Enclosures

If you are anything like me, the one thing you don’t relish is cleaning up after you are done with your project. I always want my machine to be right where and how I left it, ready for the next task, but I also know that an organized workbench also means better focus on my task at hand. And, with CNC, we really should attend to the debris that results from our efforts. This debris can contaminate surfaces we are working on or with, and inhaling any of the dust (or fumes) is not particularly healthy. As a result, we really should consider putting our machine in an enclosure to at least control where the debris and dust go and limit how much cleanup we need to do. This chapter deals with deciding on and either assembling or buying an enclosure for the 3018. I like to have enclosures for many of my machines. A number of my 3D printers live under a hood to allow heat to be retained and noise to be dampened; still others have a cube frame permitting all the working parts...

Panels, cleaning, and access

At first glance, the three elements in this heading might seem unrelated, but in reality, they absolutely are. You want to have panels that open easily and provide maximum access to your work area as well as the controls on the machine itself. Of course, removable panels or a way to remove the entire enclosure for cleaning also means you have a way to control the spread of any debris that collects with each cutting job. Panels provide the means for ventilation and cooling you need to drive harmful fumes away from your machine and work area or let in air to keep your workpiece or toolhead cool. Also, with panels, if you are using a laser, make sure that you can safely view your machine in action without jeopardizing your eyesight. These same panels may also provide you with access to your emergency stop switch, power supply, and USB cables, and also confine any sparks or flames (should your workpiece ignite).

What you do for your enclosure panels depends...

Removable and non-integral enclosures

Essentially, an enclosure is a box that sits around your machine. It has no bottom panel so that you can pick it up and place it over your 3018 much as you might cover something with a cardboard box. A lot of pre-made enclosures are like this. They are essentially a frame with some transparent panels, one of which may operate as a door, that you lower over your 3018 when in use.

Cleanup is fairly simple since the entire enclosure is removable. Once done, simply lift up the enclosure and clean it with rags, towels, or a shop vacuum as necessary – both the interior of the enclosure as well as on, around, and under the 3018. There are plenty of vendors on the internet who will sell you one of these for less than $100 and assembly is trivial. Enclosures like these have their advantages and downsides.

The following are some of the pros:

• Simple to build and use
• Does not require any modification to your machine
• Can be shared...

Integrated and permanent enclosures

Integrated enclosures offer some unique benefits and make your machine seem more professional. Typically, I like enclosures where the machine can be bolted in place so that both the enclosure and machine move as one unit around the shop. I look for enclosures that have solid walls and the ability to support peripheral items on the outside. For example, I like to have the emergency stop switch outside so that if I need to halt any operation, I don’t have to reach into the box in any way. I also like to separate the electronics, dust collection, lubrication, and air assist systems so they can be controlled from the outside – again, so that I don’t have to put my hand inside while there is debris flying around. Here is an example of an integrated enclosure around my 10W laser:

Figure 7.2 – My 10W laser with its all-metal enclosure (and the laser firing)

Figure 7.3 –...

Build versus buy, materials, and designs

There are a lot of options available to you depending on how confident you are working with easily available materials. If I had to make design choices for any enclosure, I prefer to have the following:

• Front-mounted doors, with a preference for doors that open up and away (i.e., with the hinges mounted on the top).
• A clamshell-type design, which allows me to have complete access to all sides of the machine with the enclosure open. This is one of the designs I have listed previously.
• Plenty of openings for wires and hoses. If it is an integral enclosure, I either need enough real estate on the top or side to mount any controllers or long-enough cabling for the controller to mount to the door or an inset at the front. This is what I ended up doing for my laser. The controllers are all on the outside, as is any hardware to job the machine (e.g., an LCD controller).

A cursory look online yields a variety of available units...

Summary

Together, in this chapter, we have learned what we might expect from our machine’s enclosure and considered whether it is better to build one or just buy something simple. We also looked at some fabrication methods and saw a design you can build yourself out of commonly available materials. We also discussed the differences between integral and non-integral enclosures, noting the benefits and downsides of each.

We also briefly touched upon third-party fabrication services, which may be suited for larger projects or to make parts you are not able to make yourself yet. Later in the book, we will discuss larger machines that you can have the 3018 help fabricate. I will, in particular, highlight my BumbleBee combination CNC and laser cutter, which you can then use as a model for your own projects.

In the next chapter, we will look at a project to make a different kind of CNC machine – a plotter/laser cutter. Even though we discussed making the 3018 do this for...