hey it's john schachter for tested.com
i just unboxed the brand new bantam
tools desktop cnc milling machine
you might be familiar with the other
mill their pcb milling machine
this is a newer offering from bantam
tools
with a work area of nine by seven by
three and a half inches
and a footprint of about 19 by 20 this
is a bit bigger than the other mill but
also
quite a lot more powerful the desktop
cnc machine packs a 250 watt quarter
horsepower spindle
with a max speed of 28 000 rpm which
puts this in an entirely different class
of milling machine
whereas the other mill was designed for
two and a half d parts like circuit
boards and small prototyping
the desktop cnc is capable of machining
fully three-dimensional parts
in materials like aluminum brass
hardwoods and plastics
i am personally really excited about
this because it represents sort of
the final frontier for me in digital
manufacturing i think a lot of makers
can probably relate to this
you dabbled with 3d printing and laser
cutting but you may feel intimidated by
cnc just because of the cost and
infrastructure associated with
investing in a cnc machine but also the
very real challenges of learning the
catacam pipeline
phantom tools has positioned this
machine as a professional level tool
that's also
streamlined and more accessible for new
users like myself
so i'm eager to see how easy it is to
ramp up
as soon as you open the box the machine
is already set up with a piece of
aluminum stock
fixtured in place to run your first job
it uses a right angle bracket and a set
of adjustable toe clamps
to attach the stock to a 9x7 inch t-slot
bed
inside the machine looks and feels
pretty substantial
the frame is constructed of solid 5 8
aluminum and 20 millimeter steel shafts
it comes with all the power and
connection cables a set of wrenches
a quarter inch er 11 collet quarter inch
probe
and a single flat endmill the setup is
pretty seamless
as soon as you install the software and
connect to your computer via usb
you're ready to run the first sample
project there's a step-by-step guide on
the bantam tools site
that walks you through the entire
process to make a tool holder for some
of the machine tools and a few end mills
you just load the g-code file install
the probe
and run the automatic conductive probing
sequence
that uses the conductivity of the bed
and the work piece
to locate your stock by touching off a
face on each axis
you then change out the probe for your
end mill and run the job
you've got your first aluminum part
within 20 minutes
i was actually surprised at how
aggressively this cut through the
aluminum
and with the quality surface finish for
such a rough pass
first impressions using the bantum tools
software so far
are this feels pretty intuitive as
compared to other cnc control software
i've used the interface is extremely
streamlined
i'm not digging around all over the map
looking for input fields
the menus are arranged pretty much
chronologically so you go through them
in the order that you actually need the
steps
the setup in general is pretty seamless
so you install the software
connect to your computer using a usb and
load the g-code for your first job
within the space of the first project or
two i felt mostly comfortable knowing
where everything was located
i opted to customize the tool holder so
i added some extra pockets on the bottom
for the probe and
collets and also etch the tested logo on
the face
using a metal engraving bit and the svg
auto cam
function which is built into the bantam
tools software
this is a really neat feature because
you don't need to know cam or even 3d
modeling to create parts in two and a
half d
you can design your own vector graphics
in a 2d design program
and then import them directly into the
bantam tools software
and it does all the cam setup for you
in this case i use an engraving bit and
the preset feeds and speeds in the tool
library to set this up
you just load your tool position the
plan where you want on the face of the
part
and start cutting another really useful
feature here is the ability to see a
live preview of where your stock is
located
and where your tool paths are in
relation to that
you can check to make sure all the paths
go where you're expecting
and that you're not going to run into
the bed or any fixtures
this preview also follows along during
the job so you can actually see
the spindle moving in real time so
exciting
my first piece that i made out of metal
practically in the middle of my
apartment
that was actually a lot easier and less
intimidating than i thought it would be
banta made it really easy by having the
material already fixtured and measured
in the machine
and the tool paths and feeds and speeds
were dialed in ahead of time so not too
much guesswork there
it came out pretty cool this was a
simple operation
just milling out shapes onto the surface
of the material and then i went back
into the second pass with an engraving
bit to add the tested logo here
to the bottom i do want to try some more
complicated files
having multiple tools so you'd have to
change in between operations
and also different fixturing setups so
you'd position the stock
one way and then turn it to another
position so you can sort of attack from
a different angle
