Newbie Here

Well... you could have almost reached me with your 6 mile rocket while I was cruising at 7 miles up!
That is some pretty serious rocketry!
 
One other thought Lee regarding the CNC conversion. No matter which mill you choose, I would highly suggest a system to counterbalance the head of the mill. The 833's head is very heavy and believe that either a counterweight or an air cylinder would greatly help movements in the Z axis. D-Flo has not done that and it will most likely develop issues later on. You will most likely have air at the mill for mist cooling anyway, so a counterbalance air cylinder would be the a good choice.
 
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I think it is a great thing you are building a full cabinet for the mill. Would be so nice to close the door and keep everything inside. You could do flood coolant if needed.
 
Ok counter balance, will do. I will start researching tomorrow. If you guys can direct me to those that have already done it that would be great. I have stumbled across at least one example already. I think I would prefer counterweight and depend on gravity instead of cylinders and a mechanical operation. One less thing that could go wrong.

Again thanks for the advice!!

Lee
 
I am having a hard time finding any info on how to control the spindle speed of a mill drill that is already a variable drive. Could anyone direct me to a website, YouTube, or thread on this forum, or a vendor contact for information? I will be using acorn for control.

thanks
Lee
 
leegscott said:
I am having a hard time finding any info on how to control the spindle speed of a mill drill that is already a variable drive. Could anyone direct me to a website, YouTube, or thread on this forum, or a vendor contact for information? I will be using acorn for control.

thanks
Lee
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Depends on the speed controller. Most of the CNC controllers seem to have a few options for output. And VFDs at least usually have a few as well. You match them up and configure both ends to use the same signal. 0-10V analog signals seem to be pretty common, as one example.
 
Hi Lee, welcome aboard. I was going to suggest you look at a 3D printer as an alternative or adjunct, but reading further it looks like you are doing a much larger / faster rocket than I was picturing.
So, one other consideration for you. For the price you will pay for a PM40 or 833TV, you would be close to the price of a used Tormach, which would already be CNC ready, and likely be more capable.

Sorry to open the Rabbit hole further, and welcome to the club.
 
Thanks for the suggestion and yes I am already using a 3d printer. I have had it for a couple of years and have done a few modifications to it which gave me the confidence to attempt CNC. I have pretty much made up my mind on the mill and I am pretty deep into determining all of the components plus I am learning something new which is good!

thanks again

lee
 
I agree Lee. You are heading down an interesting path and learning is part of the experience.
I know a lot of guys like the Tormach, and it is a very nice system but, if you are willing to put the time into developing your own CNC with available components, you will end up with mill that is just as good, or better.
One of the issues I have considered with my 833T is the Z axis "nod". There is a slight nod that I can see with my DRO when I tighten down the locks on the gibs. The thought goes through my mind about utilizing 25mm linear rails on the Z axis. I have not fully considered the route of implementation though.
 
If you are going to CNC the mill, you might want something that gives you more repeatable tool offsets than an R8 would. You might want to call PM and ask if they can supply a spindle with something like a BT30 taper. That will enable you to program your tool lengths into the CNC controller and not have to touch off each time you change your tool. PM also has a CNC page on their website, there is no content, but maybe they have something planned that you can look into as well.
 
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