desktop with long boards

[shaun]

I have been trying to find a thread that gives creative ideas on how to make a piece longer than my 18x24 working space on my dektop unit by indexing the material through. Seems like I should be able to make something 20 inches wide by infinite length. I was thinking dowels in my waste board and holes but am looking for alternative ideas.

[scottp55]

We should be able to ask shopbot how they were set up at the shows. I think these were TJ's chairs.

[gpinard]

As a desktop owner also this is a question I have thought about, with no particular bright ideas :rolleyes: some kind of index hole for a pin or notch, machined from the top to mate with a pin or notch in the table. From Scotts picture, it has been figured out, and I also would like it if someone from Shopbot would be willing to share :) I have watched the Vectric instructional videos on tiling, the software supports it.

[scottp55]

Don't know if your spoilboard is oversized or 24x18 like factory board like mine(soon to change) but something like this might work.Dowel Y guide, profile outside,. Place board and clamp,pocket centered dowel holes, insert dowel in 1.5,0 hole,cut file, unclamp slide board down. Next first cut is pocket hole 1.5,17 . sure there's a better way but my desktop backs against a wall and I can't experiment.Can't attach .crv?This might help us too .http://www.shopbotblog.com/index.php/2011/09/secondary-operations-and-machine-calibration/

[scottp55]

maybe better image to have shown.

[shaun]

Thanks so much for the feedback. Sorry I have not been responding. I only get to visit my shopbot on the weekend and was working on a magnetic dust shoe in the mean time.

[shaun]

I was thinking I would just use four dowels in my waste board as my incremental locators. I was going to parse my file into four seperate cut files.I created a box that was 9x24 and just pasted them over my part. I was going to only use the lower half of my table to cut the part and then move it forward 9 inches to line up with the dowels in the waste board. I have used this technique to cut both sides of the same board but was looking for alternative ideas on how to maximize the table space. Unfortunately it seems like you need table space to cut your next locator. I do like your idea of guiding the board on one edge with an edge trued by the machine. I calso like the idea of drilling a dowel hole half on my stock and half off and I could in theory just inch the board through. How does this tiling concept work? I was just going to create the four files.

[scottp55]

Shaun, playing with the .dxf. Is your material really 2" x 24"? if so with a little nudging and rethought possible to mirror it and get both sides of the crib out of it. Also may run out of Z. Are you finding open vectors like me or am I just too tired? Never used tiling but it looked like the option to run along Y axis was there. Your dustfoot looks like the one my desktop came with but in clear Lexan? I Need to watch James tiling tutorial again I think.

[shaun]

no the file is actually 18 x 31 inches. I am sure there are a lot of open vectors because I was just trying to get it to a point I could show the concept. I actually originally drew it in solidworks (I find it easier to get angles and specific locations) and imported it to aspire where I did my tiling concept and exported it again because I could not figure out how to save it as anything else. Pretty sad I know.
I just looked at the tiling video. That is so going to save me a lot of work. I am going to try that on this project. love learning something new every project.
The dust shoe is a copy of what comes on newer machines. I could not talk shopbot into selling me an upgrade kit for my machine so resorted to making my own. apparently there is not enough of a market to offer enhancements to existing owners.

[gpinard]

Hi, for the tiling video Scott mentioned the James Tiling Tutorial, what is that? My reference was to the Vectric offering at http://support.vectric.com/tut-vcp-2d-techniques So Shaun, I also came up against Shopbot and the newer style dustfoot. My Desktop is about 2 years old. When I first got my machine, the first thing I did while moving the machine manually, was to lower the spindle too far and break my dust foot. Call it first rattle out of the box.:mad: I looked into making one also. I could not find a source for the brush material around the foot. Could you share your source?

[scottp55]

Gene, the page that brings you to, download d02 and I know I'm going to watch D01 again. I've had problems before snagging .dxf's and opening them. I find downloading James(Teacher) videos and doing them along with him in a second VCarvePro window helps me to remember his shortcuts better.
Shaun, what is the actual board or material you will be using? If Baltic Birch ply then we can use the full X to get both crib sides but the Y fence would be mainly on the t-track. Have you finished the crib ends and I'm assuming legs yet? I hate wasting material. Feel free to e-mail me so I've got your address and can send you a .crv file as that's the only way I seem to be able to save a file (No other graphics programs) and I get an "invalid file" when I try to upload them to forum.

[scottp55]

Shaun, like the dust foot but can see daylight where bristle starts which means you'll be losing vac. Have you considered making a second layer of bristles, maybe with a good felt snipped into a fringe for the first 1 1/4" of the bristles in between. or maybe just silicone something onto the outside of your existing. I've seen somewhere on here using that rug runner plastic cut into strips. I think a stiff "bot blue felt would look better and work as well. Your bristle look longer than mine and might help when it's cutting 1/2 off the board. If yours works well, ignore this.

[scottp55]

Shaun, just for visual once i closed vectors. Just traced .1" with vbit.

[shaun]

Yes that is why I uploaded the dxf. Could not upload the .crv file. My email is congdons@rochester.rr.com
I am planning on using 1/2" Baltic birch. I have not cut any of it yet. i like your idea with the vcarve for visualization.
I am planning on running something on the inside of the shroud to get a better seal. It appears to be the same brush material they have on my original enclosure except I ordered the two inch bristles instead of one inch. McMaster Carr and search for strip brush. I will try and look up the part number and include it later.

[shaun]

Gene
Send me your email and I will send you the cut files and a part number. I cut the plexi pipe out of the original shroud and tapped the bottom ring clamp holding my router. I had some 10 mm rare earth magnets laying around and made this contraption. Seemed better than having nothing on the machine. The door fell off of my shroud the first week and I ended up removing the whole thing after the part that swivels broke.

[shaun]

The McMaster part number I used is 7372T5 on page 1255. I think I might consider going with the shorter bristles of 7372T4 especially if you primarily cut plywood. I do a fair amount of deep relief work so went a little taller.