Class Red Equipment
High risk of injury
See Workshop Safety
Training is required to use this tool
This machine is homemade, so it won't stand up to the same amount of abuse as a commercially made machine. It will, however, continue to move the cutter regardless of what gets in its way. You are responsible for ensuring your own safety; do not operate this machine if you do not feel capable of doing so safely. Trainers will always be happy to assist you if you need it, and would much rather be involved before problems occur, than after.
- Only those who have been trained by the room lead, and have signed a usage agreement, are permitted to operate the machine.
- Never leave a running job unattended.
- Always wear safety glasses while the machine is running.
- Never put any body part anywhere which could get trapped while the machine is running.
- Always check the Gcode at a high elevation before running the job.
- Never crash the tool.
- Always check that the spindle has been switched on before starting the program.
- Always be ready and poised to hit the emergency stop button as soon as anything looks wrong.
- £1 per hour if using your own cutters.
- £2 per hour if using hackspace cutters.
Chargeable time is measured as any time the router is running a program. This is displayed in the Universal GCode Sender UI, if you are using that.
- Spindle:
- Katsu trim router
- 710W
- 10,000 - 30,000 RPM
- 6mm, 8mm, 1/4" and 3/8" collets available
- Motion:
- 3 axes
- Max travel:
- 380mm X axis
- 340mm Y axis
- 75mm Z axis (From spoil board to bottom of gantry)
- 1200mm/s max lateral speed
- 600mm/s max vertical speed
- This machine has no ability to read a file itself, it simply runs GRBL. It must be controlled by an external computer using a Gcode sender.
- Machine runs Gcode, models must be processed into Gcode in much the same way as for 3D printing.
- It is possible to manually write Gcode files, but extreme care must be taken as human errors can lead to catastrophic tool crashes.
- This machine is belt driven, and is not especially rigid, so it does not have high positional accuracy.
- The machine has no positional limits, so it is possible to run the gantry to the point where the belt will skip
- The spindle is not connected to the control board, so it must be turned on and off manually.
- When the emergency stop button is pressed, the machine will stop all position motors, but the spindle will continue running and it will lose its current coordinates.
- Create a Gcode file using any capable software package.
- Examples: Fusion 360, Carbide Create, FreeCAD.
- Simulate the Gcode to check that it looks reasonable.
- Clamp/screw workpiece to the bed.
- Install the correct tool into the spindle.
- Set the tool position relative to the X, Y & Z axes.
- Set the Z axis tool position 10-20mm above the top surface of the material.
- Load the Gcode file into Universal GCode Sender (UGS) on the computer.
- Ensure that you are able to hit the emergency stop button the instant you see anything wrong.
- Use the "Trace outline" button above the 3D toolpath preview on the right hand side of the window.
- Turn on the spindle.
- Run the Gcode.
- Watch the machine through the entirety of the job.
- After the machine has completed the job, switch off the spindle.
- Clear the tool using jog controls on your Gcode sender and remove the completed part.
- Clean up the chips and leave the machine in a usable state for the next user.
- Hold in the lock button on the spindle body, and spin the spindle shaft by hand until the lock button registers into the recess.
- Use the spanner to loosen the collet nut.
- If changing to a tool of the same diameter, the tool can be removed from the collet and the new one slid in.
- If changing to another collet:
- Remove the nut, collet and cutter.
- Return the collet to its storage box.
- Locate the new collet and check that the new tool fits into it.
- The collets only fit a single size. If the tool does not slide in with no side-play, then it is the wrong sized collet.
- Do not force a tool into a collet. If it does not fit when the collet is loose, a bigger collet must be used.
- Do not over-tighten the collet nut as will damage the spindle.
- Insert the collet into the spindle and screw the collet nut back into the tool holder until it starts to give a small amount of resistance.
- Insert the tool and tighten by hand until the tool is gripped.
- Use the spanner to tighten the collet down, but do not use excessive force.
- Use the jog controls to move the tool to a known location in one or more axes.
- Send the code
G92 to the controller to set the axis position, eg. G92 X0 Y0 Z10
- Usually workpieces can be screwed to the bed in a location which will not be part of the final part.
- The bed is sacrificial, so it does not matter if the tool breaks through the part and cuts into the bed.
- Do try to keep overcutting to a minimum to elongate the time between bed replacements.
- Ensure that the screws are located where they will not be hit by the cutter when the job is running.