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You can build this real edm machine in a weekend


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YOU CAN BUILD THIS REAL EDM MACHINE IN A WEEKEND
YOU CAN BUILD THIS REAL EDM MACHINE IN A WEEKEND
YOU CAN BUILD THIS REAL EDM MACHINE IN A WEEKEND
YOU CAN BUILD THIS REAL EDM MACHINE IN A WEEKEND
YOU CAN BUILD THIS REAL EDM MACHINE IN A WEEKEND
YOU CAN BUILD THIS REAL EDM MACHINE IN A WEEKEND
YOU CAN BUILD THIS REAL EDM MACHINE IN A WEEKEND
YOU CAN BUILD THIS REAL EDM MACHINE IN A WEEKEND
YOU CAN BUILD THIS REAL EDM MACHINE IN A WEEKEND
YOU CAN BUILD THIS REAL EDM MACHINE IN A WEEKEND
YOU CAN BUILD THIS REAL EDM MACHINE IN A WEEKEND
o How to build an EDM generator.
o How to build an automated control system.
o How to build a low cost servo driven precision slide.
o How to build a dielectric tank and filtering system.
o How to use EDM techniques and tooling.
If you are a machinist, toolmaker, metal artisan, gunsmith, jeweler, inventor or just a tinkerer, you need to explore this powerful technology. It will allow you to accomplish tasks considered impossible. Until now.
Electrical discharge machining uses an electrical discharge to etch metal submerged in a fluid. It's possible to machine complex shapes in even extremely hard metals with remarkable precision.
Briefly stated, EDM operates like this; an electrically conductive workpiece to be machined is submerged in a bath of oil. The generator's leads are connected to the electrode and workpiece. As the electrode, under the automated control, approaches the workpiece, the insulating ability of the oil decreases and a spark jumps between the electrode and the workpiece, melting a small amount of material.
This process is repeated thousands of times per second. The shape of the electrode is reproduced in the workpiece. The hardness of the material is unimportant, but it must be electrically conductive.
Information on building an honest to goodness "REAL" EDM machine is pretty hard to come by. There are "sparkers" that will handily eat out a tap that broke off in your new steel die and do a journeyman's job of it too, but that's about all they will do.
EDM machines will machine away any electrical conducting metal, (steel, brass, aluminum, etc.) by spark erosion, using an electrode made from any easily machined or carved electric conductor like graphite. Using graphite, which is easily carved or machined, you can create just about any shape you can imagine.
If you want to create a complex shaped mold cavity or burn something like a six sided hole in a part, or a square blind hole you need a real EDM machine to do the job. The "Sparkers" just aren't up to it. But real EDM machines are expensive! Few small shops or home shops can spare that kind of cash - but it sure would be nice . . .
You should know a little about Ben. He ran across an old copy of a magazine he found at a garage sale many years ago with an article in it on how to build an EDM machine. It wasn't much of an EDM machine but it sure got Ben going!
He was so intrigued by this article that over time building commercial quality EDM machines became his passion. I doubt there is anyone else, this side of the scientists and engineers that design the big commercial machines who has a fraction of the knowledge about building an EDM machine that Ben has. Over the years he has built many EDM machines, some more advanced than the one described in this book. They all work well.
Gaining that knowledge has been an adventure. Ben was told by several knowledgeable folks in the industry that the information he sought was known by only a handful of scientists in the industry and that that information was a carefully guarded secret. So what did he do? He got all the patents from the patent office he could find and studied them, experimented over many years, and just figured it out.
Here you get a book loaded with detailed how-to, practical tips, and further design ideas. And it's all proven. No pie-in-the-sky. This works. One look at that file, and you know.
The system here uses a simple RC (resistor-capacitor) power supply. Pros will tell you that it's not as good as a digital supply because it erodes graphite electrodes rapidly. That's true. But electrodes have been improved so much over the years, that erosion isn't nearly as bad as it once was. The RC system is simple to build and works well.
The few homebuilt systems around usually use stepper motors to drive the ram into the work. Ben will show you how to use an airplane trim servo (around $150) to do the job. But if you're handy with tools, he'll show you how to build one for far less money. Ben's servo system is quite simple.
The power supply is made up of three transformers, two large resistors, and easily obtained electronic components soldered to a printed circuit board he got at Radio Shack. And he'll show you step-by-step how to put it together.
Here are a few notes from Ben about his EDM machine:
"There are several moneymaking reasons to build an EDM for small shop use. One is the precision removal of broken taps and drills. It is possible to burn a broken tap, drill, or an easy out from a piece of aluminum without touching the previously formed threads.
