Hello everyone,
As a former shapeoko 3 owner, I always felt that the factory bent steel base was a weak point, both in accuracy and rigidity. As such I designed custom risers that allow for the complete replacement of the base with more rigid 8020 extrusions (www.8020.net) if you are interested in learning more about those extrusions.
Our first designs were 3d printer several times to ensure fitment and function and iterate on the best way to design a frame. Forward to today, and we have the current and final iteration of the risers. These provide more clearance over the factory setup (1" more) and adjustability to run wider belts as the new pro machines do.
Here are some images showing a potential 8020 frame and one of the final manufactured brackets. If you are thinking of doing this mod and have some questions let me know.
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