Re: [CAD_CAM_EDM_DRO] Motor costs and links and 5 axis software

I'm sure everyone here will be happy to help you but you really need to
put a bit more effort into your post - i.e. show that you have thought
about what you really want to do and what you want to learn.

Machining titanium is nothing magical - it simply is about rigidity of
the setup, selecting the correct speeds and feeds and having a go! I've
not milled titanium, but I've turned and bored it on a lathe (made our
wedding rings)using carbide insert tools - with no problems. (FYI, I
made my wife's ring out of 1" round bar, the morning of the wedding -
although I did have a backup plan in case it didn't work out... Blew my
best man's mind when I told him!)

Rather than me tell you what size motors you need - what about you do
some research (read past posts and FAQ's) and post what you plan to use
and ask for opinions. It's not just motor size - how do you plan to
couple them to the axes? Belts? Direct? Servos or steppers will both
work - if you design the system correctly. Servos offer better high
speed performance (for rapids) and steppers have high torque at low
speeds - where you do all of your cutting anyway. Steppers are (in my
opinion) easier to set up for a new CAD_CAM_er. Geckos will run at
power levels that will faaaarrr exceed your requirements. First, work
out what motor size you think you need, then once you have that info,
you can figure out how big your power supply (PSU) will need to be.
Keep in mind 3 motors all rated at say 5 Amps will not all be drawing 5A
simultaneously. For a peak 15A I would suggest a 10A PSU would be more
than acceptable - the peak current comes from the reservior capacitor
anyway. Of course you can go with a bigger PSU but you won't get any
noticible performance change - can you say "diminishing returns"? I've
specifically not said anything about voltages - figure out your motor
requirements first. Read the tech notes on the Gecko website about motor
and PSU sizing. It's all there.

What are you going to use to create your G-Code? There is nothing wrong
with planning for a 5 axis system but as others have said before, start
with a 3 axis system to learn about CNC. Each additional axis after 3
adds an order of magnitude more difficulty. What are you going to use
to control the servo or steppers? These are major issues you have to
think about - before you start. If you write down and post your plans,
it forces you to think through your design and you will resolve a lot
more issues before you start spending $$$.

Sorry for the reality check but more planning and reading will result in
a better system. We're all happy to give you advice here but you have
make some effort, too.

What exactly are you going to make?

Cheers, Peter



Josh Lane wrote:

> I think I have decided on the shopmaster. Is the gunmaster with the
> quadra lift. I am going to start out with 4 motors. I will have 2 rotary
> tables. One 8 inch and a 4 inch. The 8 inch mounted flat on the table
> base and the 4 inch mounted on the 8 inch at 90 degrees. I would also at
> some point also like to take a crack at titanium for my radio controlled
> stuff. So can I get some advice on motors first. What size guys?
> Should I really go with the servos? Will they make that much of a
> difference? Can I get some links to some good prices for both servos and
> steppers. And will the gecko drives run at the power that I think I
> want. Boy I can't wait to start getting stuff so I can really make some
> mail.
>
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