i'm going to take things one step at a
time though and try their next tutorial
after the first successful milling
operations and a few tests within graves
i was still ramping up to learn cam so i
wanted to see just how far i could get
with the built-in svg functions
i measured a small magnifying lens that
i had and designed a simple two-sided
graphic in illustrator
to mill in solid quarter inch brass
setting up the file in bantam was pretty
easy the basic svg function allows you
to differentiate between
cut and engrave for different paths
using color coding
much the way it would on a laser cutter
you can choose multiple tools for the
job
and set the depth and position of the
file
now for software subscribers you have a
little more control in terms of
designating
inner and outer cut paths within the
same file
you can still achieve the same finished
product with the basic software features
but you have to import the files in
separate steps
so just a little bit more involved
i first engraved the top side of the
brass then flipped and re-probed the
piece to cut a recessed channel for the
magnifier
and a full through cut of the contour on
the reverse side
again that automatic stack probing makes
this pretty simple
although in this case i had to bridge
the connection between the stock and the
bed
because i was going for a full through
cut i set up a plywood waste board
underneath
held in place with the toe clamps and
then attached the brass with some high
strength double sided tape
i was still a bit nervous flying solo
with my first original design
but the probing sequence is able to
locate the exact location of your stock
and position your job at the right
height on the material
again that live preview was
indispensable for making sure everything
was in the right place
because i ran this job using the
built-in cam and the factory settings
for feeds and speeds
this was a pretty aggressive cut it's
also a fairly ambitious design
because of all the curves and sharp
corners but i wanted to see what it
could handle
i was able to cut this full depth in
quarter inch brass
and the bantam didn't skip a beat
obviously if i was setting this up in
cam myself
i could dial back the settings and depth
per pass and get much cleaner edge
results
but overall i'm very impressed with what
i was able to get
using zero cam knowledge and just the
built-in svg settings
i'm also thinking bantam will continue
to dial in these default settings
for different tools and materials
while we're on the subject of software a
note about the different tiers
each machine purchase comes with the
latest bantam tools control software
the basic software package includes all
major functionality
automatic conductive probing a built-in
feeds and speeds library
live job preview and basic svg handling
for an additional cost you can become a
software subscriber
and that gets you access to some premium
features like that advanced svg handling
full feeds and speeds override and
advanced probing sequences which allow
you to locate the stock using a boss
bore or outer rectangular feature
i don't have any major gripes with the
software as of now
although there are a few things on my
wish list it would be
great if there was a way to organize the
tool library by favorites or frequently
used
i'd also love to see an elapsed time or
time remaining clock in the job progress
window
phantom says that software subscribers
will get monthly updates
so hopefully we'll see more useful
features and improvements over time
basic users will still get bug fixes and
general updates
but those major features will be
reserved for subscribers
you do get a 30 day trial of the pro
license with your machine purchase
if you do want to try that out before
deciding it's worth noting that for both
software packages
you can generate your cam and an
external cad program
like fusion 360 and have full control
over the speeds and feeds there
which are then embedded in your g-code
when you bring them into the bantum
software
bantum will also be providing templates
for fusion specific to this machine at
both software tiers
so after the first few projects went
pretty smoothly i decided to dive into
some fully three-dimensional designs
i started off with wood because i
figured that would be softest and most
forgiving
i created a base design to hold a small
piece i had laser cut out of plywood
and got some help with the cam setup for
this piece
fixturing was a bit tricky because of
the way the angled faces dipped down so
low to the bottom but i was able to get
creative with some plywood spacers
and get it set up securely in this case
i had to use manual probing to locate
the stock
since the wood isn't conductive so you
just jog the spindle in increments until
you touch the face of each side of the
stock
and then zero it out i ran a test cut
first in soft pine
and then a finished piece in heart pine
which turned out
fantastic the tolerance of the slots for
the laser cut parts
was spot on and after a finishing
parallel pass with a ball end mill
this needed barely any cleanup out of
the machine i just hit it with some 220
sandpaper and a bit of oil
and it looks like a finish part
to get this narrow pocket i did have to
switch to a 16 inch flat end
