The design for the Y-axis mounting plate for the Nema23 stepper is shown below and can be 3dprinted or, as I will do after the printed part proves to fit well, CNC it in aluminium on my CNC Indymill router.
The Y-axis adapter proved to be the most difficult design. It took me 15 trial prints before I got everyting fully optimized. And I also wanted to have a debree screen with a removable lid, which took some energy to test this. Also, the belt has to have a clean route where it sits between the wheel.
The physical data for this setup:
Nema23 stepper motor
3d printed parts: a: Baseplate inclusing risers for motormount and shield; b: lid
Teethed wheel for the Nema23 8mm axle: 10mm wide, 24 teeth M3 with chest
Teethed wheel for the leadscrew 10mm axle: 10mm wide: 48 teeth M3 with chest, machined on the teethed inside 9mm depth with a width of 33 mm diameter to fit the chest of the leadscrew bearing holder
The fitting belt is 9mm wide, 300 mm long and has 100 teeth (M3)
Machined the inner part out on the lathe so it will slide for about 9mm over the Y axis’ leadscrew bearing holder
And now the wheel can move over the bearing holder to the rightThis saves 9mm mounting space and now the machined handwheel can be replaced, if so desired. But the handwheel needs to be machined first, to get the dial off.
the small holes can be used to place the lid on the debree screen with small 2.5 mm dia screws Or, you van leave the lid off and put a wheel on as I have done on the Z-axis. You must machine the dial off the wheel so it gets thin enough to mount on the remaining M8 leadscrew-end. A little part of the 10mm shaft will stick out with my method to keep the handwheel centered.
The mount on the Z-column needed to get UP so the NEMA23 teethed wheel gets at the same level as the wheel that is mounted on the leadscrew.
Required hardware:
3d printed Z-axis adapter
Nema23 stepper 76 mm length with enough torque, 8mm axle diameter
48teeth M3 teethed wheel of 11mm width, 10mm hole with collar for the leadscrew
24 teeth M3 teethed wheel 11mm width , 8mm hole with collar for the Nema23 stepper motor
new M6 40mm length bolts flathead for the top connection to the Z column
4 bolts and nuts M5 to mount the Nema 23 stepper
teethed belt 300mm M3 (100 teeth) 9 or 10mm
OR, use the 72 teethed wheel on the leadscrew and get a larger length belt of (I estimate) 330-350 mm
OR.. another way to mount the Nema23stepper is at the rear of the Z column, BUT I don’t want it to stick out at the rear, that’s why I decided to mount the stepper at the left of the Z-column…
This is the 72 teeth 11 mm width teethed wheel that I will probably use for the final mount at the Z-axes. But not with this bracket at the rear. Unfortunately this bracket does not easily fit at the left or right side of the Z-column. I might make a fitting piece to mount it at the left, though. We’ll see how good the 3d printed parts will perform and if needed the Z-axis will be the easiest to use a standard bracket for mounting the stepper motor as shown above.
2021-10-30: When converting (or upgrading, depends on your P.O.V.) a mill to CNC, it is absolutely necessary to have end stops on all ends. Except the low-end of the Z-axis, an end stop at the Z-axis low end is practically impossible.
On the Z-axis low end another solution has been established by using a Z-stop from the milling toolbit on a fixed X-Y position, OR by testing with the toolbit in place on the matrerial by sight or electronically.
I bought a Z-position sensor for this, which is nothing more than an electrically insulated round pod with a flexible brass top. It is with one wire connected to the Mach3- motherboard as Z-probe and triggers when the tooltip touches the top of the Z pod’s brass top. Therefore, this trigger is defined as ACTIVE when it is conected to Ground. Since the mill will be grounded and thus also the tooltip is always connected to ground. You MUST ground the mill, by the way. Also for your safety.
Leaves us with the 5 enstops for which I have bought the thinnest available inductive sensors. These are M6 size round and about 8 cm long. These sensors require power, ground and since they are NPN type sensors which means Normally OPEN when NOT active, they will ground the output pin when activated at reaching the the stop position. To activate these inductive sensors, a carbon- containing metal would be best to use and bring the sensor close. The trigger moment depends on the connected power voltage. The higher the voltage, the more sensitive the sensor becomes.
I will use 12 Volts or 24 Volts, I will experience a bit with these settings.
