6040 Desktop CNC Machines

[trent_julie]

Hello,
Just wondering if anyone owns a 6040 desktop CNC machine? Dare I say it but I am considering buying one, they seem to be suited for making Printed Circuit Boards and shaping aluminium etc

Trent

[peter_4059]

Can you post a link so we can see what it can do?

[trent_julie]

Here Peter,

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/NEW-6040-ROUTER-ENGRAVER-ENGRAVING-DRILLING-AND-MILLING-MACHINE-CNC-r2-/390375219153?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_15&hash=item5ae42d1fd1

[peter_4059]

Looks like a neat machine - what would you use it for?

I'm not sure I agree with their advertising claims:

3. You can purchase a high quality and safety machine, but please don't waste the money for a cheaper but a low quality machines. We only sell top-quality item. Base on the top-quality, then we will beat our price as lowest on eBay.

[trent_julie]

I wan't a CNC machine for making PCB's and aluminium parts of other projects I have on the go. It seems it could be good for engraving also

Trent

[Ausrock]

We have a smaller but similar style CNC to play with at work and while it's reasonably impressive, it does come at a cost.........the spindle motor bearings are crap and I definitely wouldn't want to be working aluminium.

[marki]

We have a larger version (table 2 x 2m) at school and whilst it is great for wood, plastics and engraving it is not suitable for ali or steel. To cut metal you need to use a end mill or slot drill and these put a lot of stress on the head which is not ridgid enough on these machines unless they are of industrial design and standard. My mill head is mounted on a 300 x 150 x 25mm thick reinforced box section cast iron pillar and even this will flex under load. The mill head alone also weighs 42 kg which helps absorb vibration and this is essential if you want clean cuts (the heavier the better). These CNC machines also run at very high RPM which means you need to flood the work piece with lots of soluble oil as a coolant or the bits will dull quickly (even carbide). The table is not setup for such a volume and you would end up with coolant all over yourself and the walls. We tried to cut ali with the router at school and it ended up being more trouble then it was worth with poor cuts (rough and stepped) and accuracy. Wood and engraving with small cutters yes, metal no.

Mark

[Poita]

That would be neat for wood and plastics.

If you want something real though, that won't break the bank, then take a look at the Tormach range.

http://www.tormach.com/store/

Deakin Uni have one.
http://www.tormach.com/showcase.html

They also have a great resources page for learning about CNC.
http://www.tormach.com/resources.html

[rally]

The Pyramid is interesting

It is either a very large part that has been scaled down, or the ramps were machined completely separately and then added as separate parts afterwards, otherwise I have some doubts that this model was made on this machine or in fact any CNC milling machine

There are no complex corner radii in any of the 3 dimensional corners - every tool that cuts into a corner must have a radius - even if the tool had no radius on the cutting point, the tool shank radius must clear the features around it.

Or unless they added full 5 axis machining and the corners were milled out using a pointed engraving tool !!!

As soon as I see things that don't make sense, I ask myself - what is real and what is not real ?
At that point none of it can be relied upon

The images are way too low res to closely inspect, but I wouldnt be at all surprised if half that stuff was hand engraved by a skilled craftsman.

I wonder how rigid it really is.

JFI You can now buy the 3D printers that use the extrusion deposition process, these can be bought as a kit and DIY assembled at home for around $500.

Cheers

Rally

[Poita]

Looks a lot like this one:
http://translate.google.com/translate?sl=auto&tl=en&js=n&prev=_t&hl=en&ie=UTF-8&layout=2&eotf=1&u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.wallcoo.com%2Fhu man%2Fbuilding_model_02%2Fwallpaper s%2F1024x768%2F%5Bwallcoo%5D_buildi ng_model_EA43043.html&act=url

[rally]

Peter,

I agree, it looks like the very same picture
I think that is a paper Model of the Chichen-Itza Pyramid !
When I hover on the image - a pop up comment says its a Paper Model of World Famous Architectural building !
The building itself is definitely the Chichen Pyramid

If that is true then then this CNC machine can fold and assemble paper too - pretty good !

I wouldn't trust a thing that has been said about it by the vendors.
Sorry guys but I think Cheech and Chong had a little skit that resembles this situation - of course their skit had its own earthy humorous slant to it, but if your bought this then it wouldn't be so funny.
The intermediate punch line was "Good thing we don't step in it"
Or the "If it walks like a duck, quacks like a duck, looks like a duck, it must be a duck . . . "

[Poita]

I agree.
But I don't think it is a paper model, zoom in and it appears to be foam or plastic sheets, cut and stacked.
If you put the search "CNC 6040" into youtube you can see these things running. It might give some insight as to whether it is worth your while Trent, but I'd personally save up for a Tormach.

http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=cnc+6040&oq=cnc+6040&aq=f&aqi=g7&aql=&gs_sm=3&gs_upl=18513l20529l0l20759l8l8l0l0l 0l0l418l1011l0.2.1.0.1l4l0

[Poita]

Their website isn't finished, so I'd contact them directly.

But if you want to get a 6040, I'd get it from an Australian seller, it doesn't end up costing much more, and you get a proper manual and some support.

http://wgit.netsiteoz.com.au/index.php?page=shop.product_details&flypage=&product_id=3&category_id=1&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=66&vmcchk=1&Itemid=66

Reading up on it on the web, it looks like an okay piece of gear for the price, but I'd buy local, they have an optional 4th axis as well.

[Poita]

There are some owners here you could chat with:
http://www.cnczone.com/

[Poita]

It appears they are actually quite capable with a few modifications. Did you decide to get one in the end?

[trent_julie]

Still debating with myself about it, I am pursuing the 3040 machine instead which is more than adequate for my requirements. To save up for a more capable machine was not an option as my predominate skill sets are within electronic design and writing software, so a specialist machine would be considered extreme.

These units run of a parallel port (which I don't have on my Laptop). But it would not be good enough to buy a USB to parallel converter as apparently these are not good enough to run the machine, so this would mean a new computer.

So it's a bigger decision than I first anticipated, my inventions will have more time to mature until I do go out and buy a new CNC anyway.......

Trent

[Poita]

Grab a $50 laptop 2nd hand that has a parallel port, it is good to have a machine dedicated to the mill anyway, and it can be a very, very basic PC and run it effortlessly.

[trent_julie]

Hi all,
I ended up buying the 3020 from http://www.bilbycnc.com.au/. I have seen some very good results from these machines, and will suit me just fine.

Cheers,

Trent

[Ausrock]

Trent,

Apologies for not getting back to you, as time allows we have been looking at your project and have just installed a new CNC similar to the 6040.

Chris

[ozstockman]

Hi Trent,

I used one for my wood craft business that I imported from China three years ago. It had 600x900mm working area. It was quite good apart from some minor issues and no guide from a factory how to set it up with MACH3.

Sold it just two days ago through ebay. It took only 2 days to sell it for the price I want which was a surprise for me.


Here is an excellent place to ask questions about CNC routers and other machinery.
http://www.cnczone.com/forums/

[trent_julie]

Thanks Mike,
I have added the CNC forum to my bookmarks. I had a chat to bilby yesterday and they told me that the units are checked prior to delivery, I am hoping to avoid a few of those minor issues by doing that.

Trent