which is not included with the machine
but bantam has a whole arsenal of end
mills and other accessories for purchase
on their site
this machine can accept a tool up to a
quarter inch diameter shank
and that's the size that fits in the
included collet
you can also upgrade to a precision
collet for smaller tools like the 16th
inch end mill with an eighth inch shank
there are all types of engraving bits
and chamfer bits as well
and you can get some pretty small
tooling for fine detail work
on the subject of accessories at review
time there is currently no
air assist or chip collection built into
the system but i did notice there's a
port on the back of the machine
where that could be added later phantom
has mentioned there may be upgrades in
the future along the lines of an air
blast attachment or chip collection
accessory
so that's definitely a possibility even
without dust collection i was actually
surprised at how well the chips stayed
contained
inside the enclosure there was a tiny
bit of sawdust just below the door
but i felt fully comfortable running the
machine about 10 feet from my dining
room
and i just used a shop vac to clean out
around the bed after each cut
with virtually no mess outside the
machine
also if you're running this in your
house well i won't say it's quiet but
it's not as loud as you might expect
i'm not sure of the actual decibel level
and that will certainly vary
based on the material and how aggressive
your cuts are
but it's not much louder than a vacuum
cleaner i would definitely still wear
ear and eye protection as you would with
any cnc machine
by review time i had designed a few
other pieces for milling
and delrin and aluminum but i'm still
just at the threshold of my cam
knowledge to machine them
bantam has a handful of sample projects
in the works to practice more advanced
operations
with multiple tool changes and flips
that walk you through each process step
by step
in addition to the right angle bracket
and toe clamps you can also use high
strength double sided tape
in combination with a parallel to square
the stock and offset it against the
right angle bracket
this allows you to mill closer to the
bed without running into fixtures
neither parallels or neato tape are
included in the base package with your
machine
but both are available for purchase on
the bantam store
for any setup using tape keep in mind
you'll have to use a wrench
on the edge of the piece to complete the
circuit between the tool and the machine
bed
in order to use the automatic conductive
probing again this feature is
super handy for locating the stock
based on what i've seen from the machine
performance so far the power it can
shoot through material
and the finish and part tolerances of
the final product
this is a very capable machine that i'm
confident could handle just about any
project i can dream up for it
within the range of soft metals and
hardwoods of course
all right so some final thoughts overall
i really enjoyed working with the bantum
desktop milling machine
and was pretty surprised with how far i
was able to get with my limited cam
knowledge
using the simple control interface and
the built-in svg functions
i was able to make a couple pretty cool
projects with not a lot of experience
between the high spindle speed super
solid construction
all of those different probing sequences
and flexible fixturing options
i think this machine is capable of
producing parts with the power and
precision of a much higher caliber piece
of equipment
for more experienced cnc users i think
they'll find the workflow to be super
intuitive
and also be pleased with the quality of
the parts they're able to produce
for me i will say the limitations of my
own cam knowledge are still the biggest
barrier
in making 3d metal parts that's more
commentary on the state of cnc
than i feel like it is about this
machine if there was ever a cnc email i
felt comfortable learning on
this machine is it bantomtools has
really created an entire ecosystem
around this machine from the easy user
interface
the software tutorials step-by-step
project guides
and i anticipate a pretty active user
community based on this being their
sophomore release
also while you're learning fusion and
all of the cam setups
you're also building fluency in a tool
that the professionals use
which will translate to other workflows
if you'd graduate to a more advanced
machine in the future
the bantam desktop milling machine is
available for a promo price of 3 599
at that price point and with this whole
package i can see this being a tool that
maker spaces and educators will want to
add to their arsenal
i can also see it closing the gap for
individual makers who are looking to get
more serious about subtractive
manufacturing
in addition i think more experienced cnc
users who are looking for a professional
level tool
with the footprint and the price tag of
something a little more manageable
will find this machine pretty appealing
i am
super excited about having this in the
office that tested diving deeper into
cam knowledge and setups and working on
some more complicated projects
if you're working on cnc projects at
home we'd love to see what you're making
so please share with us
that's all for me for now i'll see you
next time
