My Shapeoko has been sitting on metal storage shelves so an enclosure or table of some sort has been long overdue. It’s still a work in progress but I’m sharing what I’ve done so far.
I decided to go the enclosure route and set forth the following requirements.
2x4’s and 3/4" plywood with wood glue and Spax screws.
Lexan sheets for the door windows.
Rotary mount for my touchscreen CNC controller
VFD mounted on side of the exterior (I just acquired a 1.5KW spindle)
The front opening needs to be tall enough for me to access it without squatting down.
Lockable caster wheels so I can move it myself since I haven’t finalized the placement of my machine tools yet.
Platform to hold water pump, compressor, and shop VAC.
Built-in power outlets.
Lots of interior lighting.
Solid construction that resists vibration and won’t rack when moving
A 120V 15A power line for VFD
A 120V 15A power line for everything else
Tough moisture resistant interior
Latch-able rear door for when cutting large material
I used plasti-dip on the exterior, solely because I’ve had gallons of it sitting around for years from a previous project that I wasn’t able to use it for, and I went with deck paint for the interior.
Your enclosure looks good. Not sure I would have painted it black. It’s like having a black car. I washed my black car and 30 minutes later it looks dirty.
Be sure to order extra wood if you do. The employee that picks it for you likely won’t be as selective of good straight pieces as you would be yourself.
True! I recently had a busy drop off some wood for some signs he wanted made for gifts for his family. I told him I could probably make a longbow out of the 1x6 he left…I had to go myself after that. He said he thought it looked straight.
Looks straighter in the pic than it was.
Starting out with reflex is good for a long bow (I’ve made a couple, though I no longer use squirrel intestines for bow strings as I did when I was young).
Straight grain of course helps a lot, and ideally it should be a “real” bow wood — hickory is great and almost unbreakable, walnut is good also, and I love mulberry and pecan. Red oak is an expedient choice and white oak or ash are excellent. Yew is wonderfully traditional, but hard to find a suitable stave of these days (and usually expensive when one does).
Wow great job! It looks very sturdy and well thought out. I like the back door option and the overhanging control box monitor. Did you design the Shapeoko inside it as well haha it looks very accurate.
Very impressive. I would be interested in trying your control program if you decide to release it, I do understand if you don’t want the head involved in that as well. Well done!
The photo only shows half of the pile.
I made a donation and made a Windsor chair from some of it, including a 21" wide seat from one piece.
A beautiful wood. I have never found a wood that has such a smooth finish, it is almost like silk.
