Hi John,
I have a Dremel tool adapter for my Sherline mill, which is CNC. The
Sherline is for CNC, not PCB's, as they would have to be less then 3"
wide on my old Sherline.
My wife bought me a new Dremel tool, since I hadn't seen my old one
since we moved. You guessed it, I found my old one (20+years) soon
after. The new one does 30000 RPM as I recall, although I'd rather
experiment with the old one first.
My real PCB router project is still in planning, I have an assortment of
surplus parts which should give me a 12" x 12" table. All I need is
time to get stuff put together. Making the bridge frame (1/4" aluminum
plate) and the base will take a while. And it seems I always have other
projects that need attention! One is the controller program to run it!
Which Dremel are you using, the one with a 30000 top end? Yes, I know
of think and tinker, and also Tinkers-emporium, where I bought a few
boxes of assorted carbide drill bits. I think my engraver bit came from
MSC, a tool supplier.
Your feed numbers are interesting. I've never sat down and worked them
out before. Where did you get your numbers?
crankorgan wrote:
>
> Hi Alan,
> I don't mind the short life of the tool, its the
> cost. The bits are $7 each when you buy ten and you have
> to buy ten!
> I am milling at 6" per minute with a Dremel. That's
> 15,000 RPMs. The bits can move .0004" to .0006" of feed for
> every RPM. That's the speed limit. So if you own a Taig or Sherline
> you are out of luck unless you bought the 10,000 RPM spindle. That
> gives you 5" per minute for $1000 worth of machine. Alot of the
> EXPERTS out there never mention this. This is how I know they have
> their boots on and their shovels in hand. There are no bits out there
> that can mill boards with slower spindle speeds unless you
> slow the feedrate down to a snails pace. Have you ever droped by
> Think and Tinker? That where I get my bits and info.
> A real circuit board machine has a 20,000 to 50,000 RPM
> spindle. I ran my Dremel at 20,000 for awhile. 15,000 RPMs gives
> me good Dremel and bit life. I have made over 200 4" X 6" boards
> to date. I save the old bits. There are people out there that
> do re-sharpening. I might even give it a try myself.
>
>
> John