedal could provide a nice base for mounting a servo to control the motor speed...

I'm actually aiming for a digital speed control myself.

I work at a tissue bank. The tool I was referring to is also a corded rotary tool, used for cranial surgery and other bone cutting jobs. I operate the bone grinder.

That button on the foot pedal thing is pretty funny. At least it works and can be modified to be controlled by EMC, which is pretty awesome. >20 hour days... wow. You guys are working hard and I really appreciate it.

I'm reminded of the time I was programming for arcade machines. We had our "affiliates" in Taiwan building and painting the fiberglass bodies for this new Star Wars Starfighter game. They did a really amazing job and spent weeks building the jet engine and seat pods. Painted them in a beautiful yellow and shiny silver. The really looked slick, except for a few problems....

They wrapped them in plastic sheet, put them all in a single wooden crate on top of each other, then mailed them to us without letting the paint dry.

Re-purposed foot pedals works fine for me.

Ahem, calling German trolls. Here's some cut cheese!





I'll throw in pix while the vids upload. Here's the rig; you can see the spindle motor is just sitting there...seems fine, but I did oil the shaft with turbine oil, and I greased the tang on the drive.

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Nearly done!

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Heheh!

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Cheers!

Grand! I can't wait!

Nice, I fully expected it to be able to pull it off nicely, but seeing it actually happen was a treat. That should put the cheese troll back under the bridge.

Say, do you have any idea on what the depth of the cuts were and about what RPM you were running on the spindle? I'm planning on doing a bit of aluminum and that would help. I do have to say though that I am a little disappointed, I went with a Harbor Freight grinder for mine which I bought a long time back and upgraded to ABEC9 bearings...but it's AC [i]not[/t] DC like yours. It would've been cool to have EMC handle it all, but oh well.

I take it after the redesign that the spindles and motor mounts will be shipping this week? Not wanting to push, I've just been waiting on ordering the milling bits and don't want to get everything set then not have them in hand.

A big cheers as well. That piece, though not requiring much precision, signifies that micRo is only a little G-code away from proving the construction of the Rogr parts from the little brother. Job well done guys.

Dudes, you are the dudes! I'm sitting here at a few minutes to midnight with a big smile on my face. Those videos are brilliant, the machine is brilliant, and it's creators are also, clearly, brilliant. And I'm getting one. :-) I've also got a new desktop image, possibly even better than a walrus with a bucket, of a little machine with it's self-made nametag. :-D

That reminds me, I've got to do the $100 check-it-works thing.

Next: The spirograph design in aluminium.

Depth was .01"/pass and we tested up to 18 IPM.

I want to do a little testing on a new spindle mount; but by week's end is almost certain.

Precision: the piece we ran is remarkably accurate; Robin and I were quite impressed.

Each pass was .01" at between ~9IPM (nursing it in the beginning) and 18IPM, spindle speed was set at maximum, though we have to confirm with a tach what that speed truly is.

The spindles happen to be a happy accident, since they're SCR rated brushed DC motors, a range of controls can be used... as simple as a logic-level relay and bridge rectifier up to an elaborate spindle speed control system... I think we'll have to do some testing to confirm the limits though...

edit:

DOH! Grayson beats me to the reply once again.

spindle mounts:
The mounts seen in the video were sort of test mounts.... Some of that design has to be totally scrapped (mainly, the clamp was designed very late at night with the primary consideration being the fasteners we had sitting around... to not so great results.), but a better design should be ready within another test or two.

accuracy:
The most pleasantly surprising part of this was seeing that the finish of the cuts was... Really good. Usually getting a surface finish like that takes a bit of trial and error, but, really it produced as good of a finish as anything I've seen fresh off the knee-mill or any other bot... This is indicative of the fact that with reasonable cuts, there's very little deflection within the system. As a side note, there seemed to be no lost steps either.

The spindle can def go faster; the motor barely got warm.


Cheers

That is way cool! Did you do the whole thing without coolant, air, or vacuuming up the chips?

Hopefully these videos will put a fork in the whole micRo-roni and cheese trolling.

