My machine is a combination of the following;
Based on Sphinx 55 by Kyo Shinohara link
Inspired by Sorin Iliesu build link
Custom plates from Chris Laidlaw - Blue OX link
For the rails I used the following;
6 - 500mm MGN12 linear rails
2 – 250mm MGN12 linear rails
16 – MGN12H guide blocks
To attach the rails I used;
58 10mm M3 scoket head for mgn12 blocksOpenbuilds has great instructions for the Sphinx 55, so I thought I would just document the things that I did differently to add the MGN12 linear rails.
6 8mm M3 scoket head for x/z-axis plate mgn12 blocks
140 8mm M3 scoket head for mgn12 rail to c-beams
140 M3 t-nut for attaching rails
8 34mm M5 scoket head for anti backlash blocks with spacers
24 20mm M5 button head for plate to end of extrusion ie plate to end of c-beam
8 30mm M5 button head for thicker plate end connection on z axis
16 10mm M5 button head for 6mm plate to t-nut/slot connection
My 500mm rails were just a bit long I had to grind of about 1mm to make them fit between the end-plates on the c-beams.
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I used the slide in style t-nuts for the rails, I did not trust the twist in style with so many to fiddle with.
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To attach and align the rails I made a small alignment jig that I attached to the c-beams to get the first rail of a pair of aligned to the c-beam. I worked my way front to back snugging the jig down then setting the rails against it and tightening down the rail bolts.
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With the first rail aligned to the c-beam, I then checked the rails with an indicator. However using the jig was enough to get the first rails straight, so using the indicator may not be necessary. Once I had the first rail straight and fixed in place I loosely installed the second with the guide blocks and end-plate. That way I could slide the end-plate to align the bearings and then sung everything up.
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The front plate on the y axis c-beam will allow the side rail blocks to slide right off the front, for now I installed a few longer screw and nuts for a stop. I know that I will have to work out a better solution than this when I start to run the machine.
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I found that I was not happy with the standard locking collars and decided to look for something that fit a little more snugly. I found 5/16 double split shaft collars on ebay and they fit the openbuilds rod very well. Here is a link. I also placed a thrust bearing between the flexible coupling and the c-beam end plate. My theory is that this arrangement will help eliminate unwanted movement.
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The stock limit switch locations were not compatible with my linear rail build. After a bit of thought I decided that inductive limit switches would be better with the locations that I had to work with. I cut an aluminum angle bracket for the z limit and mounted it to the z axis c-beam.
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The x-axis limit switch is mounted to a 3d printed bracket that attaches to the x-axis c-beam.
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The y-axis limit switch is mounted to a 3d printed bracket that attaches to the y-axis motor stand.
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I am up and running now so I am calling this build complete. All-though I still have quite a few things I want to do, like build and sound/dust enclosure with a box for all of the wiring and electronics.
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Here are a few of the first things I have cut with the machine.
A set of front c-beam plates to prevent the y-axis from traveling to far forward.
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A set of 'nuts' to make adjusting the tension on the x-axis motor easier.
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And a set of spindle mount brackets to strengthen the spindle mount and make adjusting it easier. Here are links to the files for this BRACKET and CAM FILE
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LINEAR RAIL SPHINX 55 (Blue OX plates)
Build in 'Cartesian Style CNC' published by that-jim, Feb 19, 2023.
Machine based on Sphinx 55 built with linear rails.
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- Build Progress:
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- Build Complete!
Attached Files:
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Special Notes
I used the plate set found here. Deluxe Linear Rail Sphinx CNC Plate Set (seen at Openbuilds) | eBay
Kenneth Ghost, Gary Bonard, yukuz and 24 others like this. -
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Build Author that-jim, Find all builds by that-jim
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Build Details
- Build License:
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- CC - Attribution - CC BY
Reason for this Build
I wanted a small rigid machine for cutting aluminum.Inspired by
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Attached Files:
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