Cutting bed options

[Dave Vigness]

So guys and gals, what do you have and what are you cutting primarily? Where is your exhaust port? What do you like or dislike about your setup?

I have the honeycomb it came with, and I'm cutting about 98% Premium MDF with the occasional acrylic tossed in using the factory left side exhaust. Primarily larger pieces, but occasionally a number of 2" and 3" medallions.

I didn't like the pattern on the back left by the honeycomb, and started exploring other options. Russ swears by a steel plate and pin beds for his card-stock and acrylic work. I have seen a few with the rail beds but not heard good or bad about them.

So far I have some 1/8" 2"x2" aluminum angle scraps five to seven inches long I've been using with magnets to hold them in place on either the honeycomb or the steel plate with satisfactory results as long as I remember to put the bridges in. I have access to a number of 4' chunks of the same angle, and I'm considering making a solid bottom rail bed orientated from front to back.

My quandary comes from my need to keep the pass through. I would love to make my aluminum angle rail bed and extend it beyond the current support far out over the Z axis drive as well as forward, stopping both of them just short of the factory doors for maximum support of long work. The front is not that critical, I only have a little under two inches bed edge to door. But the back I have around nine out over the Z axis drive that I'd like to support. But making the right angle bed means I need to have a rear exhaust. But a rear exhaust precludes my opening the back door for pass through with the 2x2 angle bed creating a solid 'floor'.

Short of ordering a long rail bed and keeping my left side exhaust, I can't find a solution. I'm hoping one of your setups will inspire me to get creative with what I have and then what I need to make happen. So far my only wild idea has been to make the long bed using the 2x2 angle, then do a short but wide pickup along the end of the rails in the back for exhaust. Like I said, it's wild...

[Gene Uselman]

Hi Dave- I only found one pict of the left side of a Mophorn and it looked like the exhaust was toward the front of the left side- unusual I think.
I have a large bed with blades about an inch and a quarter apart running front to rear and the exhaust in the rear. I cut a lot of different plastics and quite a lot of mdf core plywood- of all sizes. For a while I was cutting hundreds of earrings from 1/8" solid woods, walnut and many exotic interesting woods and I have honeycomb panels which sit on the blades and had the same problems as you describe. I ended up making wooden spacers to lift the wood a 1/16" off the honeycomb to avoid the flashback. I 'think' I may have posted picts of them, I am off on a respit now and cannot easily access my files from home but will if you need them.
As far as building a new blade bed for your machine, there are a lot of factors to consider but I would not use angle for it as it will mess up the airflow IMHO. Blades I have seen are normally aluminum and shaped like this - just for informational purposes.

blade.jpg

The side exhaust and pass thru are other matters which I would need more details to comment upon, but would be happy to.Gene

[Dave Vigness]

Yeah, Ideally I would get long blades and do some kind of low exhaust port to keep my pass through. BUT... I have all this free 2x2x1/8" angle. If I weld it together I get a solid bottom. I guess I could be a glutton for punishment and weld short pieces between the long ones and keep most of my down air flow. That popped into my head when I saw some palatalized equipment today. Make sure the short pieces rest on the Z axis frame and it would all be good... maybe.

Initially I thought of attaching the exhaust to the extended bed out the back, but I'm not sure if that would cause a problem with keeping my bed level as I would essentially be making the back lifting screws the new center point. The front could 'float' a bit and throw my focus out if I wasn't careful. Or am I imagining problems that aren't there?

The other thing I thought of was keeping the bottom angle over the cutting area for easy clean up, but cutting the bottom of the angle out past the Z frame for air flow. All except the back inch or so for stability. I'd have to leave a bit in the middle open to be able to drop the bed past the top of the AC Z axis motor. It's not a stepper and it's a tall sucker, stands about 5" above the base belt cover.

I have about 20 decent magnets to lift if I need just a little bit, and can put screws on them fr a high lift if necessary. Lots of combinations, just not sure what to put at the bottom as a base to set the others on. I know the honeycomb will be at the top, just not sure of the base will be the steel with the aluminum angle on it or the other way around.

And I could have a female moment and change my mind after I have ii all installed...

Who knows what I'll eventually come up with.

Most of my other mods / upgrades are completed. Waiting to do all the painting until I have the exhaust figured out, then post them by groups. Power, air, electric, etc.