Juan's Projects

I'll be adding here some tips and how-tos on how on FlatCAM 8.994, an Open-Source PCB CAM tool. This is a work in progress and it's mostly for my own reference. I'll be updating it as I discover new stuff. Note that procedures shown may not be correct or the most efficient. This is provided "as is". FlatCAM's website:  http://flatcam.org/ Installation:  https://bitbucket.org/jpcgt/flatcam/downloads/ Create and save new project: Load Gerbers & Excellon: Single-sided isolation routing: On the left pane, double-click your front copper gerber, and you'll be taken to a Properties window. Choose Isolation routing. If the left pane somehow disappears, you may go to View > Toggle project/Properties/Tool. On tools & tools library: From within the isolation window, delete default tools and choose the tool you want to use, or create a new one. See the screenshow on how to do so. Here is how to configure a traditional V bit. To be continued... Soon (TM) Don...

I had been wanting to build a CNC router/mill for a while, so finally on January 2021 I designed this contraption, with the help of the folks at cnczone . I originally wanted to go for an aluminum or even concrete frame, but as a first project and for ease of construction and economic reasons it ended up being wood. It is intended for cutting woods and plastics, and PCB milling. I'll try some alumi(ni)um when I'm familiar enough with feeds and speeds. I then proceeded to cut out all wooden pieces, finishing the edges with a hand-held router so that they were reasonably straight. When summer came and all parts (rails, leadscrews, steppers..) arrived, I began gluing all the pieces together and test-fiting parts. Areas where linear rails mounted were soaked in epoxy to protect the wood. Holes were drilled and tapped for the appropiate sizes, regular machine screws would latter hold things together, with some drops of wood glue to secure them semi-permanently in place. A workbench ...

This is a pen plotter capable of printing on A4 paper sheets. It is intended to be similar to the Aritma Amagraph pen plotter, be as compact and robust as posible as well as reliable. It is controlled by means of an arduino with a grbl shield, wich drives the x and y motors, and the solenoid used for lifting-lowering the pen in response to g-code generated in inkscape and sent through grbl controller.  Here is a video of it working: More info & files here:  https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:2504587