using RepRap electronics

This topic contains 2 replies, has 2 voices, and was last updated by  gnomadix 3 years, 1 month ago.

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  • #2433

    gnomadix
    Participant

    Hi there,

    I love your website: it has really inspired me!!

    I originally wanted to build a CNC after looking at the Instructables website

    but having no experience chose to build a RepRap

    My question is:

    can I use the same electronics successfully with LILCNC?

    what are the differences in the setups between Ramps/Sanguino and EZ drivers boards in terms of pros and cons

    I would be very grateful for any help or advice

    Thanks again

    Simon

    #3908

    Taylor
    Keymaster

    @gnomadix,

    Glad to hear we got your gears turning! I haven’t built a RepRap myself, but I’m guessing that the basic idea is identical: three motors for three axes of motion, plus maybe a fourth motor to run deposition. If you could add a deposition head to the CNC, potentially you’d be able to run both additive and subtractive jobs.

    The limitation here is likely current. We use pretty big motors – see the HobbyCNC documentation for more info (you can get away with the smallest ones on that site). I’ll be that the RepRap driver can’t handle that much power.

    If you’re feeling adventurous, it would be possible to re-engineer the lil’ CNC to work with smaller motors. This would involve adding gearing at each axis to multiply the torque of the motors. Z is already has a decent ratio due to its ACME screw, so all we’d need to mod is X and Y. Check out the downloads page for CAD files and more info.

    #3909

    gnomadix
    Participant

    Hi Taylor,

    Thanks for your reply, that make the difference clearer

    The motors used by the RepRap are lower power, and from reading the forums

    it looks like overheating is a common problem

    I think when I start the LIL CNC build, I will use the EZ driver

    kits

    All the Best

    Simon

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