My shop is also small/crowded so all my benches/tables/tools are on wheels. Since my shop is in the basement it also houses lawn equipment so movement is required for clearance to get the lawnmower and other equipment out. Someday I'll get energetic and better organize the shop & storage to minimize the necessity for such movement.. Anyway, I greatly enjoy your videos.
Mark, you are going to LOVE that machine. I couldn't believe how big of an upgrade it was for my shop. I would co-sign on getting a complete set of Allen head drivers. I believe I grabbed a set of ball heads for every metric size even though I didn't need them all... Since then I've used them on all kinds of things.
I was going to call it a large erector set, but you beat me to it. By the way I have an antique erector set my son bought me because he knew I had one as a kid. Great video!
That is exactly the cnc I plan on upgrading to. I have planned it for two years but in 2020-21 I bought a 14' x 28' pre-made shed and relocated my shop fifteen miles to my yard vs my dad's yard...where my shop had always been. In 2021-22 I got a Thunder Laser 35-100watt instead of a Avid. Hopefully the next upgrade will be to sell my Shapeoko Pro and get a Avid!!
Interesting machine and seemingly nice design. Linear rails and blocks, instead of plastic rollers, rack and pinion drives instead of lead screws and seemingly a rigid design. Bit of a task to put it together, like an erector set. I remember the Gilbert Erector Set well. I built a lot of great stuff with those sets.
This is really exciting. You will love this machine. Thank you for all your videos. I have finally become a member. Should have done it a long time ago.
Thanks for the video very interesting seeing you building the machine. I have a 48x48 machine made here in Quebec (cnc4newbies machine just like Paw Paw’s Workshop) it’s a strong machine for me with a 2.2 kw spindle But what you have now is a dream Bravo! Mark
@@MarkLindsayCNC I too have a CNC4Newbies high speed rack and pinion. It is interesting to see the differences as well as the similarities of these two machines! I often call my machine a poor man's Avid.
Nice! Very nice step up I would love to have that machine. But please Mark, tell me you aren't switching to Mach 4 or something else.. Lol. I need you Mach 3 advice to continue. :)
@@MarkLindsayCNC well I just meant on your vectric videos you always use Mach 3 and used it for the triple edge finder. Are you still going to use the triple edge finder with Mach 4? If so that would be a good video on how to make that work.
I will not be using the Triple Edge Finder with Mach4 - it's going with the Gatton CNC. I have the Avid CNC 3-way touch plate, and Mach4 is already configured for it. It truly is plug and play.
Great video. In the video, you said this machine is not a beginner's machine. Is that because of machine complexity, Mach4 or what? If a beginner doesn't try to do too much too soon, couldn't they learn on this machine?
It's a combination of factors. First is the price, second is the complexity of the machine, third is the potential for personal injury as well as machine damage. This beast is not forgiving at all, and moves at comparatively high speeds. If you make a mistake, you make it on a grand (spectacular) scale. When they bite, they bite hard and fast. The potential for personal injury and machine damage exists with just about any CNC router, just not at the speed and power of this machine - and it's not even the fastest or most powerful machine available. Imagine you don't know how to drive, and you want to learn. Now imagine that on day 1, your instructor puts you behind the wheel of a Greyhound bus loaded with 60 passengers, and you still don't know the difference between the brake pedal and the seat belt. I think we'd both agree that this particular situation is not ideal for basic instruction. Yes, a beginner could get one of these machines and learn on it - IF they really dedicated themselves to learning the machine and its capabilities right from the very start, or IF they had someone local to them who is experienced, and is willing to invest some time in teaching. It's just my opinion, however, that a beginner would be better served learning how to use a CNC router on something a lot less expensive, and with a much more gradual learning curve. Why set yourself up for failure before you even begin? As I said, that is just my opinion, so feel free to take it with as many grains (or tons) of salt as you wish. I've based that opinion on trying to help people who got in way, way over their heads way, way too soon, and had less than stellar results. (Thankfully no personal injuries, but a few close calls and damaged machines.) Much better, in my opinion, to learn on something a little smaller and easier on the wallet, then move up to something like this. Learning Mach4 isn't really an issue - if I can do it, anyone can. Mach4 has a ton of capability that I know I'll never use. I base that off of my experience with Mach3 - I didn't use about 95% of what it was capable of, either. Once Mach3 or Mach4 are set up and ready to use, they're very simple to learn.
WOW, an AVID!!!?? Those are grade A top of the line machines! They are also very $$$$. Did you buy this with your own money? Or did Avid reach out to you and give you this?
This is the first time I have seen the Avid. That is definitely a heavy duty unit.
My shop is also small/crowded so all my benches/tables/tools are on wheels. Since my shop is in the basement it also houses lawn equipment so movement is required for clearance to get the lawnmower and other equipment out. Someday I'll get energetic and better organize the shop & storage to minimize the necessity for such movement..
Anyway, I greatly enjoy your videos.
Mark, you are going to LOVE that machine. I couldn't believe how big of an upgrade it was for my shop. I would co-sign on getting a complete set of Allen head drivers. I believe I grabbed a set of ball heads for every metric size even though I didn't need them all... Since then I've used them on all kinds of things.
Ditto, Greg. I now have a complete set of ball-end Allen head drivers, and I too have used some sizes I didn't know I needed. Thanks!
I was going to call it a large erector set, but you beat me to it. By the way I have an antique erector set my son bought me because he knew I had one as a kid. Great video!
Great assembly video will help anyone waiting on their Avid machine.
