Yep, I am still in a state of shock, I spoke to a guy on the phone who said he could help me out with some continuously supported bearing shaft, so i agreed to buy four 6' lengths, with two bearings per length for my planned router, for £100 GBP (~$155 US). I began to plan the router, based on HomeCNC's machine, and using aluminium extrusion, as per Balsamans machine. but I took delivery of these things today, and they are like the incredible hulk of the shaft world! The shaft is 40mm diameter, the supports stand another 40mm tall, and a massive 80mm wide, and they weigh a huge 25Kg (55lb) per shaft!
So my questions are:
What would be the best way to mount these suckers? They need no support on the long axis, but will 1/2" aluminium gantry be sturdy enough to carry the weight of the x axis? I have no room for a huge router, so I will need to cut one of the shafts in two, to give me two 3' rails for the x axis, so can it be cut? I'm thinking grinder or hacksaw, or should I enlist the help of a pro? Please excuse my ignorance, I have never had to deal with anything as huge as these, so any thoughts would be great!