Inspired to go forward - Maine
 

I have actually been a member here for a decent amount of time and not posted. I have always been into CAD programs, am decently fluent in many, worked for a company that I ran 2 of their 3 axis machines concurrently for a year, pick things up easy (program training took an hour at most), and highly motivated to complete a mechmate.

I have to give thanks to Darren. I have "known" Darren for a few years on another forum (construction related) and saw the hind end of the thread he posted about building his own MechMate. Not sure why I ever thought it would be an unattainable endeavor, you all have done the hard stuff, the legwork...my job should be easy. So I thank Darren for igniting the flame in me again.

At this time I am at the very, very beginning. I have been reading like a madman here most of the threads about the builds and am absolutely confident it is going to happen. I love the 20' long table...wow...speechless.

I am a cabinetmaker and I have a need for one if not more :) I see the potential in a cnc, not just in panel cutting, but I see an incredible opportunity beyond the high end cabinetry I already do. I see the potential to create something outstanding.

The program I was using before was Rhino and RhinoCAM, and also AlphaCAM ran the newer cnc. We were initially running CAD files through ACAD, but found a tremendous amount of irregularity in the linework. Mostly out of perpendicular. Many times the readout would say "89.9999999999999°" which would make the machine not work. Once into Rhino, it was a no brainer. RhinoCAM would not output to the cnc's we had though, unfortunately.

The size of the table is more than likely going to be exactly the same as Darrens, to fit a 61" x 145" sheet of mdf. I initially thought I did not have room for it, but I do :) I will MAKE room. Actually, I have a large cut table in my shop right now that is set up with a Festool railsaw for cutting panels that I will be replacing. The table there is now 5' x 9', so it is not going to take up much more room than I have right now.

I have lots of questions, but I won't inundate you all with them at once. Darren has agreed to talk with me on the phone, so the torture will be solely his initially :)

Thank you all for your contribution. I would not be partaking this without your input from over the years.

Right now, the build time will be slow. I am guessing at least a year on weekends and such. I have some other things that are in dire need of attention before I get crazy. I can't wait.

Welcome aboard Framerman.
Sorry I missed your call this morning.
We're all here to cheer you on, no matter how slow the progress may seem to you.
BTW, a real name in the "just call me" section of your screen name is encouraged here, it's a pretty close knit place. :)

Good to know Darren. You may remember that was my former screen name. I go by Kent now anyway. I will change the part underneath at the very least.

Wasn't sure to call you on a Sunday or not...so I did :)

I remember.
Sorry, very hectic today. Usually not a problem at all.
I'll give you a call back tomorrow.

Check out Mach3 and Vectric's Aspire software. You can download trials and play with them.
I'm VERY happy with both.

Mach3 is the controller software, right? Little rusty. Was mostly on the CAM end, another guy was running the cnc from the shop floor.

Correct. Aspire to design and toolpath. Output as g-code to Mach3.

Also, my machine without the control box on the side has a rough footprint of 7'x14'.
Don't forget room to walk around, and load/unload.

That was one of the questions I was going to ask you, the footprint. I was figuring at least a foot either direction bigger than the spoils board. She will be placed slightly off center of my shop for access. Guess I figured pretty close. I personally like the behemoth 20' table...but that may be my NEXT one. I need to be realistic here!

You probably would have loved to see the Breton dual table I programmed on. The tables slid out from the cutting area. One side was being loaded/unloaded, the other side was being cut/shaped. A laser system ran along the side to project where suction pod placement would go on the table. It was pretty cool. Green laser.

Thank you Darren. I'll wait for your call tomorrow.

If you got Rhino and RhinoCAM use that as it's a powerful piece of software. you can output gcode from that for Mach3

Absolutely use that if you already have it.
My understanding was that you used it at your last employer to run his machines.

Hi Kent, you have a present in your mail. Enjoy