• Articles
  • Motorcycles for Sale
  • Motorcycle Parts
  • Motorcycle Manuals
  • Models
  • Collectibles
  • Contact

The Kneeslider

Doers Builders and Positive People

Building a CNC Milling Machine the Hard Way

By Paul Crowe

CNC conversion for a standard milling machineCurrent CNC milling machines have dramatically advanced what a builder can create from a simple block of metal, and as we’ve seen, a properly programmed high end mill can turn out amazing work. Home machinists and builders often make do with more basic equipment allowing them to make those special one off parts or even a series of parts, but if you start with a basic milling machine and then get the urge to do CNC work, you have to make a choice, trade it in for a factory built CNC machine, buy some sort of add on kit or design and build everything necessary and convert it yourself. Though the last route is a bit over the top, Joel Miller of Massachusetts, an industrial designer by day, decided to see what it would take to do just that and forged ahead.

Joel bought a Grizzly G0704, a manual machine of the type you might find in a home shop, and set it up in his garage. After getting the feel of it and seeing what it could do, he launched into the conversion, buying parts, metal enclosures, stepper motors, switches and wiring and even designing and etching his own printed circuit boards.

He has a detailed series of posts on his website describing the whole process finishing with some videos of the machine in action, definitely worth your time. I can imagine someone seeing the CNC mill in his garage and assuming it was something he bought as a complete outfit, never imagining he did so much of the work himself. This is “hands on” on a higher level. Nice job!

Link: CNC Machine conversion via Make

Posted on January 26, 2012 Filed Under: Workshop & Tools


-- Subscribe to The Kneeslider --

Be the first to know when something’s new!


Be sure to check out The Kneeslider’s motorcycle models listings.

Your purchases through ebay links on The Kneeslider may earn a commission for this site.




« Brutus Electric Motorcycles
Ipothesys Moto Guzzi Griso Conversion »

Comments

  1. AlwaysOnTwo says

    January 26, 2012 at 8:55 am

    Okay, I learned something here.

    First off, there’s definitely a huge load of the DIY mentality in this guy, and a knack for getting it done. And a level of skill and craftsmanship that is, well, a bit above average. Okay, maybe a lot above average.

    In reading his site, and then visiting a few Grizzly sites, I am rather amazed that there are actually kits available to do this conversion. And apparently, a whole separate “user group” of people that not only are enamored with this particular machine, but hip deep in designing and building similar tooling. Some appear to have the same zealousness for the design and creation process as a bike builder that creates a custom and then parks it, never to be ridden.

    My hat is off to this guy, and his league.

  2. B*A*M*F says

    January 26, 2012 at 9:11 am

    This is a pretty ambitious undertaking. I’ve looked into it a little bit, and there is a lot to the process. A guy I work with made his own CNC router using a kit of parts and made the frame out of MDF. It was pretty small, and was ok until he tried machining aluminum with it.

    The thing I’ve discovered about CNC machines from using them is that as often as not, the software you use to generate machine code makes a huge difference in quality. We went from a very basic 2D software to a 3D milling program that integrates into our 3D modeling program. The improvements we saw were pretty astounding. The surface finish of the bottom of a pocketed feature instantly became much more uniform and consistent in depth. Ramping bits into material instead of drilling down and then going into cutting has given us much better edge cuts. This bit of software was about $5,000. Our 3D modeling software was somewhere around that, and both programs have subscription services that represent substantial amounts of money for the average hobbyist.

    The software running the machine itself also has a major impact. If your machine’s software does a poor job accelerating and decelerating, corners will be wonky, and machined faces will have tons of chatter marks.

    After that though, the hardware really becomes the driving factor in terms of rigidity of the machine, power of the steppers or servos, etc.

    It’s cool to see more people doing this kind of thing on their own, because it does mean that CAD/CAM software are becoming more widely used. Therefore the software will become more user friendly and the user interface will be less “designed by engineer” (I’m looking at you, SolidWorks). Hopefully, it will also get cheaper.

