I’m building a 2×4ft working area primo mpcnc.
I think I’ve ordered all the hardware except for the pipe/conduit. I went with the makita RT0701c router and I may eventually add a laser engraver to the tool mount as well. I’m mostly going to use it to make signs and maybe some reliefs of pictures. My cousins are extremely talented artists and I’d love to one day take some of their drawings and gift them a relief cut of their drawing.
My wife is also a talented cake artists. Sometimes she comes up with an awesome design and I’d want to make a decoration for the house thats a bit more permanent than something edible…
And of course, coasters, trays etc. To sell on etsy or something as a side hustle.
Now back to printing the parts. My table is going to be an old Foosball table that never gets used with a spoilboard over the play area. I’m going to keep the z short. Around 4" is my plan, I got a 150mm lead screw.
Your 4ft work length is long for an MPCNC. I read one post recently by someone with that long a MPCNC rig and he said he could see the tubing flex when under load. You definitely want some mid-span supports for the long sides.
I look forward to seeing some of your creations on the “Things I’ve Made” portion of this forum.
Well I printed all the J parts to make sure its rigid enough. Now I just need to source the tubing. Is there a specific support that I can print or is it best to use some wood or ?
Search thingavers for “mpcnc midspan support” and pick one that you like.
Also where are you planning on getting your tubing from? I live in GR and when I was sourcing mine I noticed you might have an Alro outlet near you. I was able to get my ss tubing (about 20ft total so a bit less then you will need) for $75 after taxes. However most places I looked at wanted well over 100.
I’ll look into alro. I work in automotive and the guys in the shop might have some good contacts too. (If they don’t already have enough scrap from their personal projects for me, maybe.)
Slow going. I’m starting in a new position at my company so I haven’t spent much time trying to get this up and running. Here’s what I’m planning on using for my table:
Should be plenty sturdy. I’m going to add some 2x4 to each side to make a 16.25" X 36" cutting area. (According to the calculator I need a table 27" X 47" to make that happen. This table is 24" X 54" leaving room for some tool orginzation and electronics at one end of the table. )
I think on Monday I’m going to contact alro steel thats just a 20min drive away and see what they have in the way for 1" tubing. If I get DOM or something that will rust, what is a recommended protective coating or spray that I should use? This will most likely end up out in my garage at some point.
i live in Grand Rapids, if your going with Alro make sure you check out there retial store. i got a normal quote from them for my MPCNC (24"x24") and it came out to like $400
maybe i’m wrong about this but i wouldn’t even bother with trying to make the table bigger. just get a flat piece of 3/4" ply to mount your legs on and throw it on top of the table that’s there. should work just fine
A lot of folks, including myself, are getting decent results just using carnuba wax on the pipes to keep the rust off. The DOM is going to come with schmoo that has to be cleaned with like a scotchbrite pad and acetone before waxing. FWIW, I also tried using PTFE lube, and that didn’t work as well (got some minor rust touching it with sweaty hands).
edit: BTW, I graduated from UM, north campus (engineering). My daughter just got accepted to the lsa undergrad program. Both good and bad she is getting in to some even better schools that she may choose to attend. At any rate, I’ve been looking forward to a possible campus visit if she has UM on her top 3 by the time UC colleges get back to her (this month!). If we go, I sure hope Blimpy Burger, Zimmerman’s, and DaVinci’s are still around to enjoy.
I strengthened the table a bit, and I also realized I made a mistake with the width… I planned for 16.25in work width which would give me a table dimension of 27", but I actually have 32" width on this table… whops. So I need to get 3 pieces of pipe still or I just build it and upgrade later.
Well it took WAY longer than I wanted it to. I finally had a week off from work with no plans so I made my plan to finish the machine! Thanks @vicious1 for this awesome design! It moves, it homes. I used an old 230W HP laptop power supply I had laying around (11.8A @ 19.5V) for the stepper drivers. I’ve got 535mm (21.07") in X and 905mm (35.63") in Y travel. I’m going to start with a NEJE 30W diode laser then move to the makita RT0701c router. BUT FIRST, a sharpie and a crown… and a square to check the squareness of my assembly.
