MAKER MADE M2 Complete Beginner Assembly Manual
Automated cutting machine kit
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Also See for M2:
- Setting up (52 pages) ,
- Complete beginner assembly manual (38 pages) ,
- Setup manual (14 pages)
Related Manuals for MAKER MADE M2
Summary of Contents for MAKER MADE M2
- Page 1 SETTING UP YOUR M2 AUTOMATED CUTTING MACHINE KIT The complete beginner assembly guide by Last Updated 11.09.2020 v1.14...
- Page 2 SETTING UP YOUR M2 TABLE OF CONTENTS SECTION 1. Introduction - 3 SECTION 2. Parts Needed - 4 SECTION 3. Assembling the M2 - 7 SECTION 4. Building the Frame - 13 SECTION 5. Calibrating with Makerverse - 23 SECTION 6.Appendix - 42 This work is licensed under the creative commons Attribution NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International license.
- Page 3 M2! If you have experience with the Maslow, the M2’s older brother, you can use your existing frame! Just follow the steps to build the M2 and skip the part on Easel to learn how to calibrate with Makerverse.
- Page 4 M2 ASSEMBLY GUIDE SECTION 2. PARTS NEEDED This section contains information on what came with your M2 and other tools you will need to building and operation. Drew’s Note: Check out the M2 Video Playlist for an overview of what’s in the box and other how to videos! You’ll have to supply your own router for your M2.
- Page 5 Router Clamp Roller Bearings (4) Chains 335cm/11’ (2) Dust Collection Elbow Spring Maker Made Router Bit Starter Maker Made Sticker, marker, Bag A welcome note, and USB Drive This work is licensed under the creative commons Attribution NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International license.
- Page 6 M2 ASSEMBLY GUIDE Bag B Bag C Bag D Bag E Bag F Bag G Bag H Bag Z Drew’s Note: Listed here are the contents of the bags. In the assembly portion, they will be refered to by their letter and number!
- Page 7 M2 ASSEMBLY GUIDE ASSEMBLING YOUR M2 The M2 kit comes in several pieces to assemble. It can be split into four main parts: Sled assembly, attaching belts and motor to Z-Axis Assembly, finishing the M2 assembly, and centering your router.
- Page 8 M2 ASSEMBLY GUIDE M2 ASSEMBLY PART 1: SLED ASSEMBLY (BAG C, BAG F, BAG G) 1. Attach three L-brackets to Sled by aligning with six small 2. Attach three L-brackets to rectangular brackets on ring. Insert predrilled holes, tall side toward center, using Phillips G2 bolts from inside of ring bracket out through L-brackets, two screwdriver and G1 screws.
- Page 9 M2 ASSEMBLY GUIDE M2 ASSEMBLY PART 2: ATTACH BELTS AND MOTOR TO Z-AXIS ASSEMBLY (BAG H) 1. Attach H1 Z motor bracket, but do not fully tighten (will 2. Attach Z motor to H1, with the motor shaft in the slot farthest tighten fully in Step 6), using H6 bolts and H9 Allen Wrench.
- Page 10 If not, go to step 2A. Drew’s Note: Updating products is especially during these times. We currently have two active M2 versions that you may have recieved. This page is for the first version, the next is version B.
- Page 11 M2 ASSEMBLY GUIDE M2 ASSEMBLY PART 3B: FINISH M2 Z-AXIS ASSEMBLY (BAG Z) Drew’s Note: The Z-Axis Assembly attaches to the sled with 2B. Mount Z-Axis assembly to sled by aligning extrusion “legs” T-nuts. They are marvels of engineering that are specially with the two rail “feet”...
- Page 12 1. Attach router bit to router, insert into router clamp, and 2. Loosen bottom T-nuts with Phillips screwdriver and move sled tighten clamp with Z5 Allen Wrench. back and forth until router bit is alligned with exact center of M2 sled hole. Drew’s Note: It’s very important...
- Page 13 BUILDING YOUR FRAME This Section is how to build your frame for your M2. It is split into sseven main sections: Arduino DUE board setup, building the wasteboard, mounting the top beam, placing the material, attaching the motors, attaching the chains, and mounting your Drew’s Note: We recommend reading this entire section before beginning.