"To remove broken screws, bolts, studs, etc. in many cases, it is not necessary to burn the complete broken item out. I have, on occasions made a six-sided hex electrode and then burned a hex shape in the broken part. Once deep enough, insert a standard hex key and remove the part....
"Other practical applications are, the squaring of corners in milled pockets, or burning odd shaped blind and through holes in pieces.
"For example, let's say a seven-sided hole is needed in a piece of hardened steel. You just machine a seven-sided electrode and then burn it through the workpiece. With a ram EDM, it's a walk in the park. For the artisan, carve your initials or a design on the end of an electrode (negative or positive) and then burn it into the workpiece.
The EDM opens up a completely new world of machining capabilities; your imagination is the only limit, so go for it! This book will show you how you can have EDM capabilities in your shop for a minimal amount of time and dollars invested....
"You may have attempted to delve into the mysteries of the EDM generator and control circuits... The large EDM manufacturers certainly are not going to tell you anything about generator/control circuit design. I know that from personal experience as one EDM company engineer told me, 'the kind of information you are seeking is proprietary and only actively worked on by about 20 people in the U.S.'
"This book is, in part, an attempt to fill the EDM knowledge void. In this book I will give you hands on, step-by-step information needed to build a simple, low cost, automated EDM system.
"Electrical Discharge Machining is a process that uses electrical discharges from an electrode to erode an electrically conductive material. As a result, it is possible to erode or 'burn' the shape of the electrode into the workpiece.
"The workpiece is placed in the dielectric tank and affixed to a metal plate in the tank. The tank is filled with a hydrocarbon dielectric fluid (such as kerosene), which ionizes in the presence of an electrical field. The dielectric fluid breaks down electrically (i.e. conducts), after a short ionization period, assuming the electrical field intensity is high enough.
"The electric field is created by applying a voltage between the electrode and the workpiece (known as the gap).
"The breakdown of the dielectric fluid is much like the breakdown of air when a large voltage is supplied from the coil in an automotive ignition system to the spark plug. However, since in EDM the gap is typically held to only a few thousands of an inch, the applied voltage does not need to be very large for an EDM 'spark' to occur. Typical operating gap voltages for EDM machines are in the range of 25-5OVDC though the ionization voltage may be quite a bit higher.
"The servo system maintains the appropriate separation of the electrode and workpiece as determined by the operator setting the desired gap voltage on the EDM generator... As each spark is discharged from the electrode (the cutting tool) to the workpiece, a small amount of metal is vaporized and a crater is left in the workpiece. The dielectric fluid quickly cools the vaporized metal. The solidified metal partials, known as swarf, are removed from the work area by the circulating of the dielectric oil, and the filtering system traps the metal partials.
"The EDM burning process is repeated thousands of times each second. As the workpiece is eroded away by the repeated discharges, the electrode descends under the servo system control. As a result of millions of electrical sparks melting small quantities of metal, it is possible to erode various shapes into any material that will conduct electricity. Even some semiconductor materials may be machined via this process. Generally speaking, the hardness of the workpiece has little effect on the burn; this is one of the biggest advantages of the EDM process...."
"I have opted to give a detailed step-by-step description of how to build the control system and generator. If you are a metal working person with minimal electrical/electronic skills you should be able to successfully complete the project . .
"Instead of making the cut down to the 6 o'clock position, I chose to move the servo up toward the 12 o'clock position. This made flushing much easier, as the swarf fell out of the cut area. To accomplish this, I rewired the servo to cut going up, instead of down. It is nice to understand the design of the machine so that these kinds of changes are made with ease..."
Here's what others are saying about the book:
"I have now purchased the book, and after reading
it, would be happy to recommend it to anyone wanting to build a small
The book is very clear and concise with great instruction and
I am not an electronics guru but I can easily understand how to build
this machine. I also want to thank Ben for answering my email
I received the book last week......
Read it in a couple of days.....
Can't wait to build an EDM!!!!!!!!!!!!
I've added it to my "To Do" List!!!
I'll try to build it the fall.
I received your book yesterday, and I am impressed with the detail that I haven't seen since Heath Kits! Thanks for the fine job. I look forward to doing this project and will have some comments later on.
I received my book the other day. It was a great read. I enjoyed it very
much. Thank you for writing it.....
Just got my copy of the book, and it's fantastic! Though I'd be
myself, as your instructions on using the Radio Shack perfboard are so
comprehensive (plus, I'm way to anxious to start building to wait for a
Anyway, the book is great, and I hope you forge ahead with work on a
book detailing a pulse-based system.
I was impressed with the file being etched.
I built a home-brew R/C type machine and would not even try something
Unusual, useful and hard to find information.
5-1/2" X 8-1/2" Softcover 168 pages profusely illustrated with black & white photos, line drawings and illustrations.
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You can build this real edm machine in a weekend