Welcome to the SeeMeCNC Community

Ok so I bought my g0704 mill awhile back and am just now getting around to putting it together. Today I started wiring the electronics up and testing them. I got mach 3 configured and got all the stepper motors running like they are supposed to "YIPPIE!!!" and have now taken it all back apart to wire it up nice and clean in its enclosure. The enclosure was scavanged from a dumpster and has just the right holes drilled in it to make things nice and purdy. Im printing out a couple of brackets to mount the power supply as I type and waiting for the wife to come home so she can yell at me for all the stuff i drug up into the living room. LOL Oh well, she loves me anyway.....
[img]http://i1102.photobucket.com/albums/g446/davidflowers1/Mobile%20Uploads/20150220_164001_resized.jpg[/img]
[img]http://i1102.photobucket.com/albums/g446/davidflowers1/Mobile%20Uploads/20150220_163951_resized.jpg[/img]
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have you priced out a ballscrew conversion for this yet?

yes, bought them awhile ago from Dave Clements (arizonavideo99 on youtube) Looks like you can get the same pkg from automation technologies for 699.00 Just been waiting on software before putting the mill together. Have the money now to purchase, but still a bit undecided.....

heres the kit I got
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ueALn4w5aoM

I have a long thread for my G0704 conversion over on the CNCZone. At the time there were no kits, so many of us did a "Hoss" conversion. I went with ballscrews and the extended Y axis. Tons of photos here: http://mhackney.zenfolio.com/p151511137

and I'm happy to answer questions. I run Mach as a controller on my 2 mills, lathe and router. I am building out my G0602 lathe and used a kit - that saved a lot of time. I'm using a KFlop for the lathe but in retrospect I should have stuck with what I know - Mach. There is a big learning curve with KFlop and it has stalled my conversion temporarily.

mhackney wrote:I have a long thread for my G0704 conversion over on the CNCZone. At the time there were no kits, so many of us did a "Hoss" conversion. I went with ballscrews and the extended Y axis. Tons of photos here: http://mhackney.zenfolio.com/p151511137

and I'm happy to answer questions. I run Mach as a controller on my 2 mills, lathe and router. I am building out my G0602 lathe and used a kit - that saved a lot of time. I'm using a KFlop for the lathe but in retrospect I should have stuck with what I know - Mach. There is a big learning curve with KFlop and it has stalled my conversion temporarily.

Ill be checking out that thread. Honestly I impressed myself getting the stepper up and running the first try. I do plan on extending the Y axis from the get go, stock configuration is a little lacking.
I also have plans in the near future to cnc a 9"x48" rockwell lathe once I get the hang of things.
Im really excited about all this. I has been a few years since I got interested in cnc, but allocating funds has proven difficult. Im coming into the home stretch now and still have plans on building my rov design, so maybe in the next 10 years I will actually get it built...its a bottom crawler designed to work in the surf and collect lost jewlry and stuff....now if only I can figure out how to hack the metal detector.....

[img]http://i1102.photobucket.com/albums/g446/davidflowers1/Mobile%20Uploads/SEA2001.jpg[/img]

Well dammit, there goes the tax refund. *sigh*

DavidF, what did the CNC conversion kit cost you?

g.

geneb wrote:Well dammit, there goes the tax refund. *sigh*

DavidF, what did the CNC conversion kit cost you?

g.

At the time the ball screw kit was 600.00 and the steppers and drivers were 649.00
This is something that has been in the works for some time now. Yep, there goes the tax refund...

I Cnc'd a Sieg X2 mill, and I want to cnc a lathe. Cam software for mills are easy. For lathes, it appears to be difficult /more expensive, because of tool profile.

Mac The Knife wrote:I Cnc'd a Sieg X2 mill, and I want to cnc a lathe. Cam software for mills are easy. For lathes, it appears to be difficult /more expensive, because of tool profile.

Lathes are simple enough to hand program in my opinion, 2d drafting or 2d sketching in a 3d part work well for picking points and geometry to develop the tool profile, I'm willing to bet Mach3 has canned lathe cycles that can take care of all of the roughing. Its been a long time since I've used it but I seem to remember there was back in the day.