    • FREEMAN says

      January 26, 2012 at 9:43 am

      If you think Solidworks is “designed by engineer,” wait until you get a load of CATIA.

      • Wave says

        January 26, 2012 at 10:32 pm

        No, Catia is just designed by the French! It’s as typically quirky as an old Citroen. I actually quite like it!

        • FREEMAN says

          January 27, 2012 at 4:57 am

          The real catcher though is that both Solidworks and CATIA are developed by Dassault Systèmes.

      • B*A*M*F says

        January 27, 2012 at 8:55 am

        I haven’t messed with that yet, but I’ve heard it’s a bit esoteric in its interface.

        I’ve been using SolidWorks for about 10 years now, and it’s a very powerful and amazing program, but it’s decidedly quirky. Being an industrial designer, I also use software like the Adobe Creative Suite.

        • B*A*M*F says

          January 27, 2012 at 8:56 am

          I hit reply too quickly. I was saying that Adobe’s interface is more elegantly suited to it’s functions, and more deeply integrated throughout the programs than what I see in SolidWorks.

  3. Ry says

    January 26, 2012 at 10:09 am

    I did a similar conversion on my mill about 6 or 7 years ago and it still runs strong.
    I get excellent accuracy and perfect repeatability ( at the sacrifice of raw speed ) . My parts always turn out top notch professional . I call it my my mad max cnc machine.
    I read about hobby CNC for several years before I obtained the mill so once I got a suitable mill I had my plan in place and it only took a couple of months before I was making chips.
    Had to learn machine code and purchase some software here and there if you are well versed in CAD then you will not have a problem.
    All this info is out there thanks to people like Joel Miller who are willing to help and share their knoledge.
    I would like to thank you personally for being my silent engineer.

  4. todd says

    January 26, 2012 at 3:46 pm

    Fun. I have access to a number of different manual mills and lathes, which I only use for modifications or simple parts. When I want something to look nice and it has complex geometry or a need a bunch of identical pieces I send off a 3D file to a local guy who turns it around for $50 in a couple days. This looks like a fun hobby exercise but if you seriously want to get parts made you go with the path of least resistance.

    -todd

    • GenWaylaid says

      January 26, 2012 at 9:44 pm

      I suppose I’m more of a “path of least resistance” guy, too. While I admire the skill behind a complicated build like this, I would admire the build itself if it had a clear raison d’etre. All it takes is “I want to do X, which off the shelf solutions cannot do.” X can be as simple as “cost less than $Y.”

  5. Greybeard says

    January 26, 2012 at 6:59 pm

    Stumble on over to http://www.cnczone.com/forums/index.php and prepare to be amazed.

    Just like garlic salt those guys’ll put CNC on anything!

  6. zipidachimp says

    January 27, 2012 at 2:40 am

    my head hurts just reading the story.
    I’d love to see the bike this guy can build !

Subscribe to The Kneeslider

Be the first to know when something's new!

Search articles on The Kneeslider


Do You need motorcycle parts?

Everything from normal maintenance items to hard to find out of production parts, look here first.
Be very specific for best results! Use part numbers if you have them.


Be sure to check out The Kneeslider’s new motorcycle manuals and literature listings.



Your purchases through ebay links on The Kneeslider may earn a commission for this site.



From The Kneeslider Archives

Warboy - the Harley Davidson 883 XWL

Warboy 883 XWL – A Sportster 883 in WL Clothing

MJ Works 250RR by Maarten Janssens

MJ-Works 250RR – Designing and Building Your Own 250cc Racer

RSS What’s happening on HorsePowerSports

  • DeLorean Motor Company is Coming Back with an Electric
  • Ford Shares Open Source CAD Files for 3D Printing Truck Accessories
  • If You Need a New Car, Buy an Old One Instead

Motorcycle Engine Powered Cars

Copyright © 2025 · The Kneeslider · Website by Crowe Computer Services
US Army veteran owned and operated
This website proudly Made in the USA!
Made in the USA