So its been just about two years since I purchased and set the up my XXL. So, I figured it was time for a new sacrificial waste board. In the process I decided to re-square the machine and eliminate any sag.
First was to remove the stock waste board and add leveling feet to all the metal cross braces. Wasnt too bad. Next i loosened all the Y rail bolts and checked my diagonals for square. Each diagonal was measuring 58 7/16". Just about perfect. So I tightened the stock wast board and then the Y rail bolts.
I previously had a t-track sacrificial waste board. I went this time withe the T-nut version from Myers Woodshop. I was able to get that installed pretty easy. Next I wanted a fence like the one offered by Myers. Instead I added a 30x30 MDF board on top of the sacrificial waste boardand cut the screw holes that line up with the fence holes on the Myers wasteboard. With the holes cut I bolted the top sheet of MDF to the sacrificial wasteboard. Next I had the shapeoko cut the fence out of the solid sheet of MDF. It would allow for the fence to be one solid piece and i would ensure it would be 90 degree to the router XY axis. Looks pretty sick!
Now it was time to test it out. I put a cutting board in to add a juice groove. I ensured the cutting board was square by checking the diagonal measurement and checking the sides for 90 with a Woodpeckers T square. First thing I notice when I ensure the board is flush with the Y axis fence, is the gap on the X axis. The cutting board contacts at the bottom right of the board but not on the bottom left. There is roughly a 1.37mm gap that was measured with feeler gauges.
Sure enough after leaving the issue alone for a while and walking away I may have found my problem. I slid the X gantry to the front of the machine and noticed a slight gap on the right. This should address why my gap is near the point it is.
How do i go about ensuring the x axis is parallel with the y axis?
Try slightly loosening the screws holding the gantry plates to both ends of your x-axis extrusion and pulling it all the way forward until both gantry plates are touching the front cross member, then tighten the screws. If that doesn’t work, next step is loosening the same screws and putting shims between the ends of the extrusion and the carriage plates to square it up. Worked for me.
A lot of folks (including myself) will use a thin metal shim or folded over piece of aluminum foil. Glad I could be of service. Nice wasteboard, by the way.
I have been working on a project/item that requires double sided machining for a long time. I was utilizing a jig of a known size, to place the piece on when it was flipped. To square the jig to machine square, I was using an MDF fence like what you have.
After chasing my tail around fractions of a millimeter, it finally occurred to me. MDF expands and contract especially on the edge of the piece, not so much on the top/bottom. So I was cutting my fence, then squaring the fence to my machine square by removing a small amount of material. Then day’s or weeks later, I would attempt to work on a piece using my jig, and I would use the fence as reference. However, no matter what I did it was never square to the cut. This is when I decided to stop chasing my tail, and I purchased the C3D aluminum fence.
I don’t know if you are having similar issues to this, but I would recommend staying away from an MDF fence.
I thought about that too. Thinking of taking the fence off and using a sheet of plywood to make the fence now that I’ve got the X and Y axis issues resolved. I just like the larger fence that goes all the way down the X and Y. I have also seen the style used by BroInWood. He cuts holes in the MDF wasteboard that will hold PVC pipe. Cut the PVC does to 1.5” and snug it into the hole cutout.
Another factor to consider here is that the ideal reference point is relative to the actual cuts, not to an edge (which might not be exactly parallel to the machine axis, the centre reference might not be exactly central etc etc). The technique I have settled on which has solved the flip alignment issues for double-sided machining is: for side A, as the first step in machining, drill alignment holes through the stock and into a scrap or spoil board, push dowels or pins right down to fix the position. In your CC or Vectric file, flip these alignment holes to the B side of your job and ensure your B side design is aligned to those holes. Then when you come to cut side B, flip the work, use the dowels/pins to align your partly cut stock and you know then exactly where it is relative to the cutter. The Nomad flip-jig appears to be based on this same principle.
That was what I was thinking. I didnt just cut the fence and install it I actually made a fence on the CNC from a 30x30 piece of MDF. It cut the fence out for me. Ensuring it was square but most importantly that it was square to the rails.
What i did woth mine was separated the rails, and leavethe screws loose. Tram x axis and tighten then tram y amd tighten. Runs square to a 1/32 from corner to each end.at 32 inchs.
I like this option because if you ever need to flatten your wasteboard it’s easy to replace the fence and have it still square. If you unattached your fence for whatever reason you need to go through re-squaring it. Sometimes I have pieces that overhang the front of the machine and the fence would need to be removed, and I don’t look forward to re-squaring the fence again.