On the net I was unable to find any plug and play sensor holders for my mill, so I developed these holders again from scratch in OpenScad.
Fortunately, I have a lot of starting material in OpenScad from my previous projects.
While I was making my CNC adapter plates with teethed wheels and belts, I discovered that not much exists that is ready to use for these conversions.
I am therefore also making direct drive adapter parts, to try this out.
This is the first one, starting with the most difficult one. The rest will be added soon.
Version 1.2 which is 15 mm shorter and much more robust:
The leadscrew has an outside part for the handwheel we will use for CNC that is 10mm, and some thread 8mm. The thread is needed to be bolting the angular bearings (not meant for side torque) with some torque to the bearing holder.
If you do direct drive, you need a special coupler that can be split in 2. Then, you first mount one part on the leadscrew with some rings between the mill and the coupler part so that the nut can be place in the coupler. If the thread is too long, grind some off.
Then, put the rubber (with centerhole) back in the coupler’s mounted part and push the other part in the rubber, so the coupler is complete.
Then, mount the printed adapter with already mounted Nema23 motor on the Y-axis and push the Nema shaft in the coupler. Use the adapter’s right hand side working window to torque the connector on the Nema shaft and you’re done!
Should you want to have a handwheel as well, you will have to buy a stepper with an axis that is both at the front as the rear. (this is called ‘double shaft’ but is actually a longer shaft, obviously.
OR- my latest design works a bit different: first put a couple of 10mm rings on the leadscrew’s 10mm axle, and then screw a threaded RVS tube with an outer diameter of 12mm, 25 mm long and internal 8mm thread on the axle. This goed into a 12 to 8mm coupler and this coupler connects to a NEMA23 stepper motor with an 8 mm axis. It does get a bit lengthy but it works very well. Just threadlock the RVS threaded tube to the leadscrew’s 8mm threaded end and it will run OK!
This is the last version, based on the above setup:
Before My Toolmania WBM16LV milling machine was delivered I already had plans to convert it to a CNC milling machine.
I do have some experience with 3d printing, and I have 2 CNC routers up and running, like the Indymill. So, the conversion of this mill will not be difficult in the Technical sense. But- making the perfect designs for the adapter plates of the Y- and X- axes proved to be a lot more work than I expected.
The column cutter is already equipped with glass scales with digital readout. Furthermore, there is a gas spring mounted on the Z-column so that not all the weight is in the way when moving back and forth. Also an automatic lubrication system for the slides of X, Y and Z-axis will be mounted.)
The electronics will become OpenCNC + wifi + wireless controlbox. I received the kit and will put it together the coming weeks. For now I am going to set the mill up with my all-in one USB-CNC-MDK2 board. I use this for all of my routers and mills to get it set up in first instance since it is very simple and sturdy. And- you can run it instantaniously without any PC or programming, just with the handwheel or from SD card. And from the laptop, of course.
Direct drive adapter for the X-axisDirect drive adapter for Y-axis
Above: Direct drive adapter for the Z-axis
left top the Z-axis adapter, right the X axis adapter and at the bottom the Y-axis adapter
What makes it tricky is the choice to make: Will I replace the spindles with ball bearing spindles or not? Not for the time being, first let’s make everything on CNC and then I’ll see how it goes.
While I was making my CNC adapter plates with teethed wheels and belts, I discovered that not much exists that is ready to use for these conversions.
I am therefore also making direct drive adapter parts, to try this out.
This is the second piece I make for direct drive, for the X-axis.
The leadscrew has an outside part for the handwheel we will use for CNC that is 10mm, and some thread 8mm. The thread is needed to be bolting the angular bearings (not meant for side torque) with some torque to the bearing holder.
If you do direct drive, you need a special coupler that can be split in 2. Then, you first mount one part on the leadscrew with some rings between the mill and the coupler part so that the nut can be placed in the coupler. If the thread is too long, grind some off.
Then, put the rubber (with centerhole) back in the coupler’s mounted part and push the other part in the rubber, so the coupler is complete.
Then, mount the printed adapter with already mounted Nema23 motor on the Y-axis and push the Nema shaft in the coupler. Use the adapter’s right hand side working window to torque the connector on the Nema shaft and you’re done!
