Can a Shopbot do what I need to do?

[service@thewoodcraftingco.com]

I am looking to increase my productivity. I sometimes have a helper but often work by myself.
What I am looking to do with a Shopbot is making (cutting)cabinets. Besides building custom furniture and mulitple craft items, I do kitchens and cabinet interiors for security safes.
Can I use a Shopbot to cut up 3/4" ply, with dados and rabbets, for kitchen cabinets?
The cheapest Thermwood CNC machine is $65,000 or $1400/month. CNC panel saws are very expensive also.
The safe interiors are made from 1/2" ply and have many dados for dividers, compartments and drawer runners. These all need to be fairly accuate. I would think a Shopbot would do this nicely.
Am I asking too much of a Shopbot to do this?

[elcruisr]

Roger, We cut thousands of parts from 3/4" plywood every month. The trick is to make sure you use the right tooling, rpm and feed speed. Then load up the machine and go do something else that makes you money while it runs. Shopbots are at the slow end of cutting speeds in the cnc world. We do rough cutting in 3/4" pine plywood at 2.5" per second and finish cutting in oak and maple plywood at 2" per second. Some people complain that they can't make money doing cabinets on their 'bots. The difference for me is that I can do other income producing work while it runs and THAT makes it a profitable tool. The dados, holes, pockets, etc are no trouble. As for accuracy it's not as good as a $150,000 Komo but hey, look at the price difference. The factory says .015 but I notice enough flex during cutting that I put it at more like .03 true at the speeds I'm working. Thats better than I'm going to achieve with hand tools consistantly so it's good enough. Overall I'm reasonably happy with our shopbot and making money with it!
Eric Lamoray

[kerrazy]

Hey Roger,
The SHopBot when teamed up with the right software can do anything... Really.
Dados and rabbets are very easily accomplished on this machine. You can even very easily do Rail and Stile like doors out of MDF.
Shopbot techs can even lengthen your bed to 15 feet so you can use even bigger sheets.

The reason I mentioned software earlier was because this software can than place (nest) parts most efficiently on your material so waste is minimized.

Good luck with your decision but as you surf through the posts I am sure you will see it is quite a versatile tool, much like the helper you were looking for.

Dale

[gerald_d]

Roger, don't let these guys above mislead you.


Sure, the ShopBot is capable, but are you capable of learning a whole new way of working? Assembling the system, learning software and producing quite a bit of scrap in the process?

It will not increase your productivity from the day that it arrives - quite the opposite in fact. Can you afford to ride out the learning curve?

[toys]

If I were to do it over again . . . I would down load the ShopBot Software. Download a free cad program like Turbocads 2d program. Then learn. Its not really that hard. Just take some time to learn the concepts. Snaps are vital in CAD programs so learn them. No, your not asking too much. Oh and make sure if you get a ShopBot you CLEAN OUT THE CONTROL BOX FREQUENTLY OR YOU MAY FRY YOUR CONTROLER. This is one place that Shopbot NEEDS to improve. Their control box "even the new one" has a big opening in the back. This time around I plugged up all the holes and installed a fan and filter to keep the dust out (I learned this from the forum). This is especially important in high humidity.

[artisan]

I agree with Gerald about the learning curve. There is another Shopbot in my town....and while they've had it much longer than I've had mine, they have never bothered to really learn their machine. The result is, that I do all their 3D work and most of their more difficult projects at my shop. I can't stress enough, the need to know how to create your own "content"...ie, understanding your software and the Shopbot's capabilities. This is true of any CNC device...no matter the price. If you've never owned a CNC tool before....then you can do no better than the Shopbot. I hope that you outgrow it...then you can resell it right here. As for the Control Box...David, here is my solution. I got one of those cheap birch cabinets from Lowe's...put wheels on it and a top and sides. I keep my computers in the bottom and my monitor on top. I then put a fan in the side of the cabinet which draws air IN to the space with a filter on it. This creates a higher pressure inside the cabinet....so no dust comes inside. ....D

[elcruisr]

Hey guys,
do an internet search for a filter product called a "Dirt Bag". It's a filter bag for your pc and control box. Filters all the dirt and dust before it can get to the boards!

