Lowrider v4 versus Onefinity ELITE Series Foreman

LowRider CNC Advice
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Hello all,

I build a LowRider v2 and used it successfully for a few weeks, but life got busy and the maintenance cycle was bigger than I had time for.

I want to try again, and it looks like the v3 (and more so the v4) might well be the direction I am going to go in, but very recently found the OneFinity Elite Series.

It makes me wonder if maybe this might be the best direction to go in.

Personally, I have a 5 x 9 table made, and would like to be able to cut a full sheet, so that makes me automatically want to go in the direction of the LowRider and, simply, I love what Ryan is doing, but I am a little concerned that my family requirements might require a lower maintenance direction.

Thanks for the thoughts.

Steve

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HUGE price difference between the two, and I’m not sure the OneFinity makes one that cuts a full sheet (I could be wrong).

My LR3 cost me only a few hundreds bucks, I mean $300ish (not including the table) and while I don’t use mine nearly as much as the group, I haven’t needed to do any kind of maintenance on it outside of a few QOL upgrades I did with mounting the Y belts below the surface.

I’ve not been around long enough to know much of anything about the LR2 but if the LR4 is as reliable as the LR3 and you’ve already got a table ready to go for it and some kind of familiarity with it, I’d say wait out the LR4. From the videos and conversations I’ve seen, it looks to be quite a great machine! You can likely reuse a lot of parts you may already have on your LR2 (again not familiar with the LR2 but assuming there are a lot of the basic hardware the same).

That’s my vote :slight_smile:

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Not too sute what maintenance you’re talking about.

You’re comparing a sand rail to a Humvee.

Both will get you around offroad, but one has a cost orders of magnitude bigger, though may be ultimately more capable.

My LR3 doesn’t requite much maintenance. I do stuff tobit because it’s my hobby, I like to tinker and much about with the machines, but the LR3 doesn’t fill that role. Instead it lets me build a bunch of other machines that fill that role for me. I have a rather extensive collection of machines, most of which take some fiddling and work to build, and then they just… work.

If you have the budget for the Onefinity, and it has the size capability, it’s a good machine. It can work faster than the LR can, and probably has a set maintenance regimen. I didn’t think the LR is competing in that arena. I have a Primo, a LR3, a LR4, a router table, 2 laser engravers, and I haven’t hit the pricepoint for one of those. Not even close.

Any machine requires maintenance. Bearing surfaces need to be cleaned, moving parts need to be lubricated, low tolerance clearances need to be adjusted. Just like you can’t avoid changing the differential and transfer case fluids on the Humvee I mentioned earlier. The sand rail also needs maintenance, and because you (probably) built it in your garage from some junker car chassis, only you know all the specifics, but if you had good plans and you followed them well, you will have a fun machine that will get you around off-road and have a lot of fun.

If I were in business, and payroll was a bigger issue than machine cost, then I’d rather have the 10160mm/min Onefinity than a 6000mm/min LR4, or a 3000mm/min LR3. (LR numbers speculative.) Make the business smaller (one man shop) and I might go for the faster machine if it meant I could do more jobs – thst is the demand is there.

Some people work with V1 machines, or use it to bootstrap a business, and graduate to a faster machine. I’m a hobbyist, and the cost of entry for a MPCNC was one of the larger draws for me. I’ll put my finished work up next to work done with far more expensive machines happily, any day. Some of my work has flaws, sure. It’s almost all one-of work, so the finished product is the prototype, and I make mistakes.

You gotta do you. Maybe if I knew what maintenance you don’t have time for, I could give you better advise. The LR3 and hopefully LR4 are pretty quick to use, set up and go for me – more so than my LR2 ever was, for sure.

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Thank you for your reply.

I think your response is meaningful.

You suggested that your cost was about $300. That is amazing. I haven’t sat down and done the math, but I would think that the total cost would be closer to $1000 for the machine itself if you took into consideration your material costs as well. Especially the table.

I am sure someone has done the calculations, and I would love to see that spreadsheet.

The cost of the Elite series is $3,973.75 currently, so, yes, more expensive, but these much lower than when I first investigated the problem a few years ago

I am very happy to hear that you think the LR3 (and the future version) are very reliable. I really want to go that route. I am just a little nervous about making any decisions, and have some time to mull my choices.

Thank you again!

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What do you think the total cost invested in your LR3? LR4?

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I have a full sheet capable LR3 and I am for sure less than 1k. I haven’t actually done the math. I did get some materials for the table for free but you also mentioned your table is already built so thats kind of irrelevant now. Less than 25% of the cost for sure. And its 4x8.

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Checking my receipts, I’m a little off. I forgot the router/filament/conduit costs. Still very very cheap though:

$70 in hardware
$150 in motion system (belts, lead screws, linear rails, pulleys, idlers, microswitches)
$60 in Steppers
$30 Filament
$20 in Conduit
$70 Kobalt Router

Total: $400

I did reuse a power supply and control board (SKR mini e3 v3 and pi) I already had, same with security wire that I had boat loads of. Later replaced the board with an M5P+CB1 for $60 and the psu I replaced with a $15 one on amazon that wasn’t as bulky.

