First DIY CNC Club Meeting

Today marked the first monthly meeting of The DIY CNC Club at Milwaukee Makerspace.  Ron Bean and Tom Gondek, the creators of the router, guided members and guests through the use of CamBam CAD software to generate G-code and Mach3 software to operate and control the router.  The day before, Tom and Mike tested the machine’s ability to cut aluminum.  On Sunday, Rich created a decorative wooden sign and Brant began making plastic shapes for a project enclosure. As Ron pointed out, in less than 24 hours we had worked in three different materials: wood, metal, and plastic.

Several items were also crossed off our wish list.  Two emergency stop buttons were added to the front of the machine and wired together in series.  Hitting either one stops all motion in the X, Y, and Z planes and pauses the program.  We also built a relay-controlled receptacle box that when wired into the CNC computer, will be able to stop the spindle so hitting the E-stop will kill all motion in all axes and the router.  For some reason the pins we’re using on the parallel port are only producing 1.6 volts instead of the 3 or 5 we expected and the relays won’t turn on.  All in all, a very productive weekend.

Future Makers

hammer

After the welding demo last night, and a successful run with the MakerBot, I came home and couldn’t sleep. I don’t know if it was all the new ideas running through my head, or something else, but I started to think about what Royce has said about being a “Skill Collector” and having a checklist of new things you’re able to do. I didn’t take a welding class when I was in high school (they did offer it, and lots of kids took it) but I did take woodshop for a few years, and my dad (and his dad) had a great basement workshop where things would get built, and taken apart, and repaired.

It’s been over 20+ years since I’ve been in high school, and things have changed. From what I hear many schools don’t have any sort of shop classes, and that’s a shame. Maybe they should have some sort of “DIY” or “Make/Craft” classes at least.

Anyway, while I couldn’t sleep, I came across this article: Why your teenager can’t use a hammer.

As a maker, and someone who loves to learn how things work, it’s a little sad. I remember teaching my kids to use a power drill when they were less than 9 years old, and while they haven’t used the saw yet (they’ve asked) that’s also on the to do list.

(Someone also posted the link to the Pumping Station: One mailing list. There’s some good insight there as well.)

Simple Wood Tool Box

Here is a simple wood tool box. It’s easy to make one (or several of them) in an afternoon.

The vertical, open, design means you can easily see and access all your tools – no more digging to the bottom of a bag!

This is one my father made, based on a tool box he was given over 40 years ago. See more images of this tool box in the “misc” image gallery.

I also posted it at: http://www.instructables.com/id/Simple-Wood-Toolbox/

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