Planning Project Gunner: CNC done, back to the case design (2/19/2016)

That is a pretty accurate summary

I didn't think it would take me three to four years though...

So close

 

Isn't that how everyone does it?

Thanks! I feel I should master the manual lathe and mill before I turn my hand to CNC. Old skool: really learn to understand the tools and how it all works.

 

I just stumbled across your G0704 build. You did a phenomenal job from beginning to end!
Any chance you could share with me the brand/ supplier for the vertical column cable routing channel,angle brackets, etc?
I'd love to see any updates or videos posted of the mill in action.
Thanks,
Pat

 

Almost done...

It has been a while since I have posted and that has mainly due to issues with the mill I have been working through. The main problem I have had is with the spindle motor. It failed twice, so I switched to an after market motor which I posted earlier about. I had to have a machine shop make the motor mounts for me since the mill was down. The guy doing the work for me is Scott at Benchtop Precision. He does good work at a fair price. Anyway, I have the mill together and got the pneumatic drawbar mounted, which lets me change tools with the press of a button. I have a few minor tweaks to do to the mill and it is done... I took some pictures of the pneumatic drawbar mounted and a video of it working, so you guys can see. I will also post a vid of it cutting in a couple of weeks so you guys can see that too. Now that I am at the end of this, I have started thinking about designing and "making" an new computer case. I have some ideas, but the challenge will be to design something that is made from parts I can make on my mill. The envelope for the mill is about 12 inches long by 5 inches wide. I am thinking of something frame based with polycarbonate panels, but it will evolve as I work through the design. I am going to use a micoATX with one video card and one of the new SSDs that use a PCI slot. I am going to try and keep it as small as possible. The main offender to keeping everything small is the power supply, so once I sort that out, I should be good to go. Anyway, here are the pics of my mill and the short vid.









https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PfcOZ39HF3A

 

Sweeeeet.
12x5.5 is the work area on my rig. I thought this thing was bigger. -anyway, It you are good at repositioning and have a pallet set up, you could potentially mill 10" x whatever you want.

 

you are preaching to this choir
im trying to design a case for 2 machines (independent of each other) and to keep it 'portable'
i want a handle
the PSUs and 120mm fans make it a nightmare
keep up the great work

 

That is a good point Cheapskate. I think after I calibrate my Haimer 3D Sensor I will be a lot better at repositioning parts. I also need to setup a tool table so I don't have to measure tool height with every tool change.

I do regret not getting a bigger mill. I am already thinking about my next mill. I have started a scratch build design for one with linear rails, but I think it will cost to much to make. If I had to do it over again I would convert a Rong Fu RF-45. I got the BF20 because I was worried I would not be able to move it around due to its weight, but when you convert a mill you take it a part, so it is not an issue to move the individual parts around.

 

I was researching power supplies last night and it looks like for the build I am planning I need 628 Watts, so I may just use a standard power supply. From a cursory look, it seems like once you go over 400 Watts, it is hard to find a small form factor power supply.

 

So I have started scratching my head on my new computer case design. I don’t want to make it so hard I never finish it, but I have been kicking around this idea for a while and wanted to see what you guys think. I was thinking about making and bonding a water block to the back of my motherboard using thermally conductive epoxy.

You guys have any thoughts or concerns about this?

My initial concern is breaking a solder joint behind the CPU due to thermal expansion, so I might leave it open behind the CPU but bond everything else.

Here is a link to the product I was thinking about:
http://solutions.3m.com/wps/portal/3M/en_US/Electronics_NA/Electronics/Products/Electronics_Product_Catalog/~/3M-Thermally-Conductive-Epoxy-Adhesive-TC-2810?N=8704986+3294001757&rt=rud

 

It is go time

Got some stuff, things are about to get moving

 

I need to get moving on this one. I need a new computer, so not going to get as crazy as I was initially thinking. As soon as I get the front panel of the case sorted out, I will start cutting metal.

 

Big toe: You are officially modding now.
Not going crazy: Assemble and run the rig in a cardboard box while building case mayhem.
:Epoxy-thing: I wouldn't try that. I'm not sure what's on the back of the board to cool anyway, but if you are going that way, you can make a new chip backplate, or even a backplate/mobo tray combo. to mount from.
ITX is small enough you can fit it in an aluminum brick fairly cheaply.

 

lol, damn big toe snuck into the picture...

Here is a quick look at the layout I am leaning towards and a possible front grill. I am going to keep this thing small as possible.

 

Small as possible: Make a note of your cable connect positions. There's always one in the way of something.

 

Good point Cheapskate. That is defiantly a concern. Packing everything in tight is harder than going big.

Here is another pic of the case...still messing around with it.