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What do you do when you want a CNC machine, but don’t have the room or the funds for a massive professional machine to build your custom parts? I found myself in the same dilemma, so I chose to scale down my purchase and invest in a manual mill that I could eventually convert to a CNC machine. Before purchasing my X2 Mini Mill from I did some research to investigate what it would take to make the switch from a manual mill to a complete 3-axis computer numerically controlled milling machine.
These small hobbyist mills are manufactured in China and Taiwan, and then shipped to companies like Harbor Freight, Grizzly and Micro-Mark who paint them various colors and sell them under different names. Since the basic foundation is all the same, a small community has formed around this popular mini mill platform to share ideas and hacks. When opting to convert to CNC, there are numerous kits and conversion designs to choose from. These options range from simple PDFs with diagrams and schematics to high-precision hardware and electronics bundles.
CNC Fusion is a small company that machines high quality conversion parts made from 6061 aluminium stock. The company started in 2004 when Michael Rodgers, a machinist by trade, wanted to build a CNC machine but realized that he could not build the parts he designed without first owning a CNC machine. That initial desire has led Michael to design and fabricate CNC conversion kits for small manual mills and lathes, and now his kits are sold around the globe (40% of CNC Fusion production is shipped to overseas customers). The household garage has been converted into a machine shop where Michael machines the majority of the kit components using a huge five axis CNC mill while wife Sharron runs the massive CNC lathe to machine the ends of the ball screw threads sold with their kits. The X2 Mini Mill kit is the most popular from CNC Fusion, primarily because the mini mill platform is considered a great tool at a modest price for hobbyists. With the X2 Mini-Mill CNC kit #2 all the new upgrade parts bolt to existing features and you replace the factory lead screw with high-precision ball screws and new motor mount adapters to accept NEMA 23 stepper motors.
The hardware installation is very straightforward and requires the disassembly of the X and Y axes before reinstalling the ball screws. You will also need to drill two holes into the central column of the mill to install the Z-axis ball screw hardware.
Besides this step, the entire process is completely reversible in case you ever decide to switch back to manual machining (but honestly, why would you?). I will provide steps for setting up the electrical components and required software in a separate tutorial. This project will only cover the physical hardware conversion. • Push the saddle back toward the column as far as possible. Lay your mill on its backside. From underneath the mill, feed the Y axis ball screw through the hole in the base, while at the same time inserting the aluminum ball nut mount into the slot that held the original half nut. • At first it seems like the ball screw is too long and that the you will not be able to properly angle the ball screw within the limited space. Ice Road Trucker Games.
Be patient; eventually the ball screw falls into place and the aluminum ball nut is seated properly. • This step is not advised, and should only be used when all else fails • The collar that sits tight against the bearing uses a special spanner wrench. If you do not have this specialty tool, it is still possible to tighten the collar against the bearing. However, the technique described here is not recommended.
• Use two channel locks or vise grips to clamp down on the end of the ball screw and the collar. Be careful not to damage the threads! • The same technique can be used in a later step when tightening the locking collar on the X-axis ball screw. • If this is not done carefully it can cause serious damage to the ends of the ball screws and jeopardize the integrity of the high-precision ground ball screws.
• At this point, you will want to loosen the locking screw that secures the aluminum ball nut mount (the cap screw in the middle of the saddle that you previously tightened when the mill was on its back side). Turn the ball screw by hand until the saddle is almost all the way forward, leaving just enough room for the Allen wrench to fit between the Y axis motor mount and the saddle. • Now you are ready to fine tune the Y axis. You do not want to fine tune the Y axis with the saddle pushed back towards the column because the back end of the ball screw is unsupported and able to wobble ever so slightly.