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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Feb 2006
    Posts
    118

    Which direction for gantry

    Looking at building a large 4x8 or bigger router and have seen some with long gantries going full length as a posed to across like most. Long would be great for easy access in the location I want to put it but not sure about this design type.
    This router will be built out of steel bolted or welded I can do both but weld leaves no room for adjustment.
    I plan to do mostly wood, foam and plastic but aluminum would be nice but not necessary.
    Looking for the gurus input on this as to which gantry type as well as the steel sizes and gauges that would be best recommended for either design.
    Looking forward to your guys input.

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Apr 2004
    Posts
    5728

    Re: Which direction for gantry

    Usually, the gantry crosses the short (Y) axis of the machine. The bending stresses on any beam will increase with length, which cause deflection. So short and stiff is the rule. You can cross the long axis if you want, but you'd need a stouter beam to achieve equivalent stiffness. That in turn would make the gantry heavier, meaning you'd need more powerful motors, and you'd be fighting more intertia when you change directions.

    If you want to deal with aluminum effectively, then you need all the rigidity you can get. A fixed-bridge moving-table design would probably give you better rigidity than a moving gantry, but they need more floor space, which is why moving gantries are more popular.
    Andrew Werby
    Website

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Jan 2008
    Posts
    1523

    Re: Which direction for gantry

    4 foot gantry. 8 foot is a very long gantry.

    I have the gantry spanning 4 foot on my 2x4 machine for loading and access, but I would not do an 8 foot gantry.
    7xCNC.com - CNC info for the minilathe (7x10, 7x12, 7x14, 7x16)

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