We did give it a couple squirts of oil towards the bottom of the parting cut, and yes, chip was vacuumed/blown a few times, but mostly so that we could see the progress it was making (you'd be surprised how much chip there is stuck in a block of aluminum). Using a sharp carbide bit makes cooling mostly sort of a non-issue, it doesn't absolutely need a cutting fluid, and it doesn't get soft or dull at higher temperatures like high-speed steel (which requires constant cooling). A lot of times when you read about coolant being used on mills and the like, it's not for the cutting tool and has more to do with the localized heating and expansion of whatever is being cut- this can change the tolerance of a cut by several thousands and give a crummy finish...

I think I'll make some cheese fondue to celebrate.

Anyone have a good source for milling bits they can recommend?

I just picked up an assortment of bits from MSC. I don't have any affiliation with them or anything, but they manage to regularly ship items to me within 24 hours of me placing my order, and they get from their warehouse in Nevada to my house in Oregon in a day or so. With a turn around of 2-3 days from the time that I place an order, it is almost as instantly gratifying as buying it locally.

I got these:

1/8in 4 flute end mill: http://www1.mscdirect.com/CGI/GSDRVSM?PACA...000000090684357

1/8in 3 flute end mill: http://www1.mscdirect.com/CGI/GSDRVSM?PACA...000000090684369

1/8in 2 flute end mill: http://www1.mscdirect.com/CGI/GSDRVSM?PACA...000000090684377

and I also got a couple bottles of the ptfe lube that BC recomended: http://www1.mscdirect.com/CGI/GSDRVSM?PACA...000000090684386

I just got those to get started, and to see which style would work best on the micRo. Traditionally you would use the 2 flute for roughing, and the the 4 for finishing, but I have heard good things about using a 3 flute mill for aluminum so i figured I would give it a try.

Quick edit: I would have gotten 4mm end mills but they were roughly three times the price of a comparable end mill in a imperial dimension. Also, those are not the highest quality of end mills, but I figured that they would do for now, and if I needed a nicer one I would pick it up later.

Isn't another function of coolant to get the chips out of the path of the end mill? People over on CNC Zone talk a lot about "chip weld", especially when using high RPMs in aluminum. They say the chips end up clogging the flutes so they end up increasing the friction between the cutter and the part. Eventually the friction will get so hot it melts and welds to the cutter making it dull, then it breaks.

Heeeeyyyyyy, OooeoooeEEOOooeooOEOo, , why are you so bad to us?, you are exponentially increasing our desire for the micRo , I am falling in love .

Fantastic work, is nice to see that your predictions and test are more than confirmed, I can't wait for milling a pcb, I am thinking in milling it in cheese alum .

Is up to you guys, chheeeerrssss

Hmm I wonder if there will be cooling problems when trying to mill stainless steel. Most places I read about machining stainless recommends flood cooling. I am not too familiar with what that looks like, do you think we can add that to micRo?

I wonder how hard it would be to integrate a mini shop vac like this one to keep the shavings cleaned up as the micro does it's thing. Or if it would even be beneficial. I was just thinking that if it could be attached correctly without interfereing with the working of the micro, it would make it easier to start a job and continue on to performing other tasks and it would help with making cleanup after a project much easier.

http://www.target.com/Shop-Vac-HangUp-Mini..._vac&page=1

Adequate flood cooling for the micro could probably be provided by something as small as an aquarium pump, a small tank and some Loc-Line tubing. It does not take a lot of coolant to flood a 1/8in end mill.

Of course, using a flood coolant system means that you need to make a case for the entire thing so that coolant does not go everywhere. I am planning to make one out of angle aluminum like this: http://www.onlinemetals.com/merchant.cfm?p...&top_cat=60 and some plexy glass.

You aren't in the USA, right Alex Chally? If you haven't already, check out "Quick Frame" from 80/20 (and other aluminum extrusion distributors I imagine). Hopefully you can get some wherever you are. If I remember right it's somewhere in the neighborhood of 13 cents* an inch (the stuff you linked to is 9.4 cents* an inch). Then the corner pieces are around $2.50 each (again, if I remember right).

The enclosure might be nearly twice as expensive, but it'll probably be a lot easier, stronger, and nicer looking.

