About to take the plunge. Two pre-sale questions first.

[gapdev]

I might even be able to cobble together a cutoff with a thermistor to directly monitor the shaft temperature. Has anyone gone that far? I'd hate to reinvent the wheel.

Yep. I'm working on such a system. It will be Arduino controlled, will monitor the Flexshaft temperature and be wired into a smoke detector. If the Flexshaft gets above a certain temp, it will pause the machine and then alert you via an Xbee wireless system and maybe even via text message via WiFi.

By pausing instead cutting power to the machine, you have the opportunity to inspect the shaft, let it cool, or whatever, and then resume the carve.

Kenny

[Cavallo]

That sounds wonderful, and something like that had occurred to me. However, I thought something more like this could be highly functional if primitive;

http://www.pepiusa.com/modjc.html

or

http://www.pepiusa.com/modfc-m1d.html

I get that this would not allow you to resume the carve, but if protecting the machine is the primary goal, then a simple cutoff achieves most of the goal with a fraction of the expense.

[Cavallo]

Incidentally - back on topic. I placed my order today. Soon, this will all be a lot less theoretical for me.

[badbert]

That sounds wonderful, and something like that had occurred to me. However, I thought something more like this could be highly functional if primitive;

http://www.pepiusa.com/modjc.html

or

http://www.pepiusa.com/modfc-m1d.html

I get that this would not allow you to resume the carve, but if protecting the machine is the primary goal, then a simple cutoff achieves most of the goal with a fraction of the expense.

If it is just a thermal switch, you could install it on the left cover switch circuit. Then it would throw a close cover error and pause the machine.

[fwharris]

Incidentally - back on topic. I placed my order today. Soon, this will all be a lot less theoretical for me.

Looking forward to seeing your creations!

[CNC Carver]

Cavallo I think you will have fun once it arrives. I look forward to your input to this forum. You have raised a few good ideas without having machine.
THANKS!!

[Cavallo]

Badbert - that's a fantastic idea! That would mean the switch wouldn't need to carry full line voltage and could be much smaller. Once my machine arrives, I'll investigate this. All that remains is to work out what a reasonable cutoff temp would be.

fwharris - Thanks for everything! Looking forward to the dust control you'll be providing.

CNCCarver - I think it'll be beyond fun. I'm hoping it'll enable and facilitate a great many projects that friends and I have kicked around forever but lacked the time/skill/hardware to accomplish. I have loads of ideas. I hope the machine can keep up.

Thanks to everyone for the encouragement. I must say - this forum was a huge factor in the purchasing decision.

[mtylerfl]

... I might even be able to cobble together a cutoff with a thermistor to directly monitor the shaft temperature. Has anyone gone that far?

Howdy,

No, I don't think anyone has gone that far.

I've lubed the flexshaft cores on both my machines, twice in six years. They never get hot. But I pay attention that I am installing the flexshaft properly (not a hard thing, by any means). Most "meltdowns" that folks have reported to me personally, have been found to occur from improper lube (or lack thereof) and/or the user caused a kink like AL described.

Once you have your machine and get accustomed to it, I think you will find how simple it is to keep in tip-top shape. Do read the Tips & Tricks, though, so you can avoid the 'newbie' mistakes.

EDIT: Just to add...I place my palm on the flexshaft at least twice during a long carve, just to be sure it is not hot. Eventually, I'm sure I'll need to re-lube, but 'by golly that Moly' lasts a l-o-n-g time!

[Cavallo]

Good to know. Heeding the cautions here, I have no intention of letting it run completely unattended, but I'd like to be able to multitask at least a little while it's running. If nothing else, I at least need to feel as if I can go to the bathroom without something disastrous happening.

[mtylerfl]

Good to know. Heeding the cautions here, I have no intention of letting it run completely unattended, but I'd like to be able to multitask at least a little while it's running. If nothing else, I at least need to feel as if I can go to the bathroom without something disastrous happening.

That's normal. I was the same way when I got my first machine. I didn't go potty for a week.