Workshop

CNC

What CNC machines do you currently have for use?

Tool	Size of Bed
Shapeoko	290 mm X 290 mm (11.5 in X 11.5 in)
Maslow CNC (Future)	4 ft x 8 ft

Both machines require users to be trained and checked out on them before their use.

The head of the Shapeoko is driving itself into the bed, or the X or Y axes are moving off the Sides of the platform, or the Shapeoko is making bad noises! What do I do?

Immediately Turn off either the ‘Drive’ or ‘E-Stop’ Button. This will stop the head from moving. Then, gently rotate the metal cylinder under the motor clockwise until the head is cleared from the bed. Check your file/gcode to see why it drove the head into the bed.

Please note that the Shapeoko does not have limit switches! It will not automatically know it is about to crash into the sides or bottom of the machine.

The machine won’t turn on/move/work. What do I do?

Put an orange “Borked” tag on the machine with a description of what happened. Then email CNC@tcmaker.org and to let us know what is happening with the machine.

Can I cut “X” material on the machine?

Chances are that yes, you can. Keep in mind this is not a massively powerful machine, harder materials might not work on the Shapeoko. If you haven’t cut a material with this machine before, watch over a test cut to verify that it won’t harm the machine.

I need a cutting head for the Shapeoko machine. Where can I get one?

Currently we do not provide cutting bits for the machine. However, Dremel/hand tool bits are the correct size and can be easily gotten from hardware stores.

I’m interested in helping out more with the CNC department. Who can I talk to about helping?

Reach out to one of the managers of the CNC department, or email cnc@tcmaker.org. Please do so as well if you have questions about the department or our machines.