Smallest is probably about the size of a bb, the rollers can be brought in to nearly touching, so you’d be limited by the lasers resolution moreso than the k40 roller.
The rollers are 8" long i wouldn’t want to roll something too much longer than whats supporting it, and the setup of the k40 blocks one side with the belt itself, but that’s the trade off for its low profile…
The lower profile of the k40.rollers give lots of z height to fit some taller material. Knowing the actual max diameter material, you’d need to know your max z height off the bed, minus the thickness of the base plate, and also subtract a little more for safety clearance… id guesstimate about 6" if you adjust the z axis to gantry screws to its max height.
The jtech has all the steps to get it working with the xcarve… its a 15-20 minute setup. Including wiring and changing 2 grbl settings.
You gotta decide whether its worth the money… the k40 is more than other roller designs, but it also has a very low profile
The other, cheaper ones are designed for standalone diode laser machines which can simply be lifted with risers (this is the type that i use.) Its $150 less than the jtech and that includes the rotary… leaving you an open cnc to carve with… the jtech is grossly overpriced IMO.
https://amzn.to/3eHOvKy
Seth
Thank you for the feed back. I already have the Jteck laser and yes it was expensive but highly praised by users. Have a happy New Year
Eric
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Jason
I just received my FTK K40 rotary. I am reading through your setup but you have talked about the stepper motor. Question, do I need to replace the stepper motor on the K40 with a NEMA 23 stepper motor? I purchased one an am trying to figure out the set up. Any help would be great!
Eric
Hey Eric,
Did you request the stepper when ordering to say your using the x-carve? I actually used my old stepper motor from the x-carve as i did the upgrade and got new 23 ones. The thing you need is the tech spec of the motor so you can adjust the g-code settings. Once you have the spec of the stepper rotational turns i would suggest using the macro as i posted.
You would need to change the correct axis stepper also “Y” only.
Hey Jason
Yes I bought the roller with a stepper motor which is a nema 17 and I also bought a nema 23 from amazon. I’m just terrified of blowing the x controller.
I am really struggling with this K40 setup for an x carve. I’m wondering about the nema17 stepper. If I understand correctly You are using a nema 23 on the rotary because that’s what is used for the Y axis with the x carve correct? Can I use the 17? Will I blow any boards by using the 17?
If I switch out from the 17 to the 23 it requires drilling new holes on the rotary to hold the motor since the screw holes don’t line up because the 23 is larger. Also no matter what motor I use I need to make sure I match up the wires. The 17 and 23 motor has a blue wire where the x carve has a white wire. Both the motor and the X carve have red, green, black and blue wires. I’m assuming the following (red/red, green/green, black/black, then blue/white)?
Then comes the mm per rotation. The 23 is saying 200 movements per revolution. I’m guessing the mm is movements?
Any help would be appreciated