That is exactly the cnc I plan on upgrading to. I have planned it for two years but in 2020-21 I bought a 14' x 28' pre-made shed and relocated my shop fifteen miles to my yard vs my dad's yard...where my shop had always been. In 2021-22 I got a Thunder Laser 35-100watt instead of a Avid. Hopefully the next upgrade will be to sell my Shapeoko Pro and get a Avid!!
Nice machine Mark. Coming along nicely.
Cheers Peter
Thank you, Peter!
Great video. You have come a long way since your shoestring CNC build...
Love your videos Mark.. thank you for taking the time to do these. Cheers Bro.
Thanks for putting this together. Learning how the Avid is cobbled together is very interesting!
Great video.. BTW, an erector set was one of my favorite toys growing up..
Interesting machine and seemingly nice design. Linear rails and blocks, instead of plastic rollers, rack and pinion drives instead of lead screws and seemingly a rigid design. Bit of a task to put it together, like an erector set. I remember the Gilbert Erector Set well. I built a lot of great stuff with those sets.
Yay miss the longer videos
Looking good. I don't have space for this. I'm new to CNCs and planning to start with a Stepcraft M-1000. Greetings, Ronald
This is really exciting. You will love this machine. Thank you for all your videos. I have finally become a member. Should have done it a long time ago.
Thanks for the video very interesting seeing you building the machine. I have a 48x48 machine made here in Quebec (cnc4newbies machine just like Paw Paw’s Workshop) it’s a strong machine for me with a 2.2 kw spindle But what you have now is a dream Bravo! Mark
Thank you, Richard! I know Chris from CNC4Newbies US, and I do like their machines as well.
@@MarkLindsayCNC I too have a CNC4Newbies high speed rack and pinion. It is interesting to see the differences as well as the similarities of these two machines! I often call my machine a poor man's Avid.
Awesome machine, I'm enjoying the assembly!
Awesome video Mark, very informative!!!! It’s a beast isn’t it?
I was shocked. It's a real monster!
Great video mate. Can’t wait to see more. Cheers Robert
Living the dream, 👍🤗 now you need more SHOP,LOL
I wish!
Wow that is a dream machine !
Been waiting for this!
Nice! Very nice step up I would love to have that machine. But please Mark, tell me you aren't switching to Mach 4 or something else.. Lol. I need you Mach 3 advice to continue. :)
Well... I'm afraid I am switching over to Mach4. But on the bright side, I've never really given any Mach3 advice, so you won't be losing much.
@@MarkLindsayCNC well I just meant on your vectric videos you always use Mach 3 and used it for the triple edge finder. Are you still going to use the triple edge finder with Mach 4? If so that would be a good video on how to make that work.
I will not be using the Triple Edge Finder with Mach4 - it's going with the Gatton CNC. I have the Avid CNC 3-way touch plate, and Mach4 is already configured for it. It truly is plug and play.
What size is the extrusion for the avid 48x48? Is there torque specific for this build?
What type of grease did you use in the linear bearings ?
The grease Avid sent with the kit. Here's a link to it: www.avidcnc.com/multi-purpose-lithium-grease-3-oz-cartridge-p-478.html
Great video. In the video, you said this machine is not a beginner's machine. Is that because of machine complexity, Mach4 or what? If a beginner doesn't try to do too much too soon, couldn't they learn on this machine?
It's a combination of factors. First is the price, second is the complexity of the machine, third is the potential for personal injury as well as machine damage. This beast is not forgiving at all, and moves at comparatively high speeds. If you make a mistake, you make it on a grand (spectacular) scale. When they bite, they bite hard and fast. The potential for personal injury and machine damage exists with just about any CNC router, just not at the speed and power of this machine - and it's not even the fastest or most powerful machine available. Imagine you don't know how to drive, and you want to learn. Now imagine that on day 1, your instructor puts you behind the wheel of a Greyhound bus loaded with 60 passengers, and you still don't know the difference between the brake pedal and the seat belt. I think we'd both agree that this particular situation is not ideal for basic instruction.
Yes, a beginner could get one of these machines and learn on it - IF they really dedicated themselves to learning the machine and its capabilities right from the very start, or IF they had someone local to them who is experienced, and is willing to invest some time in teaching. It's just my opinion, however, that a beginner would be better served learning how to use a CNC router on something a lot less expensive, and with a much more gradual learning curve. Why set yourself up for failure before you even begin?
As I said, that is just my opinion, so feel free to take it with as many grains (or tons) of salt as you wish. I've based that opinion on trying to help people who got in way, way over their heads way, way too soon, and had less than stellar results. (Thankfully no personal injuries, but a few close calls and damaged machines.) Much better, in my opinion, to learn on something a little smaller and easier on the wallet, then move up to something like this.
Learning Mach4 isn't really an issue - if I can do it, anyone can. Mach4 has a ton of capability that I know I'll never use. I base that off of my experience with Mach3 - I didn't use about 95% of what it was capable of, either. Once Mach3 or Mach4 are set up and ready to use, they're very simple to learn.
Thanks for your advice Mark. Much appreciated.
Would a ball hex bit be helpful?
VERY! All my Allen driver bits are ball end. I should have specified that in the video.
Have you been leveling as you have gone along?
Not really. I did a little bit, but that step is in Section 8 of the instructions, so I got into it heavier then.
Also what size is the extrusion for the gantry?
WOW, an AVID!!!?? Those are grade A top of the line machines! They are also very $$$$. Did you buy this with your own money? Or did Avid reach out to you and give you this?
A high tech 'Man Cave'?