Hey, guys! I’ve had my machine up and running for a week or so and it’s running great. I’m at the point now where I’m ready to install a proper wasteboard with threaded inserts and I’ve got a question or two. I want a square installed on the left front side and I don’t want to sacrifice any of the basically 32x32 cutting area. I guess the main question is simply, what is the most efficient waste board design for the shapeoko 3xxl for holding pieces that are close to the max cutting area. I already have an mdf sheet, the square, and threaded inserts purchased directly from carbide 3d. Thanks so much in advance!
I suggest using locating pins to hold the square on it’s location so you can remove it if you need the whole space.
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On thing to know about the Shapeoko cutting area is that the area off the front of the machine is included in the cuttable area. So the rear of the spoil board is not accessable because of the router sticking out from the front of the gantry. So when you level your spoil board you cannot get to the back if you put a 33x33 inch spoil board down. That leaves a ridge in the back and if you use a long work piece and tile your project will not lay down flat and would tilt from the back to the front. So see where your maximum cut can be obtained in the back and make your spoil board less than 33x33 so the entire surface can be flattened. A project piece can stick off the back and the front but it is unsupported unless you add some supplemental pieces to hold it up. So jog to the back and measure how far it is to the front rail. The width is not critical but you can have the same problem with a ridge down either side if you make a spoilboard that is too wide.
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