Building a table for a sloped floor

[3d_danny]

Greetings all....

I went off the deep end and bought a new Alpha 120. <grin> cant stop grinning ha ha,, going to pick it up at the Jamboree

I decided to build my own table and would like a little input from the seasoned veteran ShopBotters.

My dilemma...

My shop is a converted "carport" of sorts that is 66' x 32' and was originally open on one side with 3 stick framed walls. I have since closed it in.
It was used by the original owner to park some of his equipment. He made the floor slope a 12/1 pitch(1 inch per 12 feet) probably for water runoff.

I plan on building the table with the x axis running with the slope. Since the Alpha 120 is 12 feet long, to compensate for the slope, I plan on making one set of legs an inch longer . Even though this will level the table, I was wondering if the gantry, during rapids, would have enough inertia to make the whole machine gradually walk down the slope. I suppose allot would have to do with the machine glides it was sitting on so another question would be what kind of machine glides works the best?

Dan

[Brady Watson]

Dan,
The tables sold with ShopBots have screw-in carriage bolt/adjusting feet on them. I would HIGHLY recommend using the same method for your table. Just make sure that the bolts are long enough to get at least 1.5" of adjustment out of them and you should be fine.

-Brady

[fleinbach]

Dan

I have an Alphaprt 120 and it's set up in my garage where the floor slopes 3/4" in 12'. Mine has never moved. I also built my own steel table. As Brady mentioned I wouldn't think of building it without adding leveling bolts on the legs. I would also use a 1" bolt since you will be making a large adjustment.

[3d_danny]

I have been looking at adjustable feet on Mcmaster Carr and they are rated by weight. Any idea as to how much a Alpha120 weighs?

[fleinbach]

I don't have any actual figures in front of me at this time but my quess is from about 600 to 800 lbs. That's with a steel table, Mdf base and spoil board and the Shopbot mounted.

You said you where building your own table so why don't you just build them yourself. It's realy simple. If you are building by the plans from Shopbot the legs are 6" C-chanel. Just use a 1/4"X2"X6" plate. Weld it to the bottom of the leg then drill a hole in the center. Weld a 1" nut for your leveling bolt and your done. Be sure to use a second nut to lock it after leveling the table.

[bleeth]

Dan: If it makes you feel better (and it would me) drill another set of holes in the base plate and lag your unit to the floor after you have levelled it.

Dave

[3d_danny]

I found out from the ShopBot office that a Alpha120 tool and table weigh 1179 lbs., spindle another 71 lbs. I guess wont be moving it around too much <g>

Frank, did you use a adjustable swivel foot on your table or just a bolt with the head facing the floor?

[fleinbach]

Bolt with head to floor.

As to the weight I didn't realize I was that strong. After we assembled the Shopbot and table we had to move it across the shop about 20'. To do this I picked up one end of the table at a time will my helper placed rollers under the legs to move it into place. And my table is not from Shopbot. I used heavier gauge steel everywhere. I'm glad I moved it before I put the two 200lb sheets of 1" X 61" X 121" MDF on.

[Brady Watson]

Dan,
Although I don't advise moving the table around frequently (because it could throw the table squareness off in all 3 directions) you can use clamp on boat trailer jacks attached to the 6 legs to move it around. You just turn the leg/wheel assembly 90° and crank the handle to raise.

Ideally you want to leave the table in the same spot and never move it. The machine will 'settle in' to where it sits and you will have fewer fluctuations in the spoilboard/Z-height, and XY table squareness if you don't move it.

-Brady

[evan]

Here's a place you can order them lots of sizes etc. Just do a search for leveling mounts. http://www1.mscdirect.com/cgi/nnsrhm

[3d_danny]

All of my steel was delivered today for my Alpha 120 table. Spent the afternoon cutting everything to length. Out of curosity, I weighed all of the cut steel and hardware and it comes out to 602 pounds.

Now for the 200 holes and paint.<G>

[bleeth]

I hope you have a drill press and lots of cutting fluid!! My elbow hurt for a week.

[3d_danny]

I think I will put my son on "drill duty"

He needs to learn the fine art of drilling holes <g>

Actually I do have a nice drill press, but have to build a support table to hold the 12' beams. Those buggers are well over 100 lb. each.

How are other ShopBotters matching the powder coat color for their tables? What kind of paint? Imron? Epoxy? suggestions?

[gerald_d]

Once I had to drill a couple of holes inside a ship. Modified a drill stand (http://www.abbeypowertools.co.uk/webupload/APOWER/DRAPER/APOWERLARGE54488_DS1.jpg) by putting a big hole through the center of the table. Then clamped the stand down wherever the hole had to be drilled. This is a poor man's magnetic base drill if your local hire shop hasn't got one. (If you don't want to put a hole in its table, you could swivel the column so that it drills over the edge of its table.)

[hespj]

"Once I had to drill a couple of holes inside a ship."....Gerald

That sounds mighty suspicious :-)

[3d_danny]

Gerald,

Does make more sense to lower the drill press than build up a table. I have my drill press mounted to a table at the moment, but it has always been too high to operate comfortably. Now is a good time to build a new table for it and "kill two birds with one stone"

Thanks,
Dan

[gerald_d]

John, I had first typed "drill holes in a ship" then "into" and finally settled on "inside" - it was for a newer style gearbox.

[bleeth]

As an old time boat builder and shipwright I can tell you I've drilled lots of holes in ships and the only thing more fun connected to work was taking a chainsaw to a 38' Wellcraft Scarab after we pulled out the Gale Banks engines and put them in a new Cigarette 39.

Dave