Member postings for Jimmeh

I had the same issue with my WM250VF, and found that slackening the threading dial engagement with the leadscrew helped. In the end I just disconnected the threading dial completely!

Edited By Jimmeh on 22/02/2023 14:02:43

Afternoon Dan. Are you able to post a picture of the component in question? I've converted my 250vf to have an electronic leadscrew so I no longer need the change wheels and spacers.

Edited By JasonB on 29/10/2021 16:54:19

An overview of the CNC setup with the coolant tank, regulator and solenoid valve mounted on the wall.

Well its been a little while, and I've been a little busy work, but I have finally got my fogbuster copy build and running. I built the main unit a while ago and just needed to sort out a bracket to attach it to the locline. I don't have a 3D printer... but I do have a CNC machine now! The bracket design was way over the top with lots of fillets and curves, but it was a good opportunity to learn how to hold such parts. So I loaded the system with some coolant (big thank you Alan Wood for supplying some coolant to get me going!) and started cutting out the bracket.

In operation the coolant valve only needs opening a crack, and with less than 10psi it pushes the chips away from the cut and provides a steady stream of coolant droplets without any mist and fog!

The only time I got a fog was during testing when I had filled the coolant reservoir with water (thankfully no oil) and tested the pneumatic solonoid valve without the needle valve on the fogbuster in place... Oops! A litre of water instantly atomised over the workshop.

Thank you for the help everyone.

James

Locline mounting bracket

Finished Fogbuster

A slight variation on Jasons approach would be to create a sketch with 6 points on the hole centres. You can then stick a drill through the stock at these locations in CAM to obtain the correct starting material.

Edited By Jimmeh on 18/04/2021 22:07:03

Thanks everyone for all the suggestions and advice. I really should have been clear that the last thing I want is a mist or fog in the workshop. If the fogbuster copy I'm making works as intended there should be not be any atomisation, and if there is I would rather it didn't make me ill! I have a little Bambi BB24 silent compressor which probably can't keep up with too much demand so low flow is the order of the day. I'll try and post up how I get on with my own creation... If it's not too awful!
Joseph Noci. Thank you for sharing the explanation and detailed pictures. It looks like a really nice system that's been well thought out. I like how you can use higher air pressures and or coolant flow if required, without creating a fog. I may copy the nozzle I run into problems.

Edited By Jimmeh on 08/02/2021 20:35:51

Thanks Clive. I was struggling to get anything useful out of google.

I'm hoping to be able to run at a nice low pressure to just push the chips away, and I may add a second air blast for a more aggressive puff when required. I don't have an enclosure yet so I would like to keep mess to a minimum.

It will be a big step up on trying to hold a hoover in one hand and WD 40 in the other whilst nervously glancing over to the ESTOP every few seconds.

James

I'm all set to build myself a mist cooling system based on the Fogbuster to go on my almost finished SX2.7 CNC conversion (do these things ever really finish?). In all the excitement I completely ignored the fact that I need to run some sort of coolant through the thing! I'm having trouble finding mist coolant in the UK. Can anyone recommend a suitable coolant? Lots of people seem to use Koolmist 77, 50 quid for a jug of the stuff and another £50 for postage from the US... plus any import fees???

Any help greatly appreciated!

James

Afternoon Kevin. At first glance I cannot see this new feature. You could adjust the feed rates the 'Tables.h' but this feels a bit dirty. It would be far better to introduce an extra variable to account for the difference in gearing. I've also updated the metric display output to have all output to 2 decimal places as its a little easier on the eye when changing options (maybe a little OCD).

I was also having problems with interference despite using shielded Cat 6 cable (RJ45 ports in the control boxes makes for ease plugging/unplugging). Improved grounding for each twisted pair as per SODs advice (thanks Dave!) helped greatly but I was still getting occasional interference (but only if the curt was really critical!). Upgrading to v1.3.01 has completely solved the problem for me now.

Cheers, James

Edited By Jimmeh on 23/12/2020 13:19:36

Afternoon John. You can find the electronic leadscrew thread here:

Forum ELS Project discussion

Clough42 ELS Project on YouTube

Cheers,

James

These bellows from Arc should be ideal.

Machine Bellows

James

I have really been enjoying this thread. It's great to see the range of work these small machines are capable of.

Nice work guys, keep up the great posts!

To increase the number of facets on each tooth you could always go around the wheel more than once with the hob height and wheel starting angle adjusted slightly each time.

I think its just a placeholder for code to be added at a later date if so desired. When testing my system (CL57T driver + stepper with encoder) I physically forced the servo out of position and it just cuts the power to the servo. Cycling the power restores everything back to normal. Likewise if you spin the rotary encoder really fast one way and then the other the system errors and power is cut. The consequences are obviously bad, but I think I'd rather the stepper powers down if there's a problem.

On a separate note I would like to try and see if I can get the whole system to power on/off with the lathe itself. I am conscious that if there is an electronic fart the carriage could move unexpectedly and I would like the E-stop to help me!

I'm almost done with my installation. I just have to adjust the lathe side cover so it fits back on and mount the control panel somewhere accessible. Its really quiet without the change wheels rattling away, and I actually use it for fine feed now. Before I never bothered as it was too much of a pain in the ass swapping everything around.

I'm looking at the Acorn board at the moment as well, although I'm a fair way off making a purchase as I don't even have a mill yet (about to try and order an SX2.7L). I did notice a seller in Poland though so that may help reduce the import cost?

**LINK**

I must admit I just want hardware/software that works. Linux CNC is a little daunting!

It's been very slow progress for me on this project, but a recent change in my working arrangements has saved me 3+ hours of driving to/from work each day.

I now have the whole system working on the bench and am in the progress of sorting the hardware on the lathe.

I tried my hand at using a new (to me) gravograph and the result is actually alright (don't look to closely!).

Last night I fitted the drive system, which is a nema24 hybrid stepper with HDT3 belts and pulleys.

I'm hoping to drive the encoder with an HDT5 belt straight onto the headstock gear. I should be able to try the whole system fairly soon.

Huge thank you to Phil Grant for the circuit board and components!

Edited By Jimmeh on 26/03/2020 18:18:15

When I need to machine thin parts I start by placing a scrap piece of aluminium in the chuck, before facing it and adding a bunch of grooves (by eye). After using the chuck I give it a little skim to remove any glue retained on the surface. This also tends to break away glue from the grooves as well.

My take on the grooves is that they provide space for excess glue/wax to run into so that the part is pressed right up against the face of the chuck. I centre parts using a tailstock centre, and keep the tailstock pressed up against the part till the glue has set.

James

Thanks for the link Phil. The website offers some good advice for complete noobs like myself for choosing a suitable power supply. I also like the fact that all of the data sheets and tech specs are available. 

I'm hoping the 4.5Nm nema 24 I've just ordered can be squirrelled away in a hollow under the headstock of my WM250vf.

Edited By Jimmeh on 07/12/2019 20:36:56

Evening Phil,

If there are any left could you put me down for a PCB +component kit please?

Cheers, James

Maybe he could reassemble Richard Hammond after his next big crash?