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Post by BigBee on May 19, 2019 17:57:16 GMT -5
I have been running a small Chinese eBay CNC for about 10 years now. I am tired of fighting with this thing and its time to upgrade. I am a weekend warrior and sell enough projects to more than pay for my hobby. Now that I'm an empty nester I have the time to expand and start a little side business. I use the CNC for inlays, 3D carvings on boxes, and making gears for mechanical movements. Currently I run BobCad software and Mach 3. I have had to pass on some projects recently due to capacity of my current CNC. Here are the basics that I want: Liquid Cooled spindle. Here are some add-on's I'm considering: Laser and The rotary kit. But cost may delay these. Questions: - How is the quality on the Laser kit?
- Is there enough vertical capacity to make the rotary kit worthwhile?
- Can I use BobCad? or do I have to switch to Aspire?
- Does this use Mach 3 post processor or something else?
- Today I have a monitor next my machine and can watch the cut as it moves through the piece. I don't see this as an option with Axiom. Am I missing something?
- What other questions should I be asking?
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Post by stevem on May 19, 2019 18:45:34 GMT -5
The Axiom is run off a USB stick. You create your project in VCarve or some other graphic software and need to save your cut file as a MMG that Axiom will run. I do not think it is possible to hook up a monitor to watch anything. Almost everyone I know uses Vectric software. There some on this forum who use Fusion, but seem to have a problem getting there files to run correctly.
As for the laser and rotary kit, I don't have either so I can't comment on their use.
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Post by gerry on May 19, 2019 20:31:10 GMT -5
I'm unfamiliar with BobCAD. They have zero info on their site. I'm guessing that if you can get a functioning post processor, it should work with any CAD. Does it generate GCode?
The laser is by Jtech Photronics. They produce a lot of 3rd party laser add-ons. The laser is a 4.2w. One of the major drawbacks is that the laser is only on/off. It uses PWM to control the amount of power to the laser, which AXIOM does not have. AXIOM calls it an 'engrave only' laser. You won't be doing photo dithering. I use it to engrave text, my logo, and cut thin stuff, like felt box liners. The main method for controlling the burn is via feed rate changes. You can change the power with a potentiometer and molex jumpers, but those are a real pain because they're hard to access.
I don't mind having a hand controller because it keeps me from having a computer in the shop. So far it has met all of my requirements. YMMV. You cannot attach monitors to the controller.
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Post by damonlayne on May 20, 2019 10:35:47 GMT -5
- What other questions should I be asking?
Technical support is one thing I considered when I was doing my CNC research. This forum has some intelligent, active members that offer troubleshooting if anything were to go wrong while you are in production mode. The Axiom admins also jump online to assist. You may not need the advice with all your years of experience BUT it is nice to have backup when you are in a bind. |
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Post by aluomala on May 21, 2019 12:22:01 GMT -5
I bought the rotary attachment when I purchased my second machine. I have zero experience with that attachment, and the last time I did any woodturning was 30+ years ago in shop class, and my initial impression (after rounding some square wood to make blanks (using the gadget in Aspire) and then trying to make one relatively simple design (basically a handle for a cart that had a 3D design on it)) is that it isn't as robust as I would have hoped. The chuck slips/spins with very light pressure applied (i.e it can easily be turned by hand) and the feeds/speeds have to be reduced greatly from what I am used to on flat (3 axis) work. I don't have the time to play around with it at the moment, but I will try again in the near future since i also recently purchased a good sized lathe so I can use both CNC and traditional woodturning to do my projects.
I also found the build quality/QC (quality control) to be lacking on my rotary attachment (I posted about it in another thread), but the problem was basically that the fittings (one for electrical connector and one was the bolts that hold down the tailstock) were too short, and I had to either take things apart (to deal with the electrical fitting) and make a trip to the hardware store to get a longer bolt for the tailstock. Not the end of the world, but disconcerting when you spend that kind of money. Also, the documentation is lacking, but I'm flogging a dead horse in that regard...
The maximum diameter you can have is 6" (or 75mm), and the length will depend on which machine you have (the y-axis basically). I was toying with building riser blocks to place under the headstock and tailstock to get a few extra inches (probably not much, since the z-axis (and bit length) will limit the overall height/diameter possible.
Allan
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Post by Axiom Tool Group on May 21, 2019 15:01:26 GMT -5
I have been running a small Chinese eBay CNC for about 10 years now. I am tired of fighting with this thing and its time to upgrade. I am a weekend warrior and sell enough projects to more than pay for my hobby. Now that I'm an empty nester I have the time to expand and start a little side business. I use the CNC for inlays, 3D carvings on boxes, and making gears for mechanical movements. Currently I run BobCad software and Mach 3. I have had to pass on some projects recently due to capacity of my current CNC. Here are the basics that I want: Liquid Cooled spindle. Here are some add-on's I'm considering: Laser and The rotary kit. But cost may delay these. Questions: - How is the quality on the Laser kit?
- Is there enough vertical capacity to make the rotary kit worthwhile?
- Can I use BobCad? or do I have to switch to Aspire?
- Does this use Mach 3 post processor or something else?
- Today I have a monitor next my machine and can watch the cut as it moves through the piece. I don't see this as an option with Axiom. Am I missing something?
- What other questions should I be asking?
Our lasers are produced by JTech Photonics, who produce similar lasers for 80+ CNC applications. It is an engraving laser only, and not comparable to a CO2 or Fiber laser which can be used for cutting...intended for engraving only. Though it can cut some materials and it can be used for shading it some ways, however, the power is non adjustable. So the control of shading is down by adjusting the step over and feed rate....which simply means that photo quality engraving is not possible. But images can be dithered and engraved essentially just as a series of dots much like an older news print image. For Rotary kit capacity, much of that will depend upon the machine. The AR Pro+ machines have a 6.5" gantry clearance...so the stock that's being fit into the chuck for the rotary kit will need to fit within that window. In addition there needs to be enough room above the material to allow for the length of tooling. Generally we do not recommend another larger than 4.5". For the Elite machines a small riser block could be created to increase the height of the kit and allow for 6.5"+ As with most CNC applications, you can use nearly any CAD/CAM programs that you prefer. However, there are still some the two not offer a post processor which enables a user to create the proper gcode for their controller. Fortunately BobCAD has been very good about creating those processors for their users. We have worked closely with a few that have recently had additional processors created for both 4th Axis Rotary use as well as the Laser accessory. Post processors are software specific...but Mach3 which is used with PC controls only is not supported. Since we only use DSP handheld controls there is no support for PC controls and no ability to add a monitor...regarding the monitor, what these show you is never trustworthy. Stepper motor machines do not have encoders, so they would not be able to communicate current position to the monitor. So things like speed, lubrication and cutting forces that can cause a machine to slip...will not be reflected. The monitor will just show what the software would expect the machines position to be and loss of position at the machine will not be seen. In addition, slowing the feed-rate down at the machine will also have no way of translating to what is seen on the screen. The best recommendation is previewing the tool path within the software. Please feel free to reach out to us at any time...we are always happy to help or answer any questions you may have. |
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