CNC accessories that will make life easier.
I’m not including safety equipment in this section. This is for optional items, even if you’re just building a CNC machine for a hobby like me, you should take safety seriously so I have a page especially for items you really should have and use.
Micrometres
When you start using you CNC machine you’ll be amazed at the accuracy and repeatability of your machine. I mean I know that’s the whole point but I still think you’ll appreciate that first magic moment of seeing your creation move about and then just how precise its movements can be when you manually move the machine on a .1mm jog. Even a basic homebuilt made out of wooden parts can be amazing when you’ve just made panels and stuff manually in the past.
Its shortly after this that you realise you’re going to need something to help you measure in much smaller increments than you been used to before, if like me you were just using a steel ruler!
The “something” that I got was a cheap electronic micrometre. In fact it was two cheap micrometres. One measures up to 155mm and has a resolution of .1mm steps. It can measure inside and outside dimensions and is great for checking sizes and dimensions of things you’re working on and have cut or milled and a smaller one that measures up to 130mm but works to 2 decimal places of a mm. So for instance you can measure a couple of router bits and see one is 2.12mm and one is 2.18mm or the thickness and the material that you will need when setting up your CNC machine. I know some people who have been into engineering for years will tell me that those bits of kit aren’t that accurate and that they have something that cost several hundred pounds and I’m not going to argue that they know more than me and that their kit is more accurate but for me these two micrometres are as good as I need. They have certainly revolutionised the way I work and have saved so much time over my old technique of trying to hold a steel ruler and magnifying glass.
Magnifying glass and microscope
I previous mentioned in the above paragraph that a magnifying glass and ruler won’t help you accurately measure if you’re working to .1mm but you’ll still find that you need a magnifying glass and preferably a good one. I also got a small hand held microscope, it’s not like the old school laboratory ones but I still find it very useful. It has a power of magnification of around 16 times and is invaluable for many checks and essential when it comes to examining prototype PCB’s after they have been milled with my CNC machine just to check there are no tiny strands of copper left between tracks.
Light
It’s all well and good having magnification but without good lighting it’s not as effective. I’ve got a LED light with a flexible neck so that I can manoeuvre it where every I need it to be.
Screwdrivers
Like most people I have used screwdrivers without much of a thought and made do with what I had but once I got into the world of CNC machines I treated myself to a proper set. I really wish I’d done it before. Making do with rubbish half fitting screwdrivers is such a pain. Do like I did and treat yourself to some proper nice ones.
Spanners and hex drivers
If you thought my rubbish make do screwdrivers were bad wait till you see what spanners I had available, a couple left over from Ikea self-assembly furniture and one left from when I had a bike.
Not any more though I’ve got a set of spanners and a set of hex drivers. If you’re not sure what hex drivers are they are like a screwdriver but with a hexagonal end on them to tighten or loosen nuts. They are also very useful. Oh and don’t forget allen keys, they are cheap and you’ll need then lots in the CNC world.
Plastic storage boxes
The flat ones you see in hardware store, with a plastic transparent lid and lots of little compartments in, they make excellent boxes for storing all the bits you need for a CNC machine particularly the wide array of cutting, routing and engraving bits that you’ll quickly accumulate and forget where you put them but not any more.
You’ll probably need to get some larger flat boxes to store your left over material. Once you realise you can use all sorts of small off cuts for various things you won’t want to throw any material away after a job is complete. Especially if you’re a hoarder like me!
Set square and sliding bevel
After a while I gave in and bought a set square to check 90 degree angles where accurate. You’ll never be able to calibrate your CNC machine without one. You can use your coffee table like I used to (I’m not kidding either) but it’s a lot easier and accurate with a set square. You may also find a sliding bevel useful for angles other than 90 degrees
Talking of calibration if that’s something you’re not sure about read my article here.
I’ve also got an assortment of clamps, although you’ll need a system to fix material for machining there’s always something that comes up where you need to clamp something else so for that occasion I have an assortment.