[jyotti]

snip .. The gantry is heavy enough to be a two man job if it were all welded together and would not be correctable if something was not aligned correctly. The gantry end plates that get welded to the beam and rail will extend rearward enough to also be the Y axis 5S lead screw/bearing plates.

CarveOne

For yous guys following this steel build .. just tryin' to plan ahead on lifting issues .. found the Torin T32001 2 ton foldable shop crane on amazon for a paultry $157.70 .. shipped free (saves $119) and no stax. Lead is 7-8 weeks .. next best deal is HF @ $179.99 (coupon price till 4/30)+ $90 shp/prem .. avail 4/15. No way I'll be lifting a 5' wide gantry single handed, or 45 sq feet of 3/4 mdf (splined/glued).

Now, wish I had something like this 40 years ago, when I thrilled at swaping motors and all that stuff. While the 2 ton is certainly overkill for our projects, it is cheaper than the 1 ton at this price, and I think has longer reach .. and still foldable for minumum storage space. Wish I had one a few weeks ago .. had to use forks through the door, to lift the Rikon 18" off it's pallet .. fun ehh :-)

[CarveOne]

I don't have a shop crane myself. I always seem to figure out how to "gitter done" without one. Years ago one of my sisters gave me a 2" x 36" x 48" butcher block top and I turned it into a very sturdy rolling work table. It is the same height I normally make my work benches and work tables. I just put it beside the work table and move the heavy CNC stuff onto it, then roll it to where I need to move it to then slide it off.

Rarely do I need a second person to help move something but I know who I can call. I do enough free stuff for them that they owe me some sweat equity.

CarveOne

[CarveOne]

Just for grins I C clamped the X axis lead screws in place to see how they look and to find out if there are any interferences. Two of the motor mount/bearing plate screws have a minor issue that will need correction in the frame or a 1/4" spacer plate. Will deal with it one way or another. That's why you only see two stand-offs on the motor plates.

The lead screws are not in the way too much but I don't want them there when the welding starts.

CarveOne

[CarveOne]

I managed to get some time in on the machine today. The Y axis carriages were moved downward on the Z axis assembly as far as was reasonable to go.

It now has 2-3/4" clearance to the table top. It's not the 3" clearance that I want, but the only way to get more is to make new gantry riser plates. I'll try this for awhile and see how it works out.

Next, I'll remove the riser plates, plug the unnecessary holes for the new configuration, and repaint the plates.

CarveOne

[louieatienza]

You could swap your mdf spoilboard with some 1/2" phenolic...