Wall-mounted circular saw sled (with LowRider2-inspired X mounts) - aka cross-cut rig (a limited type of panel saw)

Like a 4 foot miter saw :).

Or a radial arm saw.

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3D-printed part 1 of 2:

This build involves only two 3D-printed parts. I am posting them for free download. Here’s the first of two:
[DIY Panel Saw] Pipe Inner Endcap Nut/Bolt Holder (M8) for .75" ID pipe by Design8Studio

Below is the text from the posting:

These 3D-printed inserts can be glued (with epoxy) into the ends of .75" (ID) galvanized pipe commonly sold at hardware / home improvement stores, such that either a locknut can be glued in place (in the insert) so that a bolt can be secured to the ends of the pipe from outside it, or a hex head bolt can be inserted/glued in before gluing in the insert itself, if you desire to attach the nuts on the outside.

I also designed another part for this project, the “[DIY Panel Saw] Z mount (v7a)” which is available here: https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:5343927

How I used these:

I recently built for myself a type of panel saw, based on this approach:

(The Japanese man who posted that video has plans for sale for it. I bought his plans. At the then-current exchange rate, the price was $10.50 USD.)

My build is chronicled on the V1 Engineering Forum, here.

I made several changes in my approach, some purely for innovation and some were innovations to save money.

  1. Instead of having the t-tracks extend the full length of the base from end to end, such that the “end plate” boards seal off the t-tracks, preventing either removal or addition of new t-track nuts or t-track bolts, I made my base longer than the t-tracks by 1 full inch, so I have a gap at the top of my panel saw where t-track nuts/bolts can be added/removed.

  2. Instead of buying linear slide blocks, which have become quite pricey (perhaps due to recent hyper inflation), I vaguely remembered seeing that someone had repurposed the “X Mounts” from the LowRider2 MPCNC to build a saw sled of his own. That someone was actually Dan, who is listed as @SupraGuy on the V1 Engineering Forum. I liked that approach, which involves combining 608zz bearings with 3D-printed plastic. However, since I planned on this being wall-mounted (vertical instead of horizontal) I designed “Z mounts” which, although they are inspired by LowRider X mounts, have a much wider footprint (where they attach to the base plate) than the original X mounts.

  3. Instead of either stainless steel pipes with long threaded rods spanning the full length inside them (plus more) to extend out for nuts (thus using more threaded rod than I felt was needful), or use of expensive linear rods that have been drilled and tapped on the ends (which are quite expensive, especially at the called-for diameter), I chose to use galvanized .75" ID pipe (commonly sold at hardware / home improvement stores). I designed this part to glue inside the ends of both pipes. This approach is affordable and has worked great.

Printing notes: No supports needed. There is an intentional 1-layer thick “sacrifice layer” set to print between the hole for the bolt shaft and the hex socket where either the locknut or bolt head would go. You can clear that layer out after printing with either an Xacto knife, or melt it clear with a soldering iron, etc.

If you like my designs and benefit from them, consider thanking me by buying me a cookie through a gift sent at PayPal.Me

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3D-printed part 2 of 2:

This build involves only two 3D-printed parts. I am posting them for free download. Here’s the second of two:
[DIY Panel Saw] Z mount (v7a) by Design8Studio

Below is the text from the posting:

These 3D-printed Z Mounts, which are inspired by the LowRider 2 X Mounts, can be used in combination with 608zz bearings to grip a steel pipe or tube from three sides per mount, providing a sliding mechanism which can be applied many ways, and in my case here, for making a sliding saw sled for a type of panel saw.

I also designed another part for this project, the “[DIY Panel Saw] Pipe Inner Endcap Nut/Bolt Holder (M8) for .75” ID pipe" which is available here: [DIY Panel Saw] Pipe Inner Endcap Nut/Bolt Holder (M8) for .75" ID pipe by Design8Studio - Thingiverse

How I used these:

I recently built for myself a type of panel saw, based on this approach:

(The Japanese man who posted that video has plans for sale for it. I bought his plans. At the then-current exchange rate, the price was $10.50 USD.)

My build is chronicled on the V1 Engineering Forum, here.

I made several changes in my approach, some purely for innovation and some were innovations to save money.

  1. Instead of having the t-tracks extend the full length of the base from end to end, such that the “end plate” boards seal off the t-tracks, preventing either removal or addition of new t-track nuts or t-track bolts, I made my base longer than the t-tracks by 1 full inch, so I have a gap at the top of my panel saw where t-track nuts/bolts can be added/removed.

  2. Instead of buying linear slide blocks, which have become quite pricey (perhaps due to recent hyper inflation), I vaguely remembered seeing that someone had repurposed the “X Mounts” from the LowRider2 MPCNC to build a saw sled of his own. That someone was actually Dan, who is listed as @SupraGuy on the V1 Engineering Forum. I liked that approach, which involves combining 608zz bearings with 3D-printed plastic. However, since I planned on this being wall-mounted (vertical instead of horizontal) I designed “Z mounts” which, although they are inspired by LowRider X mounts, have a much wider footprint (where they attach to the base plate) than the original X mounts.

  3. Instead of either stainless steel pipes with long threaded rods spanning the full length inside them (plus more) to extend out for nuts (thus using more threaded rod than I felt was needful), or use of expensive linear rods that have been drilled and tapped on the ends (which are quite expensive, especially at the called-for diameter), I chose to use galvanized .75" ID pipe (commonly sold at hardware / home improvement stores). I designed this part to glue inside the ends of both pipes. This approach is affordable and has worked great.

