Now that I have a metal cutting CNC, I believed it would be fun to check an idea I have actually had for a few years – change the belt drive with an equipment drive on my homemade band saw.
While all of the work could have been done without a CNC (I have actually done similar previously, many times), the CNC supplies the severe accuracy that's required for a setup like this. The gears must be cut precisely and mesh together exactly for this to even have a chance at success.
My original plan was to 3D print the equipments and I actually did that and checked how well they operated in this video:
However I had concerns for long-lasting durability, although it looked like the equipments would do the job. Definitely they would have been less noisy than the metal ones.
Why do this in the very first location? Am I bored and don't have enough to do?
Belt drives are the default because they are low-cost and simple to do. You don't need to have best alignment for a belt and sheaves combo to work acceptably.
The disadvantages are slippage and the quantity of tension required to avoid slippage. That stress puts a great deal of side-load on the motor bearings and the drive shaft bearings that can result in early failure. Like I said in the video, the side-load problem wasn't enough of an issue for me, but the slippage one was.
The only method for equipments to slip is for them to strip the teeth off, and the teeth on these are more than strong enough.
I utilized a few 3D printed parts in the build, including ones that I simply utilized to precisely line up parts.
When it comes to the short-lived setup of the motor, I need to utilize the saw some more before I decide whether I'm keeping it equipment driven. If I choose to stick to the equipments, I'll do a better task of installing the motor.
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Now that I have a metal cutting CNC, I thought it would be fun to test an idea I’ve had for a few years – replace the belt drive with a gear drive on my homemade band saw.
While all of the work could have been done without a CNC (I’ve done similar before, many times), the CNC supplies the extreme accuracy that’s required for a setup like this. The gears must be cut precisely and mesh together precisely for this to even have a chance at success.
My original plan was to 3D print the gears and I actually did that and tested how well they worked in this video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Aa9Wojpbdo
But I had concerns for long-term durability, even though it looked like the gears would do the job. Certainly they would have been less noisy than the metal ones.
Why do this in the first place? Am I bored and don’t have enough to do?
Belt drives are the default because they are cheap and easy to do. You don’t need to have perfect alignment for a belt and pulleys combo to work acceptably.
The downsides are slippage and the amount of tension needed to avoid slippage. That tension puts a lot of side-load on the motor bearings and the drive shaft bearings that can lead to early failure. Like I said in the video, the side-load problem wasn’t enough of a concern for me, but the slippage one was.
The only way for gears to slip is for them to strip the teeth off, and the teeth on these are more than strong enough.
I used a few 3D printed parts in the build, including ones that I just used to accurately line up parts.
As for the temporary installation of the motor, I need to use the saw some more before I decide whether I’m keeping it gear driven. If I decide to stick with the gears, I’ll do a much better job of mounting the motor.
I wonder what would happen if something jammed the blade? Would there be too much tension between the wheels and blade to cause catastrophic failure? Or would the wheels just continue to spin whilst the blade was jammed?
The blade should slip
I was wondering the same thing, but maybe the blade would just slip on the wheels
Wow you make some super cool stuff, awesome !
That’s awesome. Great work.
03:24 that was close, the part moved a little
😐
Great idea to adapt gear drive to the saw, a little extra work and a great improvement to the drive train, cheers!
It was indeed amazing to watch it cut that large gear. @3:17, I could see some movement on the left side of the plywood.
Brilliant work, John! 😃
It looks to be working even better!
Stay safe there with your family! 🖖😊
Great work, nice video, but as the title says, it is a step forward and two steps back. The belt transmission ensures smooth functioning, and limits the vibrations from the motor to the saw wheel. Also, there is the noise, and the Achille’s heel: the aluminum gears. They don’t last. But for the experiment sake, it is a nice exercise to adapt the router and the CNC machine to make these parts. However, to make that saw more reliable, precise, and less noisy, perhaps it would be better if you design a new 3D printed lower wheel, and an updated belt transmission, with parts made on CNC and 3D printer. Perhaps, designing a set of vibration dampening mounts, for that motor, would be a nice improvement. Cheers!
Muy buen trabajo, en esta vida todo evoluciona.
👏👏👏👏
1:39 — Idea for next episode — make a mount for ER extension for example ER25 extension with its own set of bearings all mounted permanently and another mount oposit it for that trim router you use to power it through belt drive
Then you can make it more precise , smoother and work with different size of end mills just like regular spindle (but with extra option to change gears for low rpm (with more torque) end mills)
Absolutely fantastic work, John! Always enjoy your videos.
Nice to see you, John!
I know in years past, woodworkers were very afraid of using CNC machines and 3d printers because they seemed expensive and unattainable.
What people always wanted was to feel like they had the means or ability for them to do this themselves.
Between the cost of machines and/or cost of online printing and CNC services; the wind direction has changed.
I love the DIY machines using CNC and 3d printing direction John!
Thanks looks like a great addition to my CNC Router/Plasma table for milling Aluminum. Just add a small water pump to my Plasma water table and change to the router setup and add base to hold the Aluminum for milling.
I don’t have a CNC so I need a bandsaw to build a bandsaw.
Just kidding, i hope to one day build a murphy bed that can open using a wooden gear pulley system. In my mind i want to just twist a wheel that will slowly and effortlessly raise and lower the bed into position. I’ve tried a few things but I have no idea what I’m doing.
Great work as always John. I want to be the first person to complain that not everyone has a CNC and 3d printer to make these type of projects. But… I do have a CNC and 5, 3d printers, so keep making stuff. LOL
Terrific work John and that metal cutting CNC is awesome! 👍👍🔨🔨
Great build.. U always put out GR8 content!
you should make one out of cast irons or titaniums… you would be an amazing metal smith…