- Page 14 Drew’s Note: The M2’s brain is an Arduino DUE microcontroller. We recommend mounting the DUE to the wall behind your Wasteboard, but it can be mounted in any safe location where it won’t be stepped on or conflict with the M2 during operation.
- Page 15 You will have to plug in the power with the top of the case off, or cut the hole larger. We appologize for this mistake in the first run of the M2 and it will be fixed in later versions. This work is licensed under the creative commons Attribution NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International license.
- Page 16 Drew’s Note: The size of material the M2 can cut is only limited by the chain length. These instructions are based on the chain included with your M2 and will walk you through how to set up your kit to cut material almost to the edge of the 4x8’ space. These ASSEMBLY GUIDE CONT.
- Page 17 (b) Attach Stud Mount (b) Attach Stud Mount using 2 drywall anchors using 2 drywall anchors M2 ASSEMBLY GUIDE ASSEMBLY GUIDE CONT. ASSEMBLY GUIDE CONT. and 2pcs long wood and 2pcs long wood BUILDING YOUR FRAME PART 2: BUILDING THE WASTEBOARD (BAG D)
- Page 18 2 drywall anchors and 2pcs long wood Step 3: Attach last two Stud Mounts M2 ASSEMBLY GUIDE screws in Bag D (a) Find stud and attach BUILDING YOUR FRAME PART 3: BUILDING THE TOP BEAM (BAG D) first Stud Mount using 2pcs long wood screws in Bag D 1.
- Page 19 M2 ASSEMBLY GUIDE BUILDING YOUR FRAME PART 4: PLACE MATERIAL The material you are cutting will need to by clamped to the wasteboard stud mounts on the top, or screwed into the wasteboard. Drew’s Note: Always clamp or screw the material you’re cutting to the Wasteboard Stud Mounts so it doesn’t move.
- Page 20 Drew’s Note: The X and Y motors move the M2 back and forth on the frame. If one of your motors of your M2 doesn’t move during operation, or the M2 generally moves in a strange direction, the first thing to check are the motor connections.
- Page 21 The chain can snap back causing damage to people and surroundings! The M2 moves in the X and Y position by the use of chains connected to the motors. This guide is how to install the chains that came with your M2 on a standard 4’x8’...
- Page 22 3. Move M2 to center of Wasteboard and have a friend pull the tension on the opposite chain to a length of 20” or less (from the nail to the spring). You can pull the chain away from the spring and lock onto the top of the motor for the tension to hold, but beware of the tension and snap! When you have enough slack in the chain, thread through the opposite Carriage Mount and attach with another A1 cotter pin.
- Page 23 OPERATION & CALIBRATION PART 1: GET A DIGITAL .SVG FILE 1. Digital file: You must have a digital file to CNC with the M2. We suggest a black and white SVG file. There are many files available online and tutorials on how to create them on YouTube! 2.
- Page 24 3. Choose depth: Click on your file and “cut” tab in the dialog box to choose how deep the M2 will cut. If your SVG is split into multiple parts or isolatable, you can select different parts of your file to cut different depths.
- Page 25 M2 ASSEMBLY GUIDE 4. Material dimensions: You can change material dimensions by clicking the “material” tab. Select the material you are cutting and the size to save it in the Gcode. 5. Resize/move: Once your model is selected, you can also resize it by dragging the small gray boxes around your file.
- Page 26 Change the bit settings to the same bit that is on your router. Click the “bit” tab and select your bit. There are preset bits for the X-carve, but the best way to change it for the M2 is to scroll to the bottom of the tab and manually type in your bit size.
- Page 27 (0,0). You can arrange your file to start based on where you home your M2. Either select and move all the parts of your file or click the “shape” tab in the dialog box after selecting your model. Click the bubble in the five part matrix to choose where your M2 will start.
- Page 28 M2 ASSEMBLY GUIDE 9. File management: To keep track of the Gcode files you create to use them again, we suggest naming the file with the bit size and thickness of the material. Click “untitled” in the menu bar to change the name.
- Page 29 M2 ASSEMBLY GUIDE 10. Generate Gcode: To generate your Gcode to cut, click “Machine” > “Advanced” to bring up the Gcode menu. Then click “Generate g-code”. This work is licensed under the creative commons Attribution NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International license. Last Updated 11.09.2020...
