New Tool Day: CNC Router!

[adam.beauchene]

Here's a time-lapse vid of the machine cutting out a guitar body. I promise, a full-on build thread is coming soon, my technique is just about dialed

CNC guitar body TIME LAPSE

 

[Big Brother]

Here's a time-lapse vid of the machine cutting out a guitar body. I promise, a full-on build thread is coming soon, my technique is just about dialed

CNC guitar body TIME LAPSE

The music gave my subwoofer an overdue workout and probably upset some migratory birds. Awesome choice.

 

[MrUsefulAlien]

that is really impressive!

i enjoyed looking at the pics, and the last vid you posted is really cool...we live in the future indeed!

 

[1958Bassman]

Victory! I'm done with the basic assembly.

And now, after much giddiness, ringing ears, and sweeping, it's time to relax.

Why would you run that in a basement without hearing protection? I don't even do woodworking in my garage without it.

 

[1958Bassman]

I didn't finish sand, I just knocked off the tool marks with steel wool. You can still see scratches beneath the anodize, but it doesn't look bad.

In retrospect- I wouldn't anodize any of your parts that contain threaded holes. When I had mine done, the anodize shop etched the parts back a few mils, before putting on the anodize layer; I've had problems with the threads stripping out on those pieces, where the thread of the hole literally pulls out in a spiral. No problems on the big parts with no threaded holes.

I'll post some stuff I've done with the machine on here really soon. I'm still getting my technique and workflow down, but I'm making good parts now- necks, bodies, pickup bobbins, even built a pickup winder!

Is there any value to drilling a series of holes, tapped and untapped, then sending the piece to the anodize shop and seeing how much each hole size changes? Maybe you could have a baseline so you would drill/tap one size and know what the size would be post-anodizing.

 

[adam.beauchene]

The music gave my subwoofer an overdue workout and probably upset some migratory birds. Awesome choice.

Haha, thanks. That whole album is rad. 'Temjin' EP by Reso. It's on itunes.

that is really impressive!

i enjoyed looking at the pics, and the last vid you posted is really cool...we live in the future indeed!

Thanks!

Why would you run that in a basement without hearing protection? I don't even do woodworking in my garage without it.

I do wear hearing protection, and a respirator (there's evidence that wood dust causes sinus cancer), and safety glasses. My hearing protection gets rowdy sometimes, though... (WARNING: gross earwax in vivid detail ahead...)

Is there any value to drilling a series of holes, tapped and untapped, then sending the piece to the anodize shop and seeing how much each hole size changes? Maybe you could have a baseline so you would drill/tap one size and know what the size would be post-anodizing.

The guy at the anodize shop (think he was the foreman) explained that he knew how much he was taking off with the etchant, because he's put that much back on with the anodize. all the other close-tolerance stuff (dowel pin holes, for instance) seemed spot-on, so I don't think the problem was in the holes being etched too big. As Pilot alluded to, I probably overtightened them, or just being where they are on the machine contributed to metal fatigue. Thinking I'll just get that one plate remade in stainless steel, and not have a problem anymore

 

[pilotjones]

I defer to your experience. I didn't use a torque wrench, but I applied reasonable hand torque to the bolts- nothing crazy. The ones that stripped hold the Z axis to the Y axis, so those six bolts under a lot of strain. I'll probably drill and tap them the next size up.

I'd recommend helicoils. The guys in my shops knew how far they could push a bolt in aluminum, and we'd design with extra bolts (compared to steel substrate) knowing that they couldn't be tightened as much. But if you use a helicoil there's no worry--e.g a helicoil for a 5/16 bolt is at least 3/8 thread on its OD, and so the thread strength in the aluminum on the OD is much more in line with the steel-on-steel thread strength and normal tightening torque that you're using on the ID.