[gera229Participant]

Hey is the electronic PCB drawing part of the CNC or is it in a separate enclosure that you cut out?

I can move things around in the files since I have access to AutoCAD in order to cut it with a CNC mill.

[T4bParticipant]

Separate, as far as I know. On this picture: http://diylilcnc.org/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/DIYLILCNC.jpg it’s between the computer and the DIYLILCNC.

[gera229Participant]

The download link for CNC Cut Pattern is broken.

[gera229Participant]

Hey what temperature and what solder did you use to solder the board?

Also what iron?

[gera229Participant]

So any help on soldering?

Also do you use spacing to space the PCB from the wood and then screw it in?

[ChrisKeymaster]

@gera229, the soldering setup mostly depends on your preference. As long as you are making good solder connections & not accidentally bridging any of the contacts you’ll be just fine.

I like to use an adjustable-temperature soldering iron at about 750° (though this will vary depending on your tip size & solder gauge).

[gera229Participant]

I did my research and looks like too high of a temperature may cause the adhesive in the PCB to soften up and cause parts to come loose. I was thinking of using the Red Weller station I think it’s 40 or 50 watts with adjustable temperature with a chisel solder tip.

Did you guys use Rosin core like it says on the hobbycnc manual?

Did you put tin on your tip prior to soldering to prevent abrasion on the tip?

By the way Chris what software did you use to draw your parts? I can’t seem to modify the lines in AutoCADD if I need to say use thinner wood.

Also do you use spacing to space the PCB from the wood and then screw it in?

[gera229Participant]

I’m going to begin putting things together soon. I wish you had a little bit more of your time to answer all of my questions. I understand that this is all side work, but this forum is completely inactive so I couldn’t get my answers when I need them and that delays how quick I build the CNC.

Starting to build it in about a week and a half and would like to get some pointers before then so I could start right away. Thanks.

[gera229Participant]

Sorry for an extra post, it’s just that no one replied to the above.

But another question:

Do resistors have polarity? Does it matter which way they are soldered?

Does it matter where each of the 2 wire ends coming out of the resistor are soldered on the PCB circuit board? Does it have to be in any particular order?

[markmParticipant]

Resistors don’t have polarity. My preference, however, is to orient them all the same direction so the values are easier to read later on. Relative to the silkscreen labels, I like to insert them so the values are read left to right or top to bottom, depending on the part orientation.

The smaller capacitors are usually non-polarized. In general, if a part has a polarization, there are markings on the part and on the PCB silkscreen indicating direction.

There’s no particular order to soldering the resistor leads. Make sure the part is snug to the board before soldering. Sometimes you need to revisit a part and push it down on the board while reheating the joint to get it to sit snug.

[gera229Participant]

The resistors don’t have values, they have stripes. So what do you mean by values? Or are stripe colors in specific places like one color would be on the left and one on the right that you would read them as values?

I will just orient them however the color is written on the paper from left to right (and if they go vertically from top to bottom).

What about the small orange capacitors? Do they have polarity? (Not the cylindrical shaped ones, they are more like oval shaped ones). 0.1uF

How would you orient them?

Aside from that:

It says something about voltage regulating, do you have a HobbyCNC board? If so you can explain this to me.

Thanks.

[markmParticipant]

By values, I mean the color stripes. With practice, one looks at a resistor and sees the value from the stripes.

The small orange capacitors are not polarized. Orientation is not critical.

I don’t what you’re asking about voltage regulating – please clarify.

[ChrisKeymaster]

gera229, you’re asking a lot of good questions, but If you find yourself slowing you down from a lack of know-how, you may want to step back for a day or so and read up on basics of electronics. While we’re happy to answer as best we can on this forum, there are already plenty of resources out there that can help you get started.

I got a lot out of Electronics for Dummies when I started (not to imply anything re the title, of course :). It covers the fundamental & often unintuitive aspects of electronics (cryptic resistor stripes, soldering pointers, polarity, etc.) and most importantly basic safety.

I’d recommend using some plastic spacers to keep the board raised a bit off the bottom of the driver case. You can get these at radio shack or online at jameco, mouser, or maybe even amazon. I’m not sure I understand your question about voltage regulation, can you please clarify?

[gera229Participant]

I graduate from High School next week, and going to start building it during summer. I want to know everything by that time so that I am set to build without any problems.

Learned to read G-Code in my Engineering class, never realized it was so simple and easy to understand, but does indeed get very long.

Basics on electronics, yeah I do my research and actually found a few answers.

During summer, when you guys have free time maybe you can answer all of my questions.

For voltage, I figured it out. The potentiometers on the PCB are rotatable.

Plastic spacers? Doesn’t plastic generate static which can damage the driver board? Haha.

[ChrisKeymaster]

gera229, I really don’t think static is a concern in re to board spacers. the standoff holes are not connected to anything on the board electronically, so even if they did manage to build up a charge somehow you’d be fine, and still better off with the standoffs protecting the underside of the board from getting physically damaged by pushing on the bottom of the case.

[Author]

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