I think that’s everything that doesn’t include the table and bits. Table was probably $120. Super affordable build!

I’ll be upgrading to the LR4 once things get finalized, but I also really enjoy building projects so it’s a no brainer for me!

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Same! I cant wait!

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Depends on the dollar value of my time, lol.

I have some funky parts now. Clear acrylic YZ plates, steel XZ plates…

But for the beta…
I already had the table, but I spent maybe $150 CAD on stuff for the LR2. The makeshift LR3 table was about $60 to do 2’×4’

I figure I went in about $400 CAD in new purchases for the LR3 beta, including plastic, nuts and bolts, motors and the linear rails. The linear rails and motors were most of it.

I re-used the 608 skate bearings from the LR2, but almost none of the nuts bolts and screws were applicable, with caveats.

The #6-32 screws at 1.25" are usable as some of the M5×30 screws, like for the braces. The #6 locknuts are 5/16", so will fit in the 8mm nut recesses. So some of that hardware could be re-used although I didn’t.

The LR4 beta, I spent a bit of extra, could have saved a bit instead of buying cross-border at the V1 shop maybe. :rofl:

I figure maybe $450-$500 CAD in total on the LR4, and could maybe have saved $75 CAD in places. It’s all new stuff, down to the nuts and bolts, and I’ve printed 3 cores, 3 sets of YZ plates, and 2 sets of braces, because I held off on the RC1 braces. That’s probably about $60 worth of plastic that I am not using.

One thing that I don’t need is tools to build. Can spend a ton on that!

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I just wanted to pop in here and say you guys are amazing. I haven’t been on the forum in a few years, and had forgotten how fun it is. Thank you for all your polite, informative and prompt responses.

Great community.

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You are missing the control board. :slight_smile: Also, with the LR4 $30 filament might be a tad low, the sideplates have some ~450g, the Core ~650. That’s more than 1.5kg just for those three parts. Depends on what kind of filament you use though. :slight_smile:

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I’m likely in the hundreds of dollars category. I started with the primo and broke it down, most of it was re-usable for the LR3, but I had to add a 2nd lead screw/nut/collar. I printed all of my own parts and cut the end plates before I tore the primo apart. I’m not running a full sheet machine, no need for it so even the tube and belt I had was enough. I was running a oversided primo and now an undersized lowrider :slight_smile:
I haven’t added it up but if I were going from scratch:

I’m using a baur router $60’ish bucks
Jackpot controller $66
Stepper motors $32
Filament $20
Bearings I had but $10
Misc bolts etc $50(guessing)
Rails $50
Touch plate $15
Laser $5
Misc wiring $25 (guessing)
Belts $5
Linear guides $65
Lead screws $15
Power supply $4
Relay $5
pulleys $10

I’m sure I’m missing a couple bucks here and there, but pretty close, so machine would be around $371.
I’ve got about $100 in lumber for the table, probably half that but might as well go high. So less than $500.

I’m hoping a majority of what I have can carry from the 3 to the 4 but I know the rails will change and I think they’re using aluminum end instead of wood so that will be a cost.

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Nah I had control board in the paragraph under what you quoted lol. Was reusing but then got the M5P (I’m a sucker for klipper)

I think my PLA was around $12 a kg when I bought too and I definitely used under 3 total. I have so much filament on hand so idk what I actually paid but that sounds right to my memory.

My point though was can be done for way under $1k, heck under $500 is pretty darn easy to do

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Ryan realy watches the cost to benefit he keeps that at the front of design :thinking:

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Not sure why the cost of the table is a factor - unless the machine you’re comparing it with comes with one?

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Mine LR3 was little more than 600e but I have gone mad and I have a lot of aluminium in my build. (Also I have bought some tools to build it and I do not include makita hand router which I have bought 10 years ago so total price is difficult to say)

I say 6000mm/min is good for woodworking.
I have used many commercial CNC routers and I have never used more than 6000mm/min for cutting, even machines that I have used are capable much more.
Edit: Does Onefinity have time to reach max speed before it need to slow down before stop or turn?

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Filament wise, I’ve gotten some really good results in the $10-$12 stuff off of amazon.

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I’d say my full sheet LR3 build with 6x10 table, router, SKR Pro electronics, dust collector and a few starter bits came out at around $1200.

However, my build needed to be mobile, so the table and rail situation is a little over the top in terms of pricing and probably over-engineering.

I also opted for electronic control of the trim router via IoT relay but manually turning the router on and off is not outside the norm for hobbyist machines.

I don’t think you’ll find a lot of random customization options from the major manufacturers, whereas that’s pretty much all you get here. That’s what I like about V1 though, it’s all about personal decisions about what you want your machine to do and everyone supporting each others’ use-cases” in the forums.

I’m now building an MPCNC with a spindle and laser using the V1E Jackