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You're reading from  A Tinkerer's Guide to CNC Basics

Product typeBook
Published inJan 2024
PublisherPackt
ISBN-139781803247496
Edition1st Edition
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Samer Najia
Samer Najia
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Samer Najia

Samer has been extremely interested in things that fly since he was six years old. An avid pilot, flight instructor, rocketeer and plastic modeler, he has been building things that fly or look like they might for as long as he can remember, including a full scale aircraft in the garage. Samer has a background in Mechanical Engineering and is a CNC and Laser hobbyist, but currently is working in IT – specifically software development. Samer resides in Alexandria, VA with his wife and two children and participates in his local maker space by teaching metal shaping techniques, rocketry and homebuilt aircraft construction.
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CNC lathe

I’ve always wanted to add a lathe to my shop. I have a mini-lathe that I use for machining light woods and plastics, but nothing that can handle larger, harder materials, and certainly nothing automated.

I recently came across a maker on YouTube called Melkano. While the videos Melkano posts are in French, each system he develops has a site in English and French that you can follow. The designs he has are very easy to understand. I have already built one of his early mini-laser cutters, using some scrap extrusions and a few miscellaneous parts. Melkano also has designs for a CNC machine (very similar to a 3018) and a 3D printer. However, what caught my eye was an automated lathe. Unlike all our other machines, the lathe has the workpiece turning at a high revolutions per minute (RPM) rate, while a sharp edge moves along one side and cuts into it. Just think about how the vertical supports of stair rails might be made.

Here is a video of Melkano’s lathe...

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A Tinkerer's Guide to CNC Basics
Published in: Jan 2024Publisher: PacktISBN-13: 9781803247496

Author (1)

author image
Samer Najia

Samer has been extremely interested in things that fly since he was six years old. An avid pilot, flight instructor, rocketeer and plastic modeler, he has been building things that fly or look like they might for as long as he can remember, including a full scale aircraft in the garage. Samer has a background in Mechanical Engineering and is a CNC and Laser hobbyist, but currently is working in IT – specifically software development. Samer resides in Alexandria, VA with his wife and two children and participates in his local maker space by teaching metal shaping techniques, rocketry and homebuilt aircraft construction.
Read more about Samer Najia