I have been gearing up to start my first build of a MPCNC and was finally ready to pull the trigger and order the electronics from the V1 site. However, the mini-rambo bundle has been sold out. There is very little information in the forum that I can find that talks about timelines for restocking. The forum also seems to indicate that the mini-rambo is the “preferred” board for a fairly simple build and for a person new to the electronics side. I don’t mind spending the small amount more for the Rambo board if it adds for some later functionality and is not more complex to achieve basic operations. So I guess my questions are:
How often does V1 restock?
As a novice should I just wait till the mini-rambo is available again, or just invest in the full Rambo?
If the price difference is not a big deal to you, the Rambo is the recommended board. It has all the features and is expandable in the future if you want to.
Ryan is the only one that knows that. He usually refills quickly.
The full rambo is just as easy. But if you want to drive each motor independently, you need the full rambo because it has 5 drivers. The advantage is that you can put an endstop at each motor and if you start the machine out of square, a homing cycle will square it up.
It is not hard to keep your machine pretty square without the enstops and single endstops (like on a 3d printer) don’t reallt matter on a cnc because the coordinates are based on your material, not based on the machine.
If that all sounds too complicated, then be assured the first few years, we didn’t have dual endstops and we were cutting up a storm. Even now most jobs dont need them.
I have settled on EMT, unless talked out of it. Almost bought Stainless and had 3/4" tubing (0.75 in OD) sitting at the Metal yard waiting. Woke in a cold sweat last night and realized there is a difference between 3/4" ID (EMT) and what you can get in stock for stainless tubing or pipe with an OD of 23.5mm or 0.925 in.
Might be worth some clarification on the parts list. Started to work through the options of SS ODs with the salesman on the phone and looking at the other part print options and quickly realized I was wasting his time.
Actually, I thought it’s pretty clear in the conduit sections. In fact, you’re kind of flogged with the information several times. Now, whether it actually sticks that pipe and conduit/tubing are sold based on different measurements (OD vs ID)… It took my brain a while to catch. But that’s a different industry standard that we’re not going to be able to influence.
I think one of the biggest things I’ve learned from lurking around for a couple of years before I finally pulled the trigger is that Ryan has done a LOT of work and research on this project, and there’s a lot of experience floating around here. There’s no need to go off in search of some mythical optimization/upgrade for a perceived weakness in design (see also: recent social media kerfuffle due to premature optimization and an inability to read directions). The design is proven, and is actually over-engineered in places. When I read the threads on concrete-filled conduit, double-decker gantries and other tweaks, I wonder if the benefits of that sort of optimization is worth it when the basic part connections are still clamped 3D-printed parts.
Before anyone starts passing out pitchforks, this is also an amazingly creative and intelligent community (and I’m not just flattering you to save my hide), so wanting to push the boundaries of the design is only natural. But I can’t reiterate Ryan’s own advice: Build it as documented first, then get crazy.
I agree with the Rambo. I started with the basic load out, two motors off of one driver. But if you’re like me and love improving your machine, you’ll want the board that gives the most options.
