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Did find an arcs toggle in the general SprutCAM v11 post setup that fixed the original circle translation issue. After much testing and many emails to SprutCAM America tech support, they confirmed...

I'm evaluating a demo of SprutCAM 11 for 3 and 4 axis toolpathing. The supplied ShopBot post processor is very old and is now non-functional - something is wrong in the cut circle translations used...

I have not seen a impeller failure in thousands of hours of running multiple motors. The brushes wear out first and after 2 or 3 brush sets, the lower bearing fails. Heat is the enemy.

Ed

Here's a good DIY shop filter idea from a luthiers forum -

http://www.luthiersforum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=10101&t=45178

Ed

David,

Where did you read that ShopBot can't do smooth curves in the Z axis?

Ed

Slow down the feed rate to 1.0 ips and the plunge rate to 0.5 ips and re-run the test. You also might want to change the out the single flute bit to a two flute or spiral bit to improve the cut...

I created this cover system for a production DeskTop to protect the exposed Y-axis rails from swarf, chips and dust. The prototype was made with plastic angle stock attached to the gantry vertical...

Steve,

A design thought would be to split the block lengthwise - left side / right side - then each side could be completely machined in the same operation and then a use few Pastite screws for...

As an alternative, I use large fender washers with 1/4"-20 bolts / T-nuts and a matching thickness shim blocks.

Ed

I'll had very good results dry cutting 5052 0.063" thick electronic box faceplate openings with a 1/8" Vortex 5609a bit.

Ed

We use 0.020" thick calendered vinyl sheeting to mask off open areas. It's cheap and flexible enough under vacuum to be pulled tight against the material/table.

Ed

I do consulting work for Luthiers Mercantile International and they carry a wide range of electric woods and hardware.

www.lmii.com 1-800-477-4437

Ask for Dan as he handles the school...

Sean,

It's good to see they responded and added article links to your products.

On your vacuum table design, i'm wondering if using Trupan would provide the needed vacuum hold down for thin...

Sam,

What ShopBot hardware were you running before then changeover and what Mach3 hardware are you now using?

Ed

Lee,

For the materials you listed, budget for a spindle. It will give you a much better cut with true horsepower, exact RPM control and no bit runout (< 0.001").

Ed

I've used Southeast Tools SE1071 1/2" diameter 2" CEL on thick MDF with good results. Best to do a gradual ramp into the material.
...

To get greater tool clearance without removing the t-slot table, I re-mounted the spindle with the collet nut even with the bottom edge of the Z-axis back plate. This gave me enough clearance to...

How much Z are you looking for? Are you running a spindle or a router?

Ed

I've used 3D Offset option in the Part file load fill in sheet to do air cuts.

Ed

The DeskTop is solidly 24" x 18" and a bit more. I see consistent cut quality across the entire work envelope with plywood, acrylic and HDPE.

Personally I do not run a ShopBot unattended, and when...

Trupan ultralight in 3/4" 5' x 8' is available from Aura Hardwoods in San Jose. www.aurahardwoods.com

Ed

The dowel pins are actually Acetal and available from McMaster-Carr www.mcmaster.com

Ed

I've used nylon dowel pins pressed in a series of 1/4" holes along the the X and Y axis for registration on a 3/4" spoilboard. As the board gets chewed up, you can drill new holes offset on one axis...

Just a quick clarification, the ShopBot DeskTop/HSD spindle package I use in production has a Delta S-series VFD. It also can be setup to show RPM but unlike the Yaskawa, the decimal point floats...

I put together a RPM vs Frequency chart to work with the VFD display on the DeskTop. Thought someone might find it useful.

Ed