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View Full Version : Another newbie with questions for the MM Gurus


revved_up
Sat 19 January 2008, 09:01
A brief introduction:
Hello all, my name is Craig and I'm an addict. I bought a carvewright/compucarve a year ago and after two failed machines I gave up and started to check out the shop-bot then I found this site. I know there is no comparison of the MM to the carvewright and I am not even trying to imply anything as that would be an insult. Just that the carvewright filled my head with alot of ideas and dreams that I hope to possibly bring to life with a MechMate.

I work for the phone company (at&t) and therefore do not have much of a mechanical background as it appears alot of you have. I am at a bit of a dissadvantage as I have never even seen anything similiar i.e. shopbot in person from which to draw on for understanding how things go together.

I am trying to wrap my mind around these plans, I have downloaded the Mamba plans and had them printed up in a nice large scale. So I expect that I will probably have many questions in the future.

end of boring bio, start of questions:

I have tried to read and asorb as much as I possibly can on this forum, I have tried to pay attention to the dates of post to determine if they are pertaining to the Mamba design or the original design. My question is are these designs similar enough that the post to the original design are pertinant to the Mamba design?

Also, I have found a local company for laser cutting I have not been able to get a price quote yet as it is saturday and the sales dept is gone for the weekend but I was also told that they would have the capability to do the welding as well (good news for the worlds worst welder) If anybody is interested they are in Wixom, Michigan and have a website at http://www.Commerceindustries.com I also would be interested if anyone would look at their site and maybe let me know what they think etc.

My intent is to build this in my basement and I may have to scale it down to work with half sheet materials though I would love to be able to make this full size this is still a decision I have not made yet. Will I be able to build the supporting frame in a way that it is bolted together instead of welded maybe with some extra supports or something to retain rigidity as I may want to dissasemble and move it to a workshop to be built at a later date?

I know this is a long rambling post and I apprieciate any help, suggestions or gentle kick in the butt I may need now or in the future.

Again all the machines I have seen on here look incredible and my hats off to all of you and especially Gerald quite possibly the smartest man alive LOL.

smreish
Sat 19 January 2008, 09:19
Craig,
Welcome to the world of MechMate....Once you have properly entered the queue line, the approximate wait will be 11 minutes - At&T humor :)
A couple quick answers from a builder that has a bolt together table:
- yep, bolt together absolutely possible.
- smaller scale is easy, the plans are designed to be scaled to your end use size. The machines have been used to cut 24" wide x 12' long (Art in Texas, to 5' x 10' I am currently building.) Links are available in the personal pages section of this forum.
- The original plans and the current plans are almost identical with exceptions added for worldly use (metric and imperial) and for means-and-methods of construction. the Mamba is the most current set and is the defacto standard.
- If you can't get laser cut parts easily, I will be running a set of parts in the next 10 days or so. Approx. 20 sets, so you won't have to be timely in a commitment.
- Don't be overwhelmed at the build...if you can assemble LEGO's and an erector set, you can build a MM.
- You have a lot of MechMate builders in the lower peninsula of Michigan - thus, a hands on support network is near by.

...and yes, Gerald is one of the smartest men alive - and darn generous too.

Welcome and happy reading.

Good places to read current builds in the personal pages....
Greg - the fastest SW controller builder
Greg - the basement Video grinding wizard
JR - the consummate craftsman
Doug Ford - the humble builder - perfection at it's Ozark best
The incredible Mr. Richards - electronics genius
Sean - trying to keep up with the Joneses
Gerald - the Original MechMate, designer, philosopher, sage and "captain of the cause"

sailfl
Sat 19 January 2008, 09:23
Craig,

Don't be concerned that you might not have all the experience. There is plenty on the Forum. You have a lot of reading ahead. Take your time.

Welcome

Doug_Ford
Sat 19 January 2008, 09:33
Welcome to the forum Craig.

I ordered my laser cut parts from another forum member who had several sets cut and bent. I'd recommend you consider doing the same. I think you will have better luck that way because an experienced company will eventually have all the bends at the proper angles and in the right places. The guy I bought mine from finally quit selling them because buyers were griping at him when the parts weren't perfect. I think he stopped at around 10-15 sets. I was happy with mine but I was one of the last guys to get one. Just my two cents. I'm not a great welder either but I wanted control over the process so I could make sure everything was square. My welds aren't that pretty but they're solid. Consider taking a vo-tech class on welding.

I'm concerned that even if you disassemble your machine, you won't be able to get it out of your basement. It's pretty heavy and even at a reduced scale, it will still be heavy. However, several builders have bolted their tables together so it can be done. Do you have a walk out basement or is access to it only through interior stairs?

Good luck.

revved_up
Sat 19 January 2008, 10:31
Unfortunatly only interior stairs. But I have managed some pretty heavy things down there with a little help. I don't know the exact weight of a washer and dryer but my drill press and soon to aquire band saw were and are quite heavy. allthough I have more than once thought of digging out a wall and installing the old celler door type setup in the back yard. maybe even install rails so that things could be lowered in kind of how they have our central offices at work set up for the cable vaults in the basements.

