Design your own products with Ponoko

QUICK OVERVIEW
Download (and customize) the design files for the laser cut chassis parts, and make them yourself from:

- Birch Plywood: http://www.ponoko.com/make-and-sell/show-material/84-veneer-core-double-sided-birch

- Bamboo: http://www.ponoko.com/make-and-sell/show-material/82-bamboo-natural

MY COMMENTS

So in anticipation of getting the "Basic Electronics Kit" - http://www.ponoko.com/showroom/MakerBot/cupcake-cnc-basic-electronics-kit-4242
from Makerbot, I whipped up a Birch plywood body to see how it would work. The original files in the Makerbot showroom have the tabs and holes drawn for 5mm material. The Ponoko Birch measures 5.3mm so I figured that with laser kerf the holes would come out at about 5.2mm. I guessed that would be close enough to get body together. Well, that 0.1mm difference was enough to be difficult. Having worked with plywood for many years I knew I could use a rubber mallet to nudge the pieces to together without anything breaking. If I were using the bamboo this would not have been possible as it is not a ply construction and therefore can break along the grain, especially where a short grain situation created. There were some cosmetic issues because of the tight joints which I have shown in the 3rd photo. some of the veneer around the holes broke out but it is nothing that will affect the structural performance of the machine.

So anyway, I have adjusted the files so that the holes for the tabs are drawn at 5.3mm. This should work better with the Birch and Bamboo in the Ponoko catalog. There may be other areas where the 0.3mm difference in material thickness multiplies to cause tight parts. For instance, the panel that covers the power supply seemed tight but I can't make adjustments there until I get a power supply and the other hardware to know how that part goes together. And of course thickness variations in the material can make things difficult at any time.

HOW TO MAKE THESE DESIGNS YOURSELF 


1) Click the “Add .svg Files” button below to add these downloadable designs to your Ponoko account.

2) From within your Ponoko account, add your material choices to each design file. See below for guidance on the material type, thickness and sheet size you should choose.

3) Click ‘Make it’ to get an instant online price, then proceed to checkout.

These downloadable designs will then be laser cut, packaged and shipped to your door.

And if you want to customize these designs, then click the "Download" button below, tweak the designs as you see fit, then upload them to get an instant online price to get them made and delivered to your door.

WHICH MATERIALS TO SELECT?
These 8 downloadable designs will give you all the of laser cut parts you need to make one CupCake CNC chassis.

After you add the designs to your Ponoko account, you can make each one from the following material types, thicknesses and sheet sizes:

THE BODY:

1) Body 1
File: makerbot-body-P3-5mm-ply-01.svg
Material: select 1 x P3 sheet of 5mm plywood or Bamboo

2) Body 2
File: makerbot-body-P3-5mm-ply-02.svg
Material: select 1 x P3 sheet of 5mm plywood or Bamboo

3) Body 3
File: makerbot-body-P2-5mm-ply-03.svg
Material: select 1 x P2 sheet of 5mm plywood or Bamboo

4) ZStage
File: makerbot-zstage-P2-6mm-acrylic.svg
Material: select 1 x P2 sheet of 6mm clear acrylic

5) Build Surface
File: makerbot-buildsurface-P1-3mm-acrylic.svg
Material: select 1 x P1 sheet of any 3mm acrylic

THE PLASTRUDER:

6) Plastruder 1
File: makerbot-plastruder-P1-5mm-acrylic-01.svg
Material: select 1 x P1 sheet of any 4.5mm acrylic

7) Plastruder 2
File: makerbot-plastruder-P1-5mm-acrylic-02.svg
Material: select 1 x P1 sheet of any 4.5mm acrylic

8) Plastruder 3
File: makerbot-plastruder-P1-3mm-acrylic-03.svg
Material: select 1 x P1 sheet of any 3mm acrylic

MAKING COST ON BIRCH (WITH A FREE PONOKO ACCOUNT)
To make these designs using the materials noted below will cost you:
Making: $163.57
Materials: $51.90
Total: $215.47 + postage and packaging

MAKING COST ON BIRCH (WITH A PRIME PONOKO ACCOUNT)
To make these designs using the materials noted below will cost you:
Making: $110.41
Materials: $51.90
Total: $162.31 + postage and packaging

Of course, if you feel adventurous, feel free to try your own combinations of materials to make something uniquely yours!

And when you combine these designs with the following two, you'll have everything you need to make your CupCake CNC build go perfectly ...

Cupcake CNC Basic Electronics Kit:
http://www.ponoko.com/showroom/MakerBot/cupcake-cnc-basic-electronics-kit-4242

CupCake CNC Deluxe Electronics Upgrade Kit: http://www.ponoko.com/showroom/MakerBot/cupcake-cnc-deluxe-electronics-upgrade-kit-4243

Note: All of MakerBot's designs are released under the GPLv3 license which is very similar to the Creative Commons Attribution Share Alike license available here. The main thing, as mentioned above is that if you make modifications you have to republish your design files!

Publish your modified files on this site (Ponoko) or on Thingiverse, by signing in to Thingiverse and pushing the "I Made One" button here: http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:457