I’m a pretty big newb to everything CNC and I’m currently about 60% through printing my parts. My electronics and hardware were delivered this past weekend and I have my 3/4" EMT on hand ready to go. I’m going at this fairly slow, but am looking to ramp up a bit and get everything ready for when I can finally start assembling. I have a couple of general layout questions before I start building the table. I’m planning a simple 2x4 table with 1/2" plywood top. I like the idea of just making a cut with the circular saw for a quick and easily replaceable spoil board. (My local big box hardware store sells 4x4 sheets that conveniently fit in my truck’s short bed without taking the cover off.) My plans for the MPCNC were to go with a 2’x2’ workable area which I believe translates to a little smaller than 3’x3’ MPCNC size. Space in my basement isn’t much of an issue so I was figuring a 4’x4’ table would leave me with plenty of space to mount the electronics and controls and leave a little space for tools, etc… (I should also note, I already have a bunch of 8 ft. 2x4’s and a 4x4 sheet ready to use for this project). I was hoping to get advice from others who have already jumped down this rabbit hole. I also have some other tables and a work bench in the area so this wouldn’t be the ONLY table around to work on things with, but I would prefer it be large enough to affix all the MPCNC stuff, leaving the other areas free as working space.
Are my assumptions on table size accurate? Would you recommend I go bigger or smaller based on the MPCNC size I'm considering?
What table height do you recommend, I'm currently thinking maybe a 30" height for this application?
Thanks! I’ve probably looked at that cut calculator 15 times and didn’t notice it listed table dimensions right there. Also, thanks for the tip on the height. I hadn’t really thought about it but it makes sense so you don’t have to slouch all the time to see whats going on.
I was originally thinking I would leave a foot of space for mounting the electronics and maybe some tool / bit holders. but now I’m thinking I should just do that on a lower shelf to help reduce the amount of dust buildup on everything. I’ll probably leave some room for a future enclosure as well.
On a side note, thanks for putting together this awesome project. When i first saw a “home” CNC router in action I immediately knew I wanted one. I was dismayed to saw how expensive they were (even the “cheap” ones). A friend of mine showed me this site and I was blown away. It’s been a lot of fun just making the parts, learning, and planning. I’m not sure I’ll be able to contain myself once it’s actually operating!
That is 100% how I felt, well 99%, 1% thought…“I can do that better and cheaper”. Fun journey, every single time I use it I still get crazy excited. I swear last night I was doing the test plotting for MRRF and I sent pics to all my friends and then thought, “crap what time is it?”. hahah. I put a 0.3mm pall point pen on it, no lie, I didn’t know the machine could be that accurate, it looks amazing. I don’t want to spoil it though. I will put the files up after MRRF.