What to buy

Mostly Printed CNC - MPCNC Advice
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I have a 3d printer and plan on printing the plastic parts. I have a little experience with CNC but I am a little confused what kit to get. I am only looking to do some hobby and custom part making with it. Just looking for a setup that does the milling. Would like it to have a decent footprint and a decent Z access. Not sure what part bundle to get. I see different voltages, ones with different sets of wires. What board it best. May consider upgrading to a laser engraver in the further but for now just interested in milling wood and plexi among other materials. Any advice would be helpful.

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Board: I went with the RAMBo because I know myself and I’ll want to play with dual end stops even though they’re unnecessary for most projects.

Power Supply: Except for the tool itself, I run my whole machine off the 12V 6A power brick.

Wiring: Ryan didn’t offer the fancy new dual endstop wiring kit when I was ordering, but I think his advice is solid. If you’re new to CNCs, stick to the “regular” setup. Personally, I’d order the dual endstop wiring as an add-on (save on shipping, throw it in the box)

Lasers: I’m currently stuck in analysis paralysis on this one, and I need to just click buy. No real advice, except to say there’s a nice blog post on the subject, and lots of good info floating around in the forums if you search.

Things you might want to consider, since you’re ordering anyway:

  • LCD - This is not absolutely required, but I use it a bunch. https://vicious1-com.myshopify.com/collections/parts/products/full-graphic-smart-controller-big
  • Bits - Ryan has some of the lowest priced bits I've found, and he's shipping you a box anyway. Throw some of those in your cart.
Extras I bought elsewhere:
  • Raspberry Pi 3 B+ to use instead of a dedicated full PC. Jeffeb3 has an image with OctoPrint and CNC.js pre-installed.
    • A cheap Micro-USB cable to cannibalize
    • 12V to 5V step down regulator to power the RPi from the same power brick: http://a.co/i6hUuM7
    • Logitech C920 web cam - I like OctoPrint's time lapses
  • Power strip with built in relay for turning the tool on and off from FAN 0 on the RAMBo: http://a.co/9HFaHjz
  • "Tape measure trick" for wire management:
    • Super-cheap tape measure to cannibalize: http://a.co/hcGobNc
    • PET expandable braiding: http://a.co/1hwCoru Ryan sells this in black, but my machine is mostly orange.
  • Z-Axis cable management:
    • Suggestions here: https://www.v1engineering.com/forum/topic/cable-chain-for-z-axis/
  • Cheap-o touch plate:
    • Foil tape: https://www.homedepot.com/p/Shurtape-1-88-in-x-10-yds-Aluminum-Foil-Repair-Tape-241588/301296783
    • Alligator clips
    • Some extra wire
    • https://youtu.be/cbQD0Clu2kw
Note: I'm kind of a gadget addict. A lot of the extra gear makes it sound like I run the machine unattended. I don't. That would be incredibly unsafe. Don't do this ever.
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Whoa…This might need to be a sticky. Nice post!