FishyDP
Active Member
For those of you using CNC machines for cutting acrylic sheets for aquarium products, what is your preferred type? Laser/C02, mill, router ect? Let's say you had a 5k budget..any recommendations?
Preferred CNC Machine for Acrylic
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Lowell Lemon
2500 Club Member
Hard to find a new or used CNC machine that can cut a full size acrylic sheet. In general servo drive machines give the best cut and cost closer to $100,000.00. Router is better for parts that need to be solvent welded.
Best low cost machine is the Avid CNC from Washington State. I machine quartz and granite with mine.
I have an updated Cam Tek with new drives and controls with a 100" × 72" bed I would sell and replace with a larger Avid CNC....in case you are interested. I use it to cut Corian solid surface counters. Corian sheets are 144" plus and that is why I want to upgrade.
Best low cost machine is the Avid CNC from Washington State. I machine quartz and granite with mine.
I have an updated Cam Tek with new drives and controls with a 100" × 72" bed I would sell and replace with a larger Avid CNC....in case you are interested. I use it to cut Corian solid surface counters. Corian sheets are 144" plus and that is why I want to upgrade.
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Lowell Lemon
2500 Club Member
Three phase power and over $100,000.00 by the time it is up and running no doubt. I priced all the top machines years ago and KOMO was one of the best.
For large production CNC's the best performance is from moving the table not the gantry. It has to do with the mass and slowing the gantry for turns and circle cuts.
York1
Active Member
Onsrud is the only router I have ever worked on. My last job we had one that would run a 4x8 sheet and one that was about 5 times bigger. Loved work ing on them Great machines. Now Im running a tooling shop and just can not justify a nice router unfortunately .
George81
Active Member
For 5 grand you can build your own cnc.....i built my cnc for roughly 5k, it’s 96”x60” cutting area is roughly 90”x54”
dont ask me for plans. I built it all out of my head
cnc are Quite simple...don’t be intimidated by it. I used ball screws and regret it....the machine has to run slower to avoid backlash. But it’s highly precise and accurate.
frame is made out of 4” i beams...gantry and rails are extruded aluminum. All mounting for routers and bearings are solid aluminum.
i used 2 axis for the y, 1 for x, one for z, and one for my rotation axis. software I use is Mach 3 and cam Is fusion 360 or deskproto.
some photos of the build
dont ask me for plans. I built it all out of my head
cnc are Quite simple...don’t be intimidated by it. I used ball screws and regret it....the machine has to run slower to avoid backlash. But it’s highly precise and accurate.
frame is made out of 4” i beams...gantry and rails are extruded aluminum. All mounting for routers and bearings are solid aluminum.
i used 2 axis for the y, 1 for x, one for z, and one for my rotation axis. software I use is Mach 3 and cam Is fusion 360 or deskproto.
some photos of the build
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FishyDP
Active Member
Awesome, thanks for the info. The avid cnc looks like a nice option for the price. Will pm about your machine.
I am new to machining, currently learning acad. Have a question about cutting acrylic..you mentioned a router would be best to cut acrylic to weld.
-is it possible to cut 1/4 - 1/2" cast and or extruded acrylic and get a polished edge with lower cost machines such as the avid?
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FishyDP
Active Member
Looks great. I dont know enough yet to build a cnc, but it is good to know the option is out there down the road.For 5 grand you can build your own cnc.....i built my cnc for roughly 5k, it’s 96”x60” cutting area is roughly 90”x54”
dont ask me for plans. I built it all out of my head
cnc are Quite simple...don’t be intimidated by it. I used ball screws and regret it....the machine has to run slower to avoid backlash. But it’s highly precise and accurate.
frame is made out of 4” i beams...gantry and rails are extruded aluminum. All mounting for routers and bearings are solid aluminum.
i used 2 axis for the y, 1 for x, one for z, and one for my rotation axis. software I use is Mach 3 and cam Is fusion 360 or deskproto.
some photos of the build
Below 5k is really in the hobby-router area. I believe the best current offerings under that budget with a reasonable bed size would be Shapeoko Pro (side benefit crazy user friendly), or Onefinity Woodworker (newer company, no included bed, etc). 33x33 cut area. Shapeoko can cut some incredible parts in aluminum, check it out on YouTube.
After the base machine cost, you will need a few hundred in router bits, probing equipment, a dust collection system and/or air compressor, potentially a custom stand and enclosure, a nice set of calipers, etc. I would say there is probably another 1-1.5k after base machine cost to get a good setup going.
