by Bob Warfield | Blog
Suppose you’re an artist proficient in CNC and you enjoy creating three-dimensional puzzles. What would be the pinnacle of your artistic practice? For GarE Maxton of Carson City, Nevada, his latest project is called “The INTIMIDATOR”....
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by Bob Warfield | Blog, Tools and Techniques
There are instances when you may have a task that is too massive for your lathe, even if it seems ideally suited for a lathe. In such a scenario, a 4th axis can be incredibly beneficial. [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RPYGFD84JsQ] The blank was 25 inch OD,...
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by Bob Warfield | Blog, Feeds and Speeds, Software, Tools and Techniques
Professional machinists are involved in a highly competitive business. They need to eek out every drop of productivity they can. Recently on Practical Machinist, someone asked where to get the best feeds and speeds chart, which produced quite a bit of...
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by Bob Warfield | Blog
Currently, I’m painting panels for a flood enclosure that I’m constructing for my mill. I thought it would be useful to share a brief review of the HVLP spray guns from Harbor Freight that I’ve been using. I initially began with their pricier model,...
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by Bob Warfield | Blog, CNC Basics, Feeds and Speeds, Software, Tools and Techniques
Roughing End Mill Feeds and Speeds [“Corncob” Roughers] The feeds and speeds for Roughing End Mills can surpass the regular end mills. These “Corncob” Roughers are roughing end mills that have serrations on their cutting edge to help break up...
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by Bob Warfield | Blog, CNC Basics, GCode, Software, Tools and Techniques
To begin, it should be stated that this article does not focus on fixing issues with a non-functioning machine. There exist instances where commands, sent to a well-adjusted and configured CNC machine, do not yield the desired movements. How can that be possible? The...
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by Bob Warfield | 3D Printing, Blog, CNC Projects
I recently came across an incredible project and video on Hoss’s 3D Printer thread at CNCZone: [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IPmP0u1HuUM&feature=player_embedded[/youtube] 3D printing an alien skull in high resolution… There’s not a lot...
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by Bob Warfield | Blog, CNC Projects, Tools and Techniques
The key to increasing productivity at the mill is to utilize as much of the available space as possible. Fitting more parts onto the table allows it to operate independently while you focus on other tasks. When it’s time to place several small parts, the common...
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by Bob Warfield | Blog, CNC Manufacturing & Job Shops
I got a nice note from G-Wizard Customer Wiley Davis, who has a Kickstarter project underway to create a product for the photography market. Wiley tells me he used G-Wizard extensively to calculate feeds and speeds while developing his project. We ran an earlier...
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by Bob Warfield | Blog, CNC Projects, CNC Router
I’ve always loved these open framework wooden clocks. They seem like ideal CNC projects, especially if you are set up with a CNC router. Friends are constantly asking me what I make with all the machines in my shop and when I answer that I mostly make more...
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by Bob Warfield | Blog, Feeds and Speeds, Tools and Techniques
This article is part of our Feeds and Speeds Cookbook. Click here for the full article. I’m not sure when it got to be such a hot item, but rigid tapping seems like one of those things that comes up early in discussions of machines, controllers, and so...
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by Bob Warfield | Blog, Software, Tools and Techniques
Our first article in this series discussed how using Windows to solve all of the CNC Controller problem suffers because Windows is not a real time operating system. Simply put, if the task of sending motion control signals (step + direction pulses) to the motor...
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