Tuesday 29 September 2009

Mounting a DRO on the 6x26 Mill

I kept the chinese DRO scales and readout display from the previous mill. All of the travels were able to accommodate the travels on the new machine. Having a DRO is something I don't think I could now live without.


Here are some photos showing what I did:


I drilled and tapped a couple of M5 holes in the bottom half of the belt guard - this allowed me to attach the readout unit to the side of the machine.
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5087/5345612576_15df7999d8.jpg


I removed the scale and the stop post that was attached to the front of the table and used the t-nuts that where in the t-slot at the front of the table to attach the X-axis scale. I used some lightweight aluminium angle to protect the scale from chips and coolant etc. The cable was put inside plastic sheathing and was tied down with cable ties.
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5089/5345613240_f70c1bd79f.jpg


The Y-axis scale was attached to a plate that was attached in turn to the Y-axis stops bracket via standoffs. I used stand offs to clear the oiler for the knee dovetail. I replaced the steel stop piece with a new part that acts as both a stop and a bracket for moving the scale.
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5169/5345002043_25ca35f759.jpg


The Z-axis was the only place (aside from the readout bracket) that I had to drill holes to attach the scales. I have not covered these scales yet.
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5210/5345612954_ac988c8d34.jpg


All the cabling was neatly routed and tied down with cable ties.


http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5124/5345002315_ee663b33fc.jpg

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