*That's odd, every time I insert a "cent" symbol a weird "Z" symbol is inserted to...
ŽŽŽ¢

Nope. I am in the US, Eugene Oregon to be more specific. That stuff does look cool, but frankly my time is worth nearly nothing, and I would rather sacrifice a few hours of shop time to make it out of the cheaper material. At school I have access to big cnc machines, bridgeports, 15+hp lathes etc etc, and with that kind of tooling a job like putting together a box our of angle alum. gets a lot easier.

HAHA! I know the feeling

wttool.com


Not hard to do...


My plan is to use the small pond pump and set the micRo in a tub like this:

http://www.rubbermaid.com/rubbermaid/produ...Id=HPProd100250

Once I get things squared away to pay for the Micro Assembly and receive that I will have to look into getting one of those. Since I don't have a garage or a separate are to setup the Micro, I will have to use it in my home, probably the living room, so it would probably be a good idea to keep the debris cleaned up especially since I will be working mostly with wood. I already have to go through with a dust buster a couple of days a weak during cold weather because I had an idea and started building something, lol. Guess it is a good thing I am still a bachelor and can get away with it, lol.

If you set micRo in a tub like I posted, the chip would simply stay in there. I would NOT rely on that method for cutting something like MDF, as it really is dusty and floats everywhere (hate that stuff). In that case you'd want to carry micRo outside, or have it totally enclosed with a vacuum pick-up.

Hahaaa

http://blog.makezine.com/archive/2009/04/l...icrro_demo.html

I had actually thought about making a plexiglass casing that would enclose the entire top of the workspace that I plan to build for the Micro once I have it. That way I could 1. keep dust and debris contained within the area and 2. make sure that my curious dog cannot freak out and attempt to attack/play with the micro until she is used to it's presence, lol. That is part of why I was thinking about the shop vac as a pick-up since it would be small enough to fit inside the enclosure with everything else. I am thinking of using an old desk that I have sitting here that is never used, accept as a catch all, and putting a plexiglass enclosure on top of it, since I have tons of 1/8" plexi sitting in my shed outside that was left by the previous owners. It would probably not be completely airtight and some dust would escape, but I figure the vacuum would reduce that a good bit. Now I just have to figure out how I want to design/implement clamps in order to hold the material from moving while micro works.

As for MDF I had never in my life used it, because I always had an insane hatred for any board that did not start and continue it's life as a solid piece of wood. When I was attempting to build my DIY projector I made the mistake of ignoring my thoughts and bought it because it was cheap and on sale. I will never in my life make that mistake again. I have to say that it is one of the messiest and hardest materials that I have ever worked with. I ruined so many pieces because of it splitting, even with pilot holes when I was putting stuff together or it bending. I have actually put my projector on hold for now until I can get ahead to at least buy some plywood to remake the enclosure, because I am concerned that the MDF will end up giving way and destroying my hard work. Hehe, and I am of course using the projector case as one of my good excuses to justify buying the Micro, lol.

Who needs an excuse?

Well, you see, since I am currently unemployed (stupid economy) I find myself having to justify every purchase to myself. I largely justified the Micro because I firmly believe that it can become a source of income, or at the very least something to keep me busy and somewhat productive until a position opens up in my field here again. It is just one of those products that I believe in enough to take the risk. That and well, I bought it out of what was left of my income tax return after I had caught up on all of the bills, and I figured that after how much overtime I worked last year (juat a little over 1200 hours of OT) I deserved a little treat for myself.

Even with all of the excuses it comes down to the two most important reasons for buying a Micro, 1) It is the greatest thing since sliced bread (hmmmm...... I wonder if we could slice bread with it, you know to go with the cheese. (2) I wanted one, lol.

That's MY aluminum!!! You could have cut my LCD control panel I sent you months ago! SHEESH!!!!!!!

Congrats!!!

Yikes, fell off the radar, sorry.

O c'mon! You don't know the meaning of the word remorse!!! Don't make me drive down there and whomp on ya!
I'll get mine eventually . . . That didn't sound quite the way I intended it.