What type of welding is used for this, standard arc welding or tig, mig?

The subsequent discussion on welding became a separate thread here (http://www.mechmate.com/forums/showthread.php?t=582):

hennie
Mon 04 February 2008, 01:59
HI ALL MM FANS

My name is Hennie and stay in Plettenberg Bay South Africa
I got hooked onto this site about two weeks ago and must say that
all my own designs went to file 13.
Whow Gerald goodstuff and to all other MM fans, this is a boer wat `n plan gemaak het.

I have done a lot of surfing on all subjects from drivers, b/boards and a lot of other things but got much more educated once i started visiting this forum,thanks everybody.

I thought of buying a SB and even got a quote for one but after seeing the MM i made up my mind and to take the chance to build it myself as we have a (k -factor) which we deal with we can fix it in the shop if it breaks down as one builds it with your own hands.

I have all the metal in my shop and will be building the table soon.
Gerald i do need to ask if i can get your suppliers contact details to do my laser cutting or any other member on my side who can help me.

I will be ordering timing pulley`s today to start making reduction gearboxes with timing belts from Greg in Edenvale ( first project )
( own design will keep everybody informed on progress)

Gerald D
Mon 04 February 2008, 02:20
Hi Hennie

There are good laser cutters in Port Elizabeth for the motor trade over there, but I don't have their names to hand. Here in Cape Town we have
http://www.schuurmanlasercut.co.za/
http://www.vulcansteel.co.za/
http://www.fabrinox.com/
and a few more here and in Stellenbosch.

(PS, for the other readers, Plettenberg Bay (http://images.google.com/images?sourceid=navclient&ie=UTF-8&rls=IRFA,IRFA:2006-24,IRFA:en&q=Plettenberg+bay&um=1&sa=N&tab=wi) is sleepy village where very little happens, except for 6 weeks of the year . . . :))

Marc Shlaes
Mon 04 February 2008, 05:42
I clicked on the Plettenberg Bay link and then a couple of others. Although I am continually amazed at the beauty of the country, I failed to learn the answer to the question: "What happens during the six weeks?"

Gerald D
Mon 04 February 2008, 05:51
Summer holidays, over Xmas, when the place is crowded out with holidaymakers. "Plett" is one of the holiday destinations in South Africa. Some huge mansions there that stand empty for the rest of the year.

hennie
Mon 04 February 2008, 05:53
Holiday season for the rest of the country and for six weeks al the locals lock themselves in .

And after the holidays we locals in the kitchen manufacturing industry keep ourselves busy working on those mansions.

revved_up
Mon 04 February 2008, 07:55
update to my original post: I have ordered the motors, pmdx and geckos. Time to feed this addiction lol.

hennie
Thu 06 March 2008, 04:19
Update On Material Ordered

Bought Steel
Bought Gears For Reduction Gearbox And Managed To Build The First One.
I Bought A Bob From Cnc Direct With Transformer.
Next Will Be The Motors And Gecko`s

I Have A Question Gerald?
I Bought Some Linear Guides And Guide Blocks About A Year Ago And Would Like To Know If I Can Use Them On The Y- Axis ( 20 Mm Wide )
Saving Some Time On Grinding.
Thanks

Gerald D
Thu 06 March 2008, 09:59
I Bought Some Linear Guides And Guide Blocks About A Year Ago And Would Like To Know If I Can Use Them On The Y- Axis ( 20 Mm Wide )

Make a drawing of what you want to do, and I'll take a look at it.

hennie
Fri 07 March 2008, 06:29
I Will Do A Drawing

I Was Thinking Of Taking 76x38 Angle Iron And Cutting It To Fit The Guide Blocks And Using The Same Holes That Would Have Been Used For The V-rollers To Attach The Angle Iron To And Then Ad Extra Holes To Use 8m Bolt. Don`t Like The Idea Of Welding.

I Have Also Found A Company In George That Does Laser Cutting
(laser Express).

Maybe I Have Missed The Read But Is There A Supplier For The V-rollers In Cape Town Or Jhb That I Can Source It From.i Am Not Good At The Metal Lathe So I Won`t Even Go There To Try And Make Them.(or Do They Need To Come From Over The Water )is It A Std Item That I Can Buy From Any Bearing Dealer?
(see Where I Am Going To I Have Limited Time Between Running A Business And Family And If I Can Save Time On Using A Item That Is
Over The Counter I Might Just Need To Look At It)

Another Question Gerald? I Manufacture Pvc Wrapped Doors And Have Been Using Templates And A Industrial Router To Do The Patterns On My Doors By Means Of Mr Jack. ( Lot Of Rejects And Wastages And Time)the Machine Would Be Used Mostly For Door Patterns.would Using Rails And Guideblocks On The X-axis Make Any Change On The Cut.please Mind The Stupid Question But I Am Repared To Spend The Funds If Needed To .

Thanks For Your Time