I’m also planning to build a CNC lowrider and have read quite a bit about it. I would order the parts from the USA. I have a 3D printer (BambuLab X1C) and a Chinese milling machine that’s essentially a Makita RT 070 “clone.” I have a few questions that I haven’t quite found the answers to yet:
1. PLA is recommended as the material for the printed parts, which I don’t usually use because it’s not very durable mechanically or thermally. Is there any experience that speaks against PETG? I have a sufficient quantity of that as well. Or should I use a carbon fiber reinforced filament (PETG-CF, PLA-CF, or even PA-CF)? What experiences have others had with this?
2. Some people strongly advise against using these cheap Chinese milling machines and instead recommend investing in a Makita. Is this based on experience?
3. The current Makita RT 0702 has a start-up protection feature, so it can’t be controlled via an external relay. Is that a disadvantage?
4. There’s no source for the parts in Europe, correct?
Use PLA for parts that need to be rigid unless you have extreme heat where your machine lives (someone, probably makerjim, posted concrete temp numbers on when something other than PLA should be considered. PLA is right choice for most people )? Only use PETG for parts where flex doesn’t affect performance (e.g. vac hose clips).
PLA is stiffer than PETG. It is more brittle, and the temperature characteristics are not as good, but as long as temperatures are kept bow about 50°C it is superior. PET-CF is recommended (Not PETG-CF) if you need the higher strength and thermal characteristics, bit thjs js of course much harder to print. I’m with you kn the PETG, in most cases, I do the majority of my functional printing with PRTG, but printed my LR4 in PLA.
The cheap Chinese spindles are, well, cheap. They often have unacceptable runout, poor tolerances and quality issues, however many are perfectly acceptable. If gou already have it, by a means use it, but if you identify issues that could be the router, I wouldn’t buy another like it, and invest the extra few dollars in a Makita.
I can’t really say. Since I will absolutely never run my CNC without standing there, the switch on the tool itself is easy enough to use.
http://hawiwe.de is in the Eurozone and has some parts under license, but as I’m in North America, I’ve never personally bought from there.
Check the datasheets, but PLA is typically more rigid than PLA+.
Buy most rigid filament for the price you want to invest, this ends up being regular Purple PLA for most people. Avoid silky, avoid Matte for better layer adhesion. Other factors will meaningfully affect rigidity/performance… Ensure print dimensions are well calibrated ( see CaliLantern ), consider 0.6mm nozzle, 3 walls, alternative layer wall, follow recommended infill percentages, 0.32mm layer height, etc.. I think Docs have recommended settings like this.
Print settings/quality can be more important to focus on than the filament’s rigidity specs.
PLA+ is stronger because it is more flexible, allowing it to flex more before it breaks. This is more like PETG, in which case, you might as well use PETG and get the thermal performance.
My personal opinion is that the LR4 is stout enough in design that PETG parts are going to be rigid enough for almost any project that you’re going to use the machine for, but in absolute terms there will be a tolerance penalty. I don’t know what that penalty would be, but if you need .025mm tolerances milling aluminum, I’d just go PLA and keep the machine cool. (I’ve only tries aluminum a couple of times and don’t need quite that tight tolerances.)
Still, the actual engineer specified PLA, so it’s what I used.
your makita clone will be fine of there is not play. put long 6mm shaft in the collet and wiggle it. if there is play then you have the same problem as me
I have the very cheap makita clone from taobao. power, speed control and collet itself is ok. but had an issue with the nylon retaining ring that holds the bottom bearing in place. developed a bit of a play between the bearing and the aluminum case. fixed by adding some aluminum tape and didnt have any issues since. I’m happy with it because I’m cheap and it was a 1/4 price of a Makita locally
if you are in 110v country get a router with ER11 collet. makes it much easier if you need to use different sizes of endmills.
cheapest PLA for the parts. If you break / melt it you can always print again from different material
Thanx again for the great tips… I’ll use the PLA I have for now, the LowRider will be a bit colorful … also I’ll try my Chinese milling machine first, maybe I’ll modify the bearing too, thanks for the tip! In Europe we have 230V almost everywhere and mostly 50Hz…. if the Chinese one gives me trouble, I can always buy the Makita, but it costs at least €150 = $175 here, maybe I find a used one….
… also I’ll try my Chinese milling machine first, maybe I’ll modify the bearing too, thanks for the tip! In Europe we have 230V almost everywhere and mostly 50Hz…. if the Chinese one gives me trouble, I can always buy the Makita, but it costs at least €150 = $175 
here, maybe I find a used one….