Printing notes:

No supports needed. Be sure your slicer’s “bridging” supports are enabled. In Cura that is located under Experimental. Because this part is structural and needs a lot of strength, print at 3-4 exterior walls and 50% infill. I have my slicer set to have my .4 nozzle emulate a .6 nozzle, so for me, 3 walls is as thick as 4.5 walls.

There is no great need to print a mirrored version for two of the four needed mounts, but I did it so the top bolt head would always be facing toward the outside, to ease tightening and loosening of it.

Mounting notes:

The holes for the bolts to hold 608zz bearings are made for M8 bolts. The capture slots for them are intended to hold M8 nylock nuts. The mounting holes and capture slots for attaching each mount to the base plate are intended for M5 x 25 mm bolts and M5 nylock nuts.

Note that tightening the top M8 bolt is intended increase the mount’s grip on the pipe, and loosening it will reduce the grip. Accordingly, if you mount the M5 screws very tightly, and/or if the M5 clearance holes in the base plate are too small to allow a little wiggle room, this will thwart the ability to tighten and loosen the mount’s grip on the pipe. If you tighten and nothing happens (pipe still slides too freely or there is slop in the mount), loosen your M5 screws and then retighten them after tightening the top M8 bolts.

If you like my designs and benefit from them, consider thanking me by buying me a cookie through a gift sent at PayPal.Me

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A cross between the two, right? No up and down, like a radial saw. No moving wood, like a miter saw.

A really really small one.

That folds away. Pretty sure this needs to happen so I can build my downdraft table.

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Love it ! It’s seems more affordable than JSK Koubou’s one.

Unfortunately I live in France where i can only found 25mm OD tubes :frowning:
It would be awesome to have other OD tube for your design like for the MPCNC does.

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@olijouve If you are interested in building this version, I could perhaps redo the 3d-printed parts I designed (what I’m calling the Z mount and the pipe inner endcaps) so they are made for 25 mm instead of 26.67 mm (1.05").

One thing to bear in mind: the Z mount is based on O.D., but the pipe inner endcaps are based on I.D. so I would need to know the exact inside diameter of whatever tube you plan to use.

I am using mine in the Z axis, and am using the LR2 X mounts. I have had no trouble with that setup. These have a little wider base, but mine is plenty for the circular saw I use.

@SupraGuy That’s good to know. Mine would then seem to be a bit over-engineered, but I am OK with that.

@SupraGuy One thing I had considered, is this multi-material saw is beefy. The thing is hefty. I think (based only on feel) that it weighs a little bit more than my Skilsaw Classic saw. I might have been OK with the the skinnier “feet” on the mounts, but I feel a little better with the wider feet, which have 4 base plate screws per mount instead of two.

I can see how that would be.

I just used the LR2 mounts because I had them. I printed them in PETg as an experiment, and was looking at them trying to think of what to do with them, after I had bought a complete set of printed parts as a part of the LR2 kit. (Before it arrived.) I thought that I could use them for a panel saw, and so I did.

I am using a classic skilsaw, but I haven’t had any trouble with using it for anything that it can cut. I think that if it was good for the cut loads on the LowRider, it should be OK for the loads on the circular saw. The bearing mounts take the brunt of it all, if I understand the loading correctly.

Still, a stronger mount isn’t a waste. I used what I had, and it seems to have lasted a reasonable length of time so far, but I wouldn’t say it has been exhaustively tested.

Yes, that’s how I am looking at it. Unless an engineer does stress calculations, my approach is basically make it overly strong enough to trust.

6 Likes

Hi,
Congrats for the design.
Planning to make one sled.
Here in Uruguay (South America by the way) we have galvanized pipes of .85 id and 1.06 external diameter.
Is your thingiverse design compatible with the mentioned values?
Thank you
Javier

I would say so. 1.05 (my conduit) and 1.06 (your conduit) are pretty close. You should be OK. Remember that the four mounting screws (that attach the Z mount to the base plate) have to be slightly loose in order for the M8 bolt at the top of the mount to tighten the bearings onto the conduit. Once the bearings are gripping the conduit well enough, the base mount screws can be tightened up.

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Doug
Thank you
I will begin the printing and load some pics as soon as possible
Javier

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UPDATE: after quite a break from this project while working on other things, including upgrading LowRider 2 to LowRider 3, I am finally getting my saw sled mounted on the wall. A major reason for delay was lack of room. I am in the midst of reorganizing my basement workshop. Finally made space for it.

One of the tasks I had yet to address was how to do the pulleys that would serve for counterweight for the saw. I finally got time to search Printables.com and find a pulley I thought would be strong enough, and remixed it as necessary. Here’s a link and some pics:

https://www.printables.com/model/236223-608-pulley-allows-cable-updown-through-holes-in-wh

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OK, I am finally crossing the finish line, with only a tiny few things left to do, but here is a short video I made about the almost completed sliding saw rig:

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One other note about capacity: There is some loss of capacity at the top (where the saw parks at max above) and at the bottom (such as for the fence and clamps and parts holding the fence. My setup can accommodate and cut up to 32" wide pieces, for example, a door turned sideways. As you can see, it takes quite a bit of extra “overhead” opening to get that much usable track space.