Should you want to have a handwheel as well, this is possible but you will have to buy a stepper with an axis that is both at the front as the rear. (this is called ‘double shaft’ but is actually a longer shaft, obviously.
While I was making my CNC adapter plates with teethed wheels and belts, I discovered that not much exists that is ready to use for these conversions.
I am therefore also making direct drive adapter parts, to try this out.
This is the third piece I make for direct drive, for the Z-axis.
This pice is fairly simple: First a good fit is needed to mount the adapter to the top of the Z-column, and the holes for the 4 bolts need to be acactly correct. Also, the same for the leadscrew hole of the bearing holder.
Then, on top of this, the Nema23 holder/mounting is projected. Including all needed boltholes, nutholes and a side hole for tightening the coupler.
The leadscrew has an outside part for the handwheel we will use for CNC that is 10mm, and some thread 10mm for Z. The thread is needed to be bolting the angular bearings (not meant for side torque) with some torque to the bearing holder.
If you do direct drive, you need a special coupler that can be split in 2. Then, you first mount one part on the leadscrew with some rings between the mill and the coupler part so that the nut can be placed in the coupler. If the thread is too long, grind some off.
Then, put the rubber (with centerhole) back in the coupler’s mounted part and push the other part in the rubber, so the coupler is complete.
Then, mount the printed adapter with already mounted Nema23 motor on the Y-axis and push the Nema shaft in the coupler. Use the adapter’s right hand side working window to torque the connector on the Nema shaft and you’re done!
Should you want to have a handwheel as well, this is possible but you will have to buy a stepper with an axis that is both at the front as the rear. (this is called ‘double shaft’ but is actually a longer shaft, obviously.]
Last week (2021-Nov-04) I ordered me a Prusa mini clone from Aliexpress.
I already have an original Prusa Mini from the moment it was offered by Prusa. I waited for over 1/2 a year to get it delivered as I was one of the (almost) first to order it. And- I value the machine very positive.
I use it for professional prints, mostly with white, orange and black PETG.
I hope that my additional Prusa Mini will be just as perfect as my original one.
On Ali, everything was offered except the printed parts. It includes a buddyboard 32 bits with 2209 drivers, LCD 2.6 inch, 3 motors, nuts and bolts, cables, hoses, bearings, clamps, hotbed, pei sheet, rods, extruder, fans, extrusion, you name it, really everything is included for 105 Euro’s . But- you guessed it- I never got anything delivered. I have a dispute running now, hopefully I wiull get the money back. And- I ordered a new one, now the costs are more than double, as is to be expected.
As add-on I ordered 2 renewed Z-sensors (including temp sensor) from Prusa for Eur 50 incl. Tax and shipment. With this, both mini’s can be upgraded to Mini+ 3d printers. Except the longer bed of course. Also, both the buddyboards will get the Mini+ firmware.
Since I also own an original Prusa mini, printing the parts was easy, as you can see in the attached pictures.:
Still, also a Prusa mini can have stringing wth PetG. OR, i think this was caused because I purposely set the temp very high to get extremely solid prints. Whatever, I cleaned the printed parts afterwards with a knife and that turned out to be easy enough.
The black PETG parts got printed on my Ender 3 pro+.
Built after receival of the non-printed parts on 2021-12-22 JMWG.NL
I upgraded the Buddyboard V1.0.0 straight away to the latest Prusa Mini firmware and compared the prints against my Original Prusa Mini.
I honestly could not see any difference between the two of them.
The stuff I ordered on Ali:
Https://github.com/FYSETC/FYSETC-Prusa-mini-clone
3.2/2.8 MW power is momenteel in voldoende voorraad, bent u welkom om een bestelling plaatst, de voorraad is in de Spaanse magazijn, dank u voor uw steun,
Video tutorial:
Pakket:
Schroef kit 1
Tool kit 1
USB disk 1
Gladde staven kit 1
3030 extrusie kit 1
625 lager 3
12.5mm, 3mm OD as 1
4.9*12mm as 1
16T GT2 Katrol (als MK3) 2
Platte Katrol (als MK3) 2
X/Y riem 2
LM8UU 5
LM10LUU 2
Dit product omvat niet prints. Als u of kopen het zelf, het bestand afdrukken link: https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4338197
3.2 inch scherm case STL Link:https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4307001
