I have the cheaper version you posted. So far everything as worked flawlessly. Not a huge fan of the collets that come with it, but you do get every size you need. Wrenches on the other hand you will have to supply. I don’t think I would need to purchase the more expensive German model. I have cut black walnut. Maple. Oak. And some hdpe on it as well as some brass and alum. I notched the t tracks to make crosses in my wasteboard. Worked well. The pump that comes with the Chinese version…is welll… cheap… it works for now. But the plug end is junk. And the flow is pretty low. I am running it through a larger pc cooling fan system. With radiator and two fans.
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Thank you
I will pick the the cheaper version. As for this fancy pc cooling system that is new to me I will have to check that out. T
Is this what you are referring to and what powers then 110volts?
Similar but not the same. No that stuff is all powered by a pc power supply.
How are the NEMA steppers holding up? Especially the Z axis motor.
Would it be possible to view the current draw from the current controller? Before and after the mod.
Thanks!
I do not have my CNC yet, and have no real-life experience with the electronics or hardware. Is your question referring to the drivers or motors? If motors, are you concerned about the motor running/holding torque? Is your question concerned more with the electrical vs mechanical impact of the spindle mod? If the answers are too involved to share here I understand.
Thank you,
Tom
I’m new to cnc but coming from 3D printer arena, there is always the issue of the stepper motors getting hot beyond comfortable temperatures when we push the 3D printers to the limits.
With a 2.2kw motor, its a hefty weight penalty alone for spindle ~2.8 times more from the Makita RT701 trimmer router. The Z motor would be working extra hard even just to keep the Z height level, not to mention milling down on harder material like aluminium. With this in mind, we could upgrade the Z stepper motor (perhaps the X & Y too) to the max current draw allowable on the Buildbotics controller board of 6A max; the psu too if necessary.
The rigidity of the 1F is unquestionable, but to use the 2.2kw spindle, I wish to check if the stock motors are up to task.
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so far I haven’t had any issue with the stepper on the z axis. I haven’t pushed my machine extremely hard…but I do believe having the extra power of the spindle being able to turn the bit at the correct rpm and matching your feed rates to the material, cutter, and rpm you actually are putting less stress on the bit.
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What are the torque and NEMA ratings ppon the steppers used on OF?
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Is that 6A max per motor controller, or total across all 3 arises? Where can I find all the technical electrical specs on the controller and motors?
I was asking about the max current rating for each motor driver vs the entire controller.
I do not have my machine yet, but when I asked this earlier a forum member said that the z axis stepper motor was this one:
The drivers I am assuming are the same ones used by Buildbotics in their controller, the specs of which I think they might have on their website.
Thanks, that is helpful. That may be a bit under powered for the weight of a larger spindle, but there are larger sized bipolar stepper motors with the NEMA23 mount available. Only issue then is whether or not the motor drivers can handle the larger motors. If not, it may be possible to bypass the ones on the control board and add external larger drivers. I’d hate to replace the entire controller board just to get larger motor drivers. Guess I’ll need to wait an see the electronics when I receive the machine. Hopefully, the motors will be adequate for the 1.5 KW spindle in the short term.
From Buildbotics describing their controller:
Built-in Stepper Drivers
- 4 motor driver channels
- Up to 6A per channel
- 12v to 36v DC
- Up to 256 microstepping
- Smooth S-curve acceleration
- Step rates up to 250k/sec per channel.
Drive most NEMA 17, NEMA 23 and NEMA 34 motors. Preliminary support for 4th axis as a rotary axis. The fourth driver can be synchronized to drive a single axis with two motors. Here’s a list of some motors we recommend.
6 Amps per channel. That should be adequate to drive much larger motors. Now I’m wondering why OF doesn’t offer larger motors as an upgrade option. Anyway, this controller and motor drivers should be fine with much larger (electrically, but still NEMA 23 mount, for direct drop-in) motors if needed. I can’t wait to play with this machine.
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I too am looking forward to what will be my first CNC. With respect to offering upgrades, with their machine design and customer support ethic, I have no doubt that in a few years once they have established themselves and gotten past the “I can’t believe how many new orders we have to fill” stage we will see:
Controller options, new machine sizes, z axis and spindle options, motor upgrade options, 4th axis/rotary options, …
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This is more closely aligned with where we are at currently. Adding more to our plate with our current backorder of just machines is 4 months isn’t ideal yet. Our main focus is getting that down to a much lower wait time.
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I will patiently wait, sometimes the impossible takes a little longer. Haha
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This motor seems like a nice upgrade. A little fickly with wiring the 8 wires but 5.66A is close to the limits of the board; and assuming the current draw allowable on the power supply is 9.7A total, definitely need to upgrade the power supply inside the black box.
Since we all have time while waiting for the 1F, perfect for research and gathering parts.
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Any update to this yet? One question is could you not make that into 2 pieces and use an 80 metal bracket from any source? It’s the back piece that the issue with the holes that would have to be milled once the dimensions are figured out.