And don't let them fool you. The basics of CNC programming are not to hard if your basic computer literate and want to learn. The complex stuff can take a few months but it ain't exactly rocket science!

Eric

[service@thewoodcraftingco.com]

I want to thank you all for your input.
I am going to look at a 10 month old machine today and make an offer.

As for software - I am using a free cabinet software pachage put out by Thermwood called E-Cabinet Systems. It was designed to output to the Thermwood CNC machine with G code. Does nesting and complete layout.
Has anyone tried this software?
Does anyone use it through the Shopbot?

I am also using AutoCad 14 for my other work. I will be needing more help with just how the process of outputting a cad drawing to the machine and turning it into a usable part really works.

I am glad I found this forum.

[gerald_d]

Roger, if I had known that you are already using AutoCad 14, I would have kept my big mouth shut! You are already more than 70% through the learning curve.

Regarding E-Cabinet and Thermwood, I seem to recall that code passed between the two systems is not true g-code. It will not work on the ShopBot unless you buy some extra software from E-cabinet/Thermwood. Search this Forum to confirm it - I'm off to supper now.

[toys]

Darrel I did your trick to the pc box itself. Sounds like yours would be better. I now have an extra fan & filter in my control box and one in my computer. Looks like the Dirt Bag would be the easiest solution though.

[artisan]

David, I just ordered a "Dirtbag" (thanks Eric)for about 24.50 to test it out....I'll let you know. I got the " Air Pressure" idea from one of my clients who builds "clean rooms" for computers and film projectors. They simply keep the air pressure higher in the room so that air always flows outward and dust doesn't come in. The cabinet does pretty much the same thing....albeit much cheaper (about 125.00 total) to construct. I also like having the station on wheels...D

[artisan]

Okay....UPS "just" delivered my "Dirtbag". Upon opening it.....it basically appears to be a bag....made of filter material...that you custom fit to your computer. The material tears easily. I believe it might be useful in some situations, but it has obvious limitations. The warranty card states... "The Dirt Bag is designed for PC user whose "A" and CD drives are used on a very limited basis, about once a day or less" "The Dirt Bag is designed to last about 6 months give or take a month or two depending on the overall condition of the environment" ...I guess that means 4-8 months. I'm installing it and will report back in a month....but I already prefer my pressure cabinet....D

[bjwat@comcast.net]

Darrell,
I would just make a simple box on the Bot to accomodate the disposable HVAC filters. Use your fans in push/pull configuration.

I have 25+ workstations running in a high silicon particulate production area. We replace the filters about once every 2 months. The computers are encased in a metal cabinet.

-Brady

[rgbrown@itexas.net]

I guess the simple little computer fan I put on the side of one of my cases, taping an automotive air filter over that and encasing the back in plastic to make the entire assembly "dust resistant" is old techinology and shouldn't be discussed as I threw it away after 12 years of use in the shop.....

[toys]

Darrel do you think the dirt bag would work to cover keep dust out of a window airconditioner?

[toys]

Home Depot sells a filter material made for covering septic drain field pipes. It's about 40 cents a yard. I think maybe I'll try it around my AC unit and let you know. It maybe the same material that the dirtbag is made out of. I just got an email from the the dirt bag company and they said they have made custom sizes for airconditoners.

[artisan]

Brady, that's basically what I did....as I stated above. I used a modified birch cabinet from Lowe's (50.00)..put wheels on it (35.00) and a fan on the side that draws air IN through a small disposable filter (35.00). I added a switch and some odds and ends....but it basically gives me easy access to the controller and lets me roll my workstation around for cleaning while keeping the insides dust free. The air escapes easily around the handy drawer. And Ron....that's obviously a beautifully simple solution you came up with....as long as it works for you. As far as the Dirtbag goes David.....I believe you could easily make your own. Imagine one of the old "brown" paper sacks that groceries used to come in...only made from thin filter material instead....that's pretty much what the Dirtbag looks like.....D