5'x3' Ideas and build.

[Wal]

Hiya Jazz,

Thanks for your post. I'll take your advice on the 16mm/10 pitch - 5'x4' size was the absolute maximum I was considering, but as well as dropping the need for this machine to be able to cut aluminium, I'm also happy to drop my size specs to something that will do the job I need it to do - think guitar making - I'd actually be very happy with a usable cutting area of just over 3' x 2'...

Okay, I'm going to change the way that the spoil-board works. Yep, silly idea to have everything bolted through it.

Right, those wooden legs you saw in the OP are going to be held together by a steel angle iron cross braced sub frame - bolted together. I can't weld this. If I welded it then it's not coming out of the cellar ever again. It's just not going to happen. The upside to this is that realistically I'll probably use this machine once every couple of months, so it's not like it's going to be getting a good shaking 24 hours a day, 7 days a week...

Jazz, when you say that you wouldn't build the gantry in the way that I'm planning on doing it - do you mean that it's a shite design that won't work, or are you coming at it from a purely expense/ball-ache factor?

I've been 'thinking' about this build for the best part of a year and if it takes me another 6 months to chamfer out the tabs once the plate is cut, then hey - I'm cool with that! I already have my 15mm 6082 stock - 2 huge pieces that are more than enough to cut the gantry I have planned so that's not something that's going to trouble me. So long as whoever cuts my plate (and that might be you Jazz, if you have the time and fancy taking on the job...) gets it right, then the 4 piece design just seems like a really neat and simple solution to me... Looks good too, although from a pure engineering point of view that may be low on the list of priorities... What I'm saying, though, is that I don't mind this taking me a while to build and I'm happy to spend a bit on it.

w./

[JAZZCNC]

Jazz, when you say that you wouldn't build the gantry in the way that I'm planning on doing it - do you mean that it's a shite design that won't work, or are you coming at it from a purely expense/ball-ache factor?

No not shite and with some modification will work fine I'm actually building something bit similar.



I was thinking more about the cost and the work involved for someone without another machine to help. Which from reading your post's I didn't think you had.!
Thou still I wouldn't do it like that to be honest has it's too inflexible regards adjust for things like ball-screw alignment etc.
Keep the shaped bottom if you like but I'd drop the extended/slotted front plate idea and go with adjustable stronger brackets for ball nut mounting.

Like someone pointed out you absolutely need piece across top for support. I'd also put in some braces between upper/lower and front across the width to help reduce resonance and all though these pics don't show it this gantry has two. They also provide support/fastening for a rear plate enclosing screw and stepper.