Ya know, making things for the OF is a good way to learn how this works.
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Looks great. I’m ready to start machining some aluminum but haven’t jumped in yet. Any tips?
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Well, I’m not sure if I should be giving advice, but I set up the Amana HSS1630 1/8 bit to Amana’s specs and used blue tape and CA glue to secure the plate to a larger MDF panel, which I clamped down. I set the outside contour cut about .005 below the plate thickness, though I might try .01 next time. If I’m tapping threads, I’ll machine a couple spare holes off the work that I can use to test.
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Nice, I’ve wanted to start with aluminum myself. What kind of aluminum stock is that?
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Nice, @Watkins!! Looks like you know what you’re doing there. 
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It’s 6061 plate, .315 thickness.
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Haha, thanks Bill, I’m slowly figuring it out!
I have to say that is outstanding!
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Watkins, Nice job on the aluminum pieces. You mentioned the router bit and the DOC. What setting for the makita speed (1, 2…etc.) Thanks.
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Great Job!! So clean!!! I have been working on a similar design to use with the Journeyman with a 80mm spindle. The spindle is too tall to go overtop the z axis so I have to go around the side.
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Thanks Peter, I decided to run the hose to the left of the router to avoid obscuring the speed dial and power switch. Made sense to me anyway.
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That is some sweet work @Watkins . Im glad to see people taking their 1F machines in the same direction I am. Aluminum machining on these machines as awesome!
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SO professional looking!
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Indeed, I just kinda jumped right into the aluminum, but the OF is doing a fantastic job with it!
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@Watkins I notice the stepping lines around the curves. I am also experiencing this and am going to be upgrading to a centroid acorn board and 2nm closed loop stepper motors.
I didn’t notice if @Watkins mentioned his CAD/CAM solution, but in Fusion if you don’t enable ‘circular interpolation’ it can lead to marks like that as curves are chopped into line segments.
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Thanks Watkins, Chart is super helpfull as well.
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Yeah even with circular interpolation selected it still shows steps around corners. Just low resolution aspect of the controller and software. Not knocking it, just is what it is. Not noticeable in wood but aluminum shows this. This is why I’m upgrading my motors, drives and control hardware/software. All for aluminum accuracy and step resolution
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