We had a request a little while back for some more testing in the horizontal configuration and now that the long lead time parts are in production I had a chance to play around with it.
The upshot is that horizontal works great which was pretty much to be expected given how much less force is needed for horizontal cutting vs vertical cutting. The only real issue that came up was how to keep it from cutting it’s own power cord and the solution as to tape it to the dust hose.
Here’s some random clips. Nothing is sped up, this is 1900mm/min at 3mm depth of cut and 2500mm/min when repositioning. Everything felt great and I’ll probably do 5mm depth of cut next time I cut something.
Notably in here you can see how much a difference having four belts makes when the sled is close to the edge of the sheet without support.
You can also definitely see the flex in the sled when the weight transfers from one direction to the other which we will need to fix before we ship. I’ve got lots of parts on the way for fixing that so hopefully we’ll be able to test them soon.
Overall, I think that the majority of people shouldn’t build frames at all, but should use like a garage floor. We can come up with some easily removable glue down anchor points
These are the one’s I’m using here. They’re screw down, but I think something like that with a larger contact pad and some silicone adhesive that could be scraped off the floor would make for a great $20 frame that wouldn’t permanently modify the garage.
To make it easier to place the mounting points out of the way at the edge of the garage (near the wall, generally where you hopefully won’t notice them when it’s not in use) we’re upping the belt lengths to 14.5 feet which will make it easier to put the anchors where you want. It will also expand the work area a bit, but I haven’t crunched the numbers on exactly how much.
Oh yeah and ignore those mess ups in the right corner, those are left over from a firmware/encoder issue that I was having at first. I’m 90% sure I’ve got it fixed, but I want to verify that I know exactly what was going on and write about it in the next update.
please test with the anchors at a height to make the belts parallel. I think
that will reduce the pressure on the sled and make it a little less tippy.
I also see that the tower is screwed to the sled, is that a temporary thing and
the mounts will be cast into the injection molded sled? or will that be a
permanent option? I like the idea of it being a permenent option, I expect to
see a plastic sled damaged over time (even before looking at options like a
plasma cutter) the ‘slippery’ plastics aren’t as durable as some others
Gotcha, yes everything attaches with screws (I think they are technically bolts because there are nuts). Everything can be taken apart and put back together with a single Allen wrench and we will absolutely have spares available for anything that could wear out.
Thanks, one of the earlier videos made it look like you were going to do more
with the injection molded sled and mold towers into it that everything else
would attach to. That would make it significantly harder to change out
I’m picturing having a bunch of different options for anchors since there will be different configuration options and needs, but absolutely Keeping the screw holes is free so I don’t see any reason to remove them.
The garage floor mount is a very appealing option. What I can’t stop thinking about is how at least one mount will need to be in the middle of the floor somewhere, a tripping hazard. Worst case all four anchor points would be out in the open and that got me thinking. Could the anchors “disappear” when the Maslow was not in use?
This got me thinking about detachable anchors. If sleeves could be cemented into the floor and bolts inserted only when Maslow is used, that’d be perfect for me. That sent me on a short search for options. An idea like these expanding sleeve anchors might be a solution.
Would this potentially work?
If so then what size bolt is sufficient?
Does someone know of a better similar solution?
Putting setscrews (no heads) into the anchors when they’re not being used will keep them from filling up with dirt and crud
This is from the Abomb79 machinist youtube channel, where they were being used to move heavy machinery. Without some kind of plug it becomes a real chore to clean out the anchors so you can use them again
Hey @bar !! Have any changes been made on your cord/hose management in the horizontal config? Was wondering if the ridges of the dust hose ever catch(jerk) on the plywood edges.
I haven’t had any issues with that, but my hose is pretty smooth. It generally seems to tend itself well. I have tripped over the power cord and unplugged it a couple times, but that’s a user issue
Anticipating the arrival of my M4 I’m starting to assemble my frame.
I plan to use the Four Anchor Cement Floor method.
At this moment I’m printing my anchors using PETG-CF filament.
As they will be attached to point on my cement floor I’m wondering about adhesion.
Can anyone recommend a very hardy adhesive for connecting PETG and cement?
I just ordered the M4 and plan to anchor it to a 33" x 77" bench top with recessed anchors to be able to return the bench to its normal function of collecting tools that aren’t put away. I noticed that the vertical table plans call for an area much larger than the spoil board. I am wondering what functional working area I can get from a 33" x 77" surface.
That’s going to be tough. That’s quite a bit smaller than recommended. I haven’t experimented with a set up that small but I don’t think it would work very well
