I used another 10’ 2x4 spanning between the arms and that seems to work for me.
One of those strapped to a 2x4 would do it, I would think…
Those steel studs are pretty flexible when not screwed to a sheet of drywall, although constraining the two ends might fix that.
I bought an extra 2x4 to go between the arms, but haven’t gotten far enough to cut the final frame parts and decide where to put it yet.
I think those have some flex to them though. Maybe Unistrut in the
electrical aisle would work better?
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I’ve dealt with some pretty large “things” built mostly with heavy Unistrut… that might be a good start.
I mean you could build the entire frame from 80/20 or Unistrut, but it would be pricey and not gain you anything over wood.
On the other hand, some Unistrut in the right places might add stiffness and be a good way to have a “versatile” mount (i.e. move the motors in/out, etc.).
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Unistrut between the motor mounts might not be a bad idea. Depending on how my frame comes out, I may add a 10 foot section. Ace hardware carries it for a reasonable price:
http://www.acehardware.com/product/index.jsp?productId=29078896&KPID=17479358&cid=CAPLA:G:Shopping_-Catch_All-_DT&pla=pla_17479358&k_clickid=0e9e55df-e34c-4aa0-a566-1a6cccdd03d6
So I am much less concerned about the design of the stock frame now that the PID values have been adjusted. I really only see jerky movement when the sled is nearly all the way at the top of the frame.
That said, I still love the idea of a simple panel saw using unistrut as the tracks.
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I plan to mount the Maslow frame to a wall. Thoughts on the best way to mount a 2x4 to the wall. (I would expect very little flex) but still being at an angle? I’m hearing 10* is a good angle. Thoughts from people already up and running?
Thx all!
In my case the wall is unfinished so I nailed a horizontal 2x4 to the studs just below the point where the frame meets the wall, and attached the frame to that.
What about creating a project for that?
Project: Torsion box-frame,
…made from parts that can be cut by Maslow
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Remember that the only thing that needs to be especially strong is the top beam.
the work area needs to be ‘flat enough’ so that the depth of cut isn’t messed up
’too badly’ (where too badly depends on what you are doing)
there are a number of torsion box frame ideas out there that can easily be cut
with a maslow.
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2080 aluminium 20c - 100c @2.4M length, expansion is 0.002856mm, according to NIST: http://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/jres/048/jresv48n3p209_A1b.pdf
23.8 × 10^ - 6 × 120
I only used 2080 because I have 2x 2.4M lengths going spare… it also lends itself well to solidly mounting motors
I’m looking if a brick wall can function as the ‘top beam’
I just don’t want the risk that the maslow will pull the wall down . 
Another option would be a plywood I-beam or a metal beam. I’ll keep an eye on the forum what kind of options everyone is exploring who already has a Maslow
I’m looking if a brick wall can function as the ‘top beam’
it could
I just don’t want the risk that the maslow will pull the wall down .
there is very little vertical force, the force is between the motors, and that’s
only ~66 pounds.
the problem would be in mounting the motors at the proper angle.
Another option would be a plywood I-beam or a metal beam. I’ll keep an eye on
the forum what kind of options everyone is exploring who already has a Maslow
I purchased a LVL for the job (I did a 2x10" LVL, drastic overkill, a 2x4" LVL
would do the job quite well.
ideally you move the beam out from the frame to keep the chains parallel to the
work area as you use drastically different material thicknesses.
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I’m using a piece of unistrut and that’s been great so far
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Thanks for that hint, i will do some more thinking on this…
I’ve got the materials for the alternate frame referenced here on the wiki. Has anyone else built the frame? Wondering if there are any measurements? How long are the vertical 2x4s … are they the full 8 feet? It looks like the horizontal 10 footers are about a foot from the top and bottom. Thanks.
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Looks to me like you’re right. Hard to tell from the picture, but when you build, try to arrange that bottom horizontal so that it doesn’t stick up too much above the work area sheet. Don’t want to catch the sled when cutting near the edge…
One of the things I like about this design is it helps prevent the work area sheet from bowing, a problem here in the wet northwest…
If you look in onshape at the 2x4 cut list page, it gives dimensions that cut
nicely from 10’ lengths
in it I show the top beam being a 2x10, the idea was to have it overhang the top
2x4 by about the right amount. I would seriously consider having it be a 2x4 as
well (especially if you get a LVL 2x4) and add some plywood pieces between the
two to allow the 10’ beam to be shifted forward to accomodate the workpiece
thickness)
the 2x4 pieces are 4x 66", 4x 54",1x 51" and a bunch of 3.5" chunks (so that you
are never trying to fasten into the end grain of a board)
Thanks … that’s a really good suggestion.