[nikbrewer]

Well, i have been reading alot of the posts for the past few weeks and have decided t build by first cnc. i have my lead screws ordered, 36" for x and 7, 5" for z. i plan on using a laminate trimmer for the spindle. I wan to cut up to 3/4" mdf / plywood. not to concerned about feed rate.

I currently use 2 multicams at work, and plan on using them to cut out my parts. my first question is what size steppers do i need? how much torque? I plan on using this to cut out parts for car stereo use, boxes, speaker plates, ect.

thanks in advance

[BobF]

Many machines are built with the Nema 23 steppers. A lot of the ones you see here are using 200 - 425 ounce inch steppers. You should be able to use them too.
I built my machine with the HobbyCNC kit. It includes a driver board kit and 3 or 4 steppers. The completed kit connects directly to your computer. I don't think you go wrong with one of these kits for a first machine.

[nikbrewer]

ok, well i bought a lead screwfor my z axis off ebay that has a motor already on it. It only has 4 wires coming out, and i know most others have 6-8 wires. can i use both motors at the same time with the same controler?

[BobF]

Mach lets you setup and tune each motor individually. If you use drivers like Geckos or similar where each motor driver is a separate board you should be ok as long as you match the motor to the driver Or driver to the motor. You may need different drivers for each motor.
8 wire motors let you connect unipolar or bipolar. 4 and 6 wire motors are one only. You need to match connection type to what the driver is capable of. Some drivers allow unipolar only, some only work with 6 or 8 wire motors, etc. Just make sure you match.
The easiest for a beginner is to get all from one source and they will help you match components. If you get one of the kits available the matching is done for you.

[nikbrewer]

i was hoping to buy a kit, but this lead screw came with the motor for cheap, and i cant seam to get the lead screw off the shaft, but once i get the machine build, ill look into the electronics in more detail. i just wanted to kknow whaty to keep a look out for

[monte55]

Well, i have been reading alot of the posts for the past few weeks and have decided t build by first cnc. i have my lead screws ordered, 36" for x and 7, 5" for z. i plan on using a laminate trimmer for the spindle. I wan to cut up to 3/4" mdf / plywood. not to concerned about feed rate.

I currently use 2 multicams at work, and plan on using them to cut out my parts. my first question is what size steppers do i need? how much torque? I plan on using this to cut out parts for car stereo use, boxes, speaker plates, ect.

thanks in advance

Might I offer a suggestion? When I went shopping for a router for my CNC table, I considered a laminate trimmer also. A good one can easily cost $100.
I ended up with a 2.25 hp Porter Cable for about another $80 plus I got a $30 rebate. It has 1/4 & 1/2 inch collets. It's variable speed and when you remove the router from the base the motor is easy to mount for it is round and easy to make a mount for or you can get mounts on E Bay. If you're
going to cut 3/4" anything, you really need some power and the ability to use larger bits. I think a laminate trimmer should be considered only for light loads.
Don't skimp here. My router is the #890 and I have been happy with it. Being cheap in the build now will only cost you money and time later.

[nikbrewer]

thats a good idea. i was just worried about the steppers moving to much weight, but i am new to this. I have a 690 in my garage anyway. If i am think correctly , the porter table 690 " square top" router i think is 1 3/4" hp, moved uo from 1 1/2 hp like 2 years ago. Has any one used a " dome top " PC routeR? they have a round body, but only fit 1/4" collets

[BobF]

I know I have seen a picture somewhere with an old dometop. Can't rememeber where though.

[dertsap]

. my first question is what size steppers do i need? how much torque? thanks in advance

the bigger the better i say , you can run smaller motors but you run the risk of lost steps and scrapping a part that you've spent hrs on ,trust me it happens , i won t use the small motors anymore except for my kids to play with and experiment .
the price difference between the smaller motor and something between 600 - 1200 oz isn t any true screaming deal ,plus it gives you plenty of room to grow if you want to expand or replace your system
some people may say that would be overkill ,but its not , those motors will stall out as well just not as quickly
overkill would be a 100lb fanuc servo motor