[thisoldtony] has a nice shop in need of a CNC. We’re not certain what he does exactly, but we think he might be a machinist or an engineer. Regardless, he sure does build a nice CNC. Many home-built CNCs are neat, but lacking. Even popular kits ignore fundamental machine design principles. This is alright for the kind of work they will typically be used for, but it’s nice to see one done right.
Most home-built machines are hard or impossible to square. That is, to make each axis move exactly perpendicular to the others. They also neglect to design for the loads the machine will see, or adjusting for deviation across the whole movement. There’s also bearing pre-loads, backlash, and more to worry about. [thisoldtony] has taken all these into consideration.
The series is a long one, but it is fun to watch and we picked up a few tricks along the way. The resulting CNC is very attractive, and performs well after some tuning. In the final video he builds a stunning rubber band gun for his son. You can also download a STEP file of the machine if you’d like. Videos after the break.
[via Reddit]
Know theirs stuff? This guy knows his stuff (warning czech forum): http://www.c-n-c.cz/viewtopic.php?f=15&t=3609
A thou tolerance is impressive for a homebuilt machine for sure if repeatable on the long term.
Impressed from start to end, I’ve just watched all included videos, time flew by, what a joy to watch.
Thanks for sharing this with us.
Wow, what a walkthrough for a complete build ! Amazing how much effort you have put in to make it look and work nice! would love to see how you make these multiple angle shots with your cam.
Those are excellent videos.
The humour in the captioned text (deliberate or not) adds a bit of spice. He says “it’ll work” the text says “it’s a dork” gotto love that.
I like “a ninja stickout” for an inch of stickout.
What a pleasure to watch these videos. I’d put them in the same category as clickspring – even if you’re not trying to replicate the project, it’s wonderful to watch people who really know their stuff at work!
“You can also download a STEP file of the machine if you’d like.”
Where?
Beautiful build, great process, entertaining video and great information.
I also nominate [thisoldtony] for a “Bestest Dad in the World” award for interactions and toy making prowess above and beyond the norm.
Whoops, here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BziGqMVEh_qrdlBGTmRKcThVRDg/view?usp=sharing
It was linked in the more section of the third video. I’ve made the link in the article clickable too.
Thanks!
really nice production value on the videos, amazing what people can do in their home shop.
Well, if i had that garage with all the space and equipment around, i would have probably done something like that. But living in a rented apartment basically only got me to the point of having a 3D printer and drooling over table top cnc machines. ;)
I did for a while too. Just lay down a bit of cloth/tarp/sheet and get a decent vacuum cleaner… Nothing can stop you now.
I had a CNC in a rental for a while. Vacuum often, dust forever.
I have to admit, once I started watching these I couldn’t stop. Excellent work and Excellent production.
DougM
Wish I had a big workshop like that. Very lucky person.
Great video and one of the best video’s I seen making a CNC Machine.
Enjoyed watching this video. A very happy kid at the end lol.
I think this is one of the best projects I’ve ever seen posted on HAD. Even if you never plan to build anything like this, you can learn so much from this video. Anyone that builds anything mechanical should watch this. It’s just awesome. My thanks to Gerrit for spending so much time and energy to produce such great videos and for being willing to share his vast knowledge during the build.
…Tiger
Dude, Gerrit spent no time or energy producing this video. Many thanks to him for this mention, however. Check out https://www.youtube.com/user/featony to see the guy who actually put in the immense time and effort required to create.
stoebenau, thanks for clarifying this. Yes, [thisoldtony] is the one who gets all the credit for the work!
Very cool. I just watched pretty much all this dude’s videos. Great way to spend a Sunday. Makes me want to go make something.
WOW! What a great video and great instructions. Loved the annotations and video production, you underestimate yourself [thisoldtony]. Watched all the videos and I still want to watch move.
Very nicely built, decorated and I love you got your son to help and you built him a sweet rubber band rifle… all I got was a wooden rubber band gun =(
Great job again [thisoldtony], loved every minute of it, keep up the great work (mechanical, eletronics, videography and being a great Dad).
— Rob R.
Impressive work. I have built 2 CNC machines – a router and mill. Must say, your work is definitely top rate. And the quality of the video is as good. Thanks for sharing.
very very very nice.
Well that was seriously impressive. And what a rabbit hole all his videos are. Well done.