It's Alive

They will have more soon. I’ll look around as well.

alright awesome so curious are you using the stepper motor plate that came with the kit you bought or are you using any parts from the original x-carve?

I was just looking at my x-carve and if I bought the setup that you have I should be able to take everything off the carriage and swap the motor to the new z-axis and bolt it straight up with no problems

am i correct on that?

also have you thought any on eliminating the v-wheels on the gantry itself? idk I really dont have problems with those becoming loose.

I guess another thing is it really cheaper to go through the x-carve and replace everything with linear bearings and lead screws? because now you have a z-axis that will out perform the x and y and I think the z carries the least load out of the 3 lol

So I guess what I am getting at is it beneficial to do all these upgrades or buy a cnc kit that has everything all ready like you want it.

it just seems to me that yeah now the z-axis is alot more stout but you still cant push the machine any harder due to the belt limitations on the x and y axis.

I milled the holes into the backplate that came with the new assembly, it will bolt directly to the gantry now.

I am going to start with the motor mount that came with the assembly…if I like it, I’ll keep it :slight_smile:

I’m not using anything but the motor from the Current Z-Axis…that and the dewalt mount.

I’ve had no issues with the v-wheels on the X and Y axis…but that being said, who knows what I may do in the future.

For me it is not about buying a machine ready to go…I enjoy the build itself and doing the all the tinkering.

One thing to keep in mind if you get one of these…all the holes you cut must be countersunk, there is no clearance anywhere for a bolt head…both on the backplate and the front plate for the spindle/router mount.

oh yeah thats understandable I guess I am just looking at it like a machine for my business lol

it sucks but i cant afford to tinker on my main machine even though I would like to

For me it is a hobby, I’ve made a little money doing it, but still just a hobby…an expensive hobby…lol

+1

Once I have the laser upgrade added I’ll be so far in the red there’s no way to get out.

The good news is that family and friends will be getting custom gifts for every occasion from now on, and there won’t be a scout in our pack or troop that won’t be getting a custom award plaque for every banquet :slight_smile:

1 Like

These joints r incredible. Where theses created with boards laying flat. I’ve never heard of this program, how was learning curve on it.

I bought the program from here: Loading...

All the joints are milled with the boards flat on the wasteboard and cut with a ballnose endmill. The program has a lot of variables to play with…once you jump in and start playing with the values, it will make sense…not hard at all.

It is back in stock it appears…I want to stress that even though I bought this item, I have not tested it or used it yet.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Z-AXIS-SLIDE-6-034-TRAVEL-FOR-CNC-ROUTER-3D-PRINTER-PLASMA-/121988435292?&_trksid=p2056016.m2518.l4276

It did not come with the motor, I will be reusing my existing motor.

It did come with 1 belt, 1 pulley attached to the leadscrew, and another pulley to attach to my motor.

The belt is a GT3 belt, 9mm with 40 grooves.

I ordered a couple of belts from SDP/SI to have spares. Once they arrive I’ll post the part number…just making sure I got the right ones :slight_smile:

The one not attached for the motor is 1/4"…I’ll have to check the other when I get home.

The pulley attached to the leadscrew is also 1/4"

I’ve been waiting for a long time to be able to post to this famous “It’s Alive” thread :slight_smile:

Finally, I’ve got everything together, wired up and working. My first test carve came out great. I haven’t measured it with calipers or anything yet, so there’s probably lots of room for improvement - but it all worked :sunny:

Many thanks to Inventables for such a great product, and huge thanks to all of the users here in this forum who have walked the path first and left more than just breadcrumbs for the rest of us to follow. All the tips, tricks, and help in these forums are of incredible worth.



3 Likes

My wife decided to go with a distressed look for the clock I cut last week…mostly to hide the glued up panel look.

5 Likes

The photo is not good, but one of the coffee signs painted.

9 Likes

I like that is that all hand painted? how did you do the painting?

Thank you! The text is V-Carved and the coffee cup, leaves and beans are relief carved. Everything was hand painted (my wife does most of the painting).

The text is painted first then cleaned up with steel wool to get the overpaint, then the rest was painted with a tiny brush…everything was hit with a spray lacquer to seal it all up.

The new Z-Axis has been mounted and the motion is incredibly smooth. I will be running some test cuts this weekend.

I tweaked the Z-Axis steps per millimeter setting and I cut a 10mm pocket and it measured 10.03 mm/0.0012 inches about as close as I can measure…I am pleased.

4 Likes