Feb.7, 2012

convert cnc machine to 3d printer

If you have a desktop CNC machine and you wish to convert to a 3D printer, what items do you need to add to the CNC machine? Nuri Erginer, an industrial engineer with a CNC background, and a 3D printing enthusiast has written a tutorial helping people to convert their existing CNC machines to a 3D printer.

The differences between a desktop CNC machine an a 3D printer are the tool head and the heated build platform. CNC machines uses spindles but 3D printers use plastruder - hot plastic extruder.

convert cnc machine to 3d printerWith his CNC background Nuri views a plastruder as the 4th axis. So if you have a 3 axis machine you will need to add a 4th axis and an additional one axis motor driver so that it can be allocated to the plastruder. Besides you will also need to add a heated build platform, a hot plastic extruder, a temperature controller and temperature sensors for your project.

As to software, Skeinforge is a preferred CAM software for generating the G-code for 3D printers. Nuri made a modified version of Skeinforge for
switching G-code file with from letter "A" to letter "E" for 3D printer's extruder. It is available for download here. You can also download an Add-on for Mach3, a popular CNC software. This Add-on is written by Nuri and needs Microsoft .net Framework installed. It includes modified Skeinforge and after installation you can just click buttons to directly start 3D printing your objects inside Mach3.


Check out Nuri's detailed explanation and installation instruction for the process here. This project is Open Source Hardware and is licensed under the GNU GPLv3. This is an excellent idea and work to convert the CNC machine to a 3D printer.

convert cnc machine to 3d printer


convert cnc machine to 3d printer"Dan Mauch" from www.camtronics-cnc.com shared a video and his mach3 and Slic3r software settings. Watch the video after the jump.

 

images credit/ Source: cnc2printer3d

Posted in 3D Printing Technology

 

 

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Tony wrote at 1/18/2018 11:32:22 AM:

Thinking about what everyone has said here, it would not be hard to convert a CNC Mill to a CNC 3D Printer. Use an external power source to run the heater for the Print head & use the spindle motor output to run the feed motor. Then using a hair dryer or other heat source heat the bed and start printing. Or if Lazy use a brew mat from a homebrew kit The only thing I can see is making the g-code to run the setup, which going on comments here can be done without any major extra costs. So use the thing between your ears and stop trying to put down people who are using there imagination to create things.

janica constantin wrote at 5/3/2016 10:23:20 AM:

I have milling machine HAAS-smm2 with 3 axis and do not know to convert it in 3d printer.

Frank wrote at 5/1/2016 10:04:53 AM:

Nice as engineering, and curiosity project , but ¿Why to convert a cnc to a cheap plastic maker?, i think it do not worth it, with the hundreds of cheap 3d printers in the market, the ideal is to have both animals, one can be useful to make things, that other can,t do or is easier to do. from an artistic point of view no comparison printing cheap plastic toys (courious everybody prints the same things) , with a bass relief designed in blender cam, or other cam software, and detailed carved in excellent wood, with a ball screw, Chinese cnc machine, perhaps people do not have interest to learn how to use cam software, and cnc machines, that needs some effort at the beginning, but like all good things in life.

JohanK wrote at 7/3/2015 10:17:27 PM:

Thank you for at least making sense. I have been retrofitting CNC,s to conventional and CNC ( Computer Numerical Controls) machines for years. I have build a number of Special Purpose Machines with CNC controls and have been in the business since NC (Numerical Control) For your work in this field Thank You. In fact I would like to know more. Specially since I would like to build my own 3D printer with a 6 axis CNC control and a 1M X 2.5M X 200mm traverse machine, and I would like your assistance to make the necessary decisions.

Fred wrote at 4/12/2015 7:56:20 PM:

Monty, First of all, get it right. The title is Converting your existing CNC machine to a 3D printer, NOT converting a 3d printer into a CNC machine. Secondly, the author referred to a desktop CNC machine which is most likely a mill, not a router. Be more careful with your criticism.

monty wrote at 11/6/2012 4:30:12 PM:

Convert a 3d printer to a cnc machine????? You need may need to get your terminology straight, a 3d printer is a ccn machine, a cnc router is also conch machine, a cnc lathe is also conch machine. What you need to say is, how to convert a cnc router to a 3d printer. The word "cnc machine" is a generic term for a computer controlled machinery, that include a 3d printer. The generic term for a 3d printer is cnc extruder. Don't get these terms mixed up. People are confused already with these terms.

monty wrote at 11/6/2012 4:29:14 PM:

Convert a 3d printer to a cnc machine????? You need may need to get your terminology straight, a 3d printer is a ccn machine, a cnc router is also conch machine, a cnc lathe is also conch machine. What you need to say is, how to convert a cnc router to a 3d printer. The word "cnc machine" is a generic term for a computer controlled machinery, that include a 3d printer. The generic term for a 3d printer is cnc extruder. Don't get these terms mixed up. People are confused already with these terms.



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