Keep at the important stuff. I'm patient but enjoy injecting a rude reminder now and then.

Hey. Hey. Listen here buster... you wait in line like everyone else 'round here.




Can I have a slice of Al cheese on my ham sandwich? I'm gonna have me a nice fresh ham real soon...

Well..... the only thing related to cheese that rings true for micRo is that it gets better with age... come to think of it... Aging of cheese would be a debatable matter but the fact that micRo becomes better with time is undebatable!

Job well done men!!!!!!!

cheers,
Gerhard

Been in line so long I forgot what I'm waiting for . . .

You're correct about chip removal. Though the re-welding of chip seems to be a problem mostly associated with aluminum (and I *think* a couple other non-ferrous metals can have it as well). However, it's my opinion that a lot is made of this, when it's only a problem for high tolerance cuts.. the fastest way to deal with the re-weld is with a couple passes of an SOS scrubby BTW.

Guys, you're the best
Been searching for something like micRo for a while. I only found this: http://www.thecooltool.com/produktgruppe.p...l=MetalLine+CNC accessible to me (Central Europe) but more than three times the price of your micRo Gold package. So the winner is micRo!!!
Just to be sure before I put my order:
1. Does the Spindle upgrade in the Gold package means that I will get the spindle with that DC motor you are using with your micRo?
2. Does the power supply run on 240 VAC?
Maybe you could take some pictures of the parts included in the three packages (Basic, Premium, Gold) so it is easier to compare them for newbies as I am really not sure what else I would need to start cutting some wood or plexiglass once the micRo is at home.

A question for you guys. The handpiece on the China spindles looks like a nice billet aluminum piece. My Harbor Freight one is a cast piece with machined faces for the bearings. Point is I wanted to see if you could compare the diameter of my hand piece to the one you guys are making the holder for.

I just took a caliper to it and its 0.9845 inches (pretty much 25 mm). I realize there should be a fair amount of tolerance with the holder's adjustment, but I just wanted to check if that was going to be an issue or not.

Thanks guys.

Hi Barbar,
1- you'll have to mail support@lumenlab.com for store related questions... But presumably we'll be stocking these particular spindles (with a few small changes)
2-The power supplies are universal, so yes..

I really have no idea why we don't have pictures posted for the different kits, so we'll definitely have that soon...

The hand piece for our spindles is an average 1.006". which is equivalent to one Chinese inch.. I'm designing the tool holder so that it's a snug fit at 1.006". I don't know yet if that will allow for .0315" of adjustment, but it would be within the range of "shimable"..

Yeah, I don't remember you buying anything...

Hi barbar, we actually have the Euro-rated spindles in stock now, as well as a few more 120v versions. I ordered extras of each because I knew there'd be some late-comers.

Some metal-geek pRon! While officially I'm rehabilitating at the hacienda and spending some Q-time with the rugrats, they're asleep and I've got this piece in my hand that we made in two hours yesterday, on a micRo, and I'm looking at it thinking that you guys need to really see how beautiful these cuts are. If you saw Robin shaking his head at the end of the last vid, it is because he is bewildered at how the little plastic "cheese machine" has beaten every mill in the shop, including our 2500lb new knee mill. I had to drive to the shop and get my camera to show! Robin, this is insane!

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I did a series of shots down the X axis so you can see how the cuts are practically perfect throughout. That little black gouge came from prying it up off of the double sided tape. That little black gouge is about .001"! There is a light scribe line going around the top; it is caused by running out of flute on the Z.

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Brain way to go Schweet work the pictures are amazing.. are you and Robin gonna be at maker faire? My daughter is forcing me to spend our micro dollars to go her blog http://lemonsquared.blogspot.com/
her robots are all dressed up...

We need a bot to make more bots i keep telling her!

BC, are you going to stock a PWM controller for the spindle at some point in the future?

I dunno. I think it'd look a hell of a lot better as . . . ummmm . . . . . . say . . . . . . errrrrmmmmm . . . an LCD Control Panel.

Oh I'm having such fun as of late.

<Okay, okay . . . it IS an awesome proof of your concept!!! My brother-in-law said there's no way even RoGR would be able to machine aluminum. >