I also have a converted X2 and I converted a 7x12 lathe. http://www.jfettigmachines.com/lathekit.html

I recall Art developed lazycam for lathe work. But like you said, you had to cad in your tool profile, where as with mill, the profile is a cylinder in most cases.

Things were going good, I got the z axis all set up and running then went to install the Y axis ball screw......
Ok todays lesson.....how to pack a ball screw.......

Is the ball screw kit required?

g.

Ball screws are more accurate and have alot less friction so you dont eat up the motors torque. You dont absolutly have to have them, but i wouldnt want to be without them...
Im all up and running now and milled my first circular pocket today. Its no formula 1, but it gets the job done. Maybe once i figure out what it likes for speeds n feeds it may be faster. Video coming soon...

My problem is that I could afford the mill and the CNC kit, but not the ballscrew upgrade as well.

I also have to budget for collets and Mach3 as well.
...and shipping and tax....
g.

Do it a bit at a time; build the controller first. If you are going to use Gecko drives you'll need a beefy torroidal transformer. We had one made for around $200 that would rectify out to something like 80V/7A for NEMA 34 motors. Big filter cap and rectifier board can be bought off the shelf from one of the hobby CNC suppliers. 4 Geckos, a couple solid state relays, and a breakout board, Mach3 and you are good to go.

I strongly recommend the Campbell Designs Combo Breakout board http://www.campbelldesigns.net/
Yes, it is for the parallel port, so find a clunker PC and run everybodies fav OS; Win XP.
I have built two of these and run a 9x20 lathe, Sherline mill and converted a Bridgeport Boss CNC mill to this controller along with a 4th axis rx table. The electronics have worked flawlessly.
If you are feeling rich and lazy, we also converted a Gizzly 12x36 gunsmith lathe to Microkinetics mechanics and control system and it is fantastc and so is the support from Microkinetics. It has great software, macros, threading, a 6 pos tool turret, pneumatic collet closer, bar puller. Not bad for a inexpensive machine =)

geneb wrote:My problem is that I could afford the mill and the CNC kit, but not the ballscrew upgrade as well.

I also have to budget for collets and Mach3 as well.
...and shipping and tax....
g.

Based on what you will eventually spend on tooling they should give the machines away, like crack for machinists

geneb wrote:My problem is that I could afford the mill and the CNC kit, but not the ballscrew upgrade as well.

I also have to budget for collets and Mach3 as well.
...and shipping and tax....
g.

Know the feeling, this conversion has been sitting idle for some time waiting on funds. If you know that someday you want this and its unlikely your thoughts would change then start getting what you can when you can. You could still make good use of a manual mill

I may hold off for a while. I suspect it'll go to some bills instead. Besides, I REALLY need to do the hardened rail upgrade on my ShopBot first and that's around $1500 plus shipping...

g.

ok first cuts...http://youtu.be/H70V09xrfKI

Great start. You're going to have way too much fun with it.
I came at this from the other way around, machines first then 3D printer. I have to keep reminding myself there is a simple way to make test parts... print them!

If you had to do it over again would you still get the G0704 or would you pickup a different model?

KAS wrote:If you had to do it over again would you still get the G0704 or would you pickup a different model?

Havent done enough with it yet to say for certain, but for now...
Im happy with it and it fits the budget. However if money wasnt an issue I would have gone with a MD001 http://charteroakautomation.com/our-pro ... -bed-mill/

I definitely understand that. I have several 80% lower AR15 blanks that I'd like to mill out and was looking at Grizzly a while ago. Although I can do it on a beefy drill press, It gives me an excuse for more tools.
It never occurred to me that it could be modded for cnc. Since I'm sitting on a cnc electronics package already I might just bite the bullet and go for it.

I was looking at the Grizzly G0795 as I recently had my garage wired for 220. I just want to be a guinea pig on something new (not released yet) trying to cnc it.

KAS you can do that on a manual mill I've done a few 0%, I finished up the prototype billet SWS CR-15 on a bridgeport(including the magwell) before I started programming the 5-axis