- Page 30 M2 ASSEMBLY GUIDE Then “Export g-code” to save the Gcode. You will upload this Gcode into the Machine Control Application. You can leave the other default setting alone until you become more comfortable with your M2. You finished exporting and are ready for the next stage! This work is licensed under the creative commons Attribution NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International license.
- Page 31 If the X, Y, and Z motors are not plugged in completely to the motors and Arduino DUE Board, the M2 will not follow your commands and will act wonky (like continuing to move when you only told it to move 1 inch).
- Page 32 M2 ASSEMBLY GUIDE 4. SELECT PORT: Choose the USB port you plugged your M2 into. Makerverse will remember the port the next time you login. 5. CONNECT M2: Click “Open”. Leave “Connect automatically” selected for Makerverse to connect to your M2 automatically the next time you use it.
- Page 33 6. VERIFY CONNECTION AND ENTER Z-STEPS You will know your M2 is connected when you see the Grbl Gcode readout in the Console, shown below. If you don’t see lines of code, then your M2 is not connected. To disconnect at any time, click close.
- Page 34 8. HOME TO (0,0): The home position must be set on your M2 before you can CNC or jog your motors. If your sled is not already in the center of your wasteboard, click the Set Home command and move the M2 sled and chains to the center of your wasteboard using the X-, X+, Y-, and Y+ jog commands on the right.
- Page 35 M2 ASSEMBLY GUIDE Once the M2 is moved to the center, click the blue “Set Home” button to set home again. X, Y, and Z are now set to zero (0,0,0)on the M2 and will be remembered on the M2’s internal memory.
- Page 36 M2 ASSEMBLY GUIDE 10. MACHINE SETTINGS - MEASURE DISTANCE BETWEEN MOTORS AND MOTOR OFFSET: Before the M2 will work properly, the distance between your motors and the distance from your Wasteboard must be entered into CNCjs. Measure from the 8 o’clock position on your left motor and the 4 o’clock position on your right motor.
- Page 37 M2 DUE Board for future use. 11. MACHINE SETTINGS - MEASURE WORKSPACE Before the M2 will work properly, the workspace dimensions must be entered. Measure the size of your workspace and press enter. The standard 4x8’ values are default.
- Page 38 Draw an “x” with the marker where the router bit was touching. Then, jog your M2 300mm to the left or right and draw another “x.” Jog your M2 300mm down to move it out of the way and for the next measurement. Measure the exact distance and enter actual X value in the “X Scaling”.
- Page 39 You’ll know your Gcode loaded correctly when CNCjs displays the paths of the Gcode you loaded! You already set the dimensions and depths in Easel for the M2, so it’s ready to start! We recommend a one foot or one meter square as your first test cut for calibration, set to cut outside the shape path.
- Page 40 Drew’d Note: When your M2 is cutting for the first time, be close to the power source to stop all opperation if something goes awry. After your first test cut, you should measure and compare the real values of your square cut to the values of your Gcode for scaling, described in step 12.
- Page 41 15. PAUSE/STOP To pause or stop the M2, click the “Pause” button on the top bar. Once the M2 is paused, you will be able to stop the project by clicking the “Stop” button next to it. It must be paused before you can stop the project! 16.
- Page 42 Makerverse nor CNCjs control your router, they only control your M2. You must manually turn your router on and off. In case of an error always turn off your router before you turn off your M2. Always remember to turn on your router before clicking “Run” in Makerverse and turn off your router after the M2 is paused, stopped, or has completed the project.
- Page 43 6. Make sure all of the T-nuts, bolts, and screws are tight on your M2 and frame. 7. If your M2 is slanting on different materials, increase the RPM of your router and decrease your cut-per- pass depth. Your bit can pull the M2 sled in different directions based on the depth, bit, and RPM.
- Page 44 M2 ASSEMBLY GUIDE APPENDIX - LINKS Click here to check out updates on our FAQ section! Easel: https://www.inventables.com/technologies/easel Inkscape: https://inkscape.org/ M2 Resources: https://makermade.com/m2-resources/ Makerverse: https://makermade.com/resources/ Makerverse Calibration Video: https://youtu.be/HsnEQgeWrmI Marketplace: https://makermade.com/marketplace/ Router Guide: https://makermade.com/m2-resources/ Weekly Beginner Training Link: https://makermade.com/resources/ YouTube Playlists: https://www.youtube.com/c/MakerMadeCNC...