So I got a bit of bad news in the family today so I went out to the shop to mess around. My plan was to build an enclosure for my X3 that would enclose the whole mill. I planned on using a shower pan with a shower curtain enclosure to set it up.
But I wasnt very motivated to get real dirty so I got thinking I may want something a little smaller than the original idea. So I was going to build a metal box frame to mount to the table, but instead I found a cheap rubbermaid or whatever it was 6" deep box to use instead. All I plan to do is cut out the bottom of it to fit the mill table, plumb in a couple drain plugs, one from the mill table and one in the rubbermaid box for the return coolant.
Then I had some spare conduit that I just attached to the back of the head stock, I plan on using a cheap shower curtain to hang down from this into the rubbermaid bin, to keep the chips and any splashing coolant in the bin.
You will notice the front is open still as I havent bent the other piece to slip into the ends so I can remove it etc etc..Not finished it all yet but figured i would share this $15, 1 hour enclosure unit for those who dont want to spend a full day or two building one...
It will work just fine and was cheap and easy to do, and it wont leave much of a bigger footprint than the mill compared to my original idea.
Not the prettiest enclosure out there but the rubbermaid bin was $6.99 at target, the conduit was free and the shower curtain will be $4.99 i beleive. The plumbing for the return line will just be from fittings i have in the shop..
Dan