DIY ShopBot style CNC - MechMate

[James Leonard]

Hi,

Here is a very interesting website. This is a first-class DIY ShopBot style CNC router table design.

http://www.mechmate.com/

-James Leonard

[Anthony Scira]

So who will build it for me ????

I would REALLY love to take on a project like this. But I think the hours of troubleshooting I would be better off with something whit a warranty.

Thats the only thing I miss about not having kids. Free time !

Not to even mentionI would find the stepper servo pinion motor playing with the King and Queen having afternoon tea.

[James Leonard]

Check it out...at CNCzone

[James Leonard]

I just found these:

http://www.youtube.com/user/mechmate

[William Adams]

FWIW, found a post which claimed it to be the other way around --- claim was the Shopbot was made by a guy who took the MechMate plans, worked up a comprehensive B.O.M. and better instructions, then began selling a derivative machine. Turns out not to be the case as noted below.

[Jerome Stanek]

I was under the impression that the Mechmate was a modified Shopbot that came out in 1994

[Gary Campbell]

William...
Jerry has this one correct. G.D. (founder of Mechmate) was a ShopBot Owner that had numerous ideas for improving the product. Unfortunately he presented most of them as "design flaws" or "inherent weakness's" in an unflattering way on ShopBot's own forum, and subsequently lost his right to post. His product is/was a beefed up pre 2000 ShopBot PRT clone. His comments may or may not have been part of the motivation behind SB's improvement of that product, which was continuous until the design was scrapped in lieu of more modern technology.

That design is used to this day by a number of US CNC mfgr's and remains as one the easiest to produce, or assemble if sold in kit form. Since SB's numbers are most likely 10K+, I doubt that the 125+/- running Mechmates are perceived to be a threat. That said, there are some really good guys and a LOT of info on the website, but little pertaining to products that have benefited from the explosion in CNC technology over the last half dozen years.

[William Adams]

Thanks. I've edited / corrected my post. Apparently I mis-understood the CNCzone thread.

Why is it one needs to register to see the Mechmate forum?