Then of course materials while you learn.... can add up as well.
So if the *total* budget is 5k, a base machine in the 3-3.5k range might fit.
After the base machine cost, you will need a few hundred in router bits, probing equipment, a dust collection system and/or air compressor, potentially a custom stand and enclosure, a nice set of calipers, etc. I would say there is probably another 1-1.5k after base machine cost to get a good setup going.
Then of course materials while you learn.... can add up as well.
So if the *total* budget is 5k, a base machine in the 3-3.5k range might fit.
Lowell Lemon
2500 Club Member
There are currently cutters on the market that will give you a polished finish but I don't use them to process Corian.
Lowell Lemon
2500 Club Member
You can start with a simple CAD program like Cam Bam $99.00 or spend thousands on the software like I did lol! Mine is connected to a laser survey system to make countertops and related items. I have close to $11,000.00 in the software and laser alone. There are other Penny CAD systems on the market as well. We use the Cam Bam to convert. dfx files to G code to run the machine.
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FishyDP
Active Member
Great recommendations here. Now I am just trying to figure out if a router or laser would be better for acrylic. .it is my understanding that lasers are slower but polish edges nicely.. and a router can polish edges with the right bit and a couple passes AND can cut edges appropriate for welding. I am leaning towards a router at this point as it seems faster and more versatile overall, for acrylic.
JPG@CFI
Active Member
Stay with a router, and plan on multi passes. I have around 20 routers and more carbide bits than I care to admit. CNC’s cannot do what I can with a router unless you start to spend in the 130K range. Most lack the rigity that one needs when machining 3/4”-1” acrylic. I have been building tanks for a living for the last 24 years, and am always learning new things. Lasers heat stress the material which you don’t want. Check out my FB and Instagram at Clear Fabrications.
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FishyDP
Active Member
Awesome looking work. I may have to look you up for some frag tanks this summer. I am sure you are a wealth of knowledge. I am just starting in the acrylic/machining world so I will have endless questions haha..but everything is pointing to investing in a router vs laser for acrylic. I will be working with thinner material to start, but I assume the above info applies to 1/4-1/2" acrylic.
Lowell Lemon
2500 Club Member
JPG cuts everything by hand that is why the reference to 20 routers. To do that requires high quality straight edges like the ones from The Penske Edge which are ground within .005". It also requires the ability to make or cut great templates by hand or by CNC. JPG has access to a CNC in the co-op building he works out of I believe. I would opt for the best CNC you can afford up front and let it buy you the better CNC machine in your future. Avid CNC is the best in class to get started and assembly of their kit will teach you great lessons about what to look for in your next machine! Or you can just buy more machines for specific tasks to increase productivity. Both methods work. Learn about the acrylic material first then secure a good supply network first. Most distribution chains are not stocking cell cast acrylic except for specific customers.
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FishyDP
Active Member
I was wondering about the 20 routers makes sense now. I am definitely liking the avid machines. I gave them a quick call and their machines are compatible with fusion 360. The only software I know currently is Acad. The rep wasn't sure if compatible but they are both autodesk products so I'm sure there is a way.. I'm considering the 4x4 or 4x8 table. I agree best way is to learn by doing so I like the idea of building it. I have educated myself about acrylic to the point of knowing what type to use for different applications, and different cuts/bits/ and speeds required for weld cuts vs finished edges. I have more to learn before I make a significant investment in material. I can see the importance of a good supplier, seems like prices skyrocketed overnight especially for cell cast. I also like the idea of getting a decent machine to start.
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This is great, been contemplating building a cnc to cut thin plywood and acrylic. Seems like a small router is the way to go since a laser doesn't see to cut clear acrylic.For 5 grand you can build your own cnc.....i built my cnc for roughly 5k, it’s 96”x60” cutting area is roughly 90”x54”
dont ask me for plans. I built it all out of my head
cnc are Quite simple...don’t be intimidated by it. I used ball screws and regret it....the machine has to run slower to avoid backlash. But it’s highly precise and accurate.
frame is made out of 4” i beams...gantry and rails are extruded aluminum. All mounting for routers and bearings are solid aluminum.
i used 2 axis for the y, 1 for x, one for z, and one for my rotation axis. software I use is Mach 3 and cam Is fusion 360 or deskproto.
some photos of the build
You mentioned about the backlash problems, think a belt is a better way to go?
Have you made a decision on this? I am in the same boat and am probably leaning toward a router. Seen a few vids of a laser vs acrylic and seems like it's tough to cut through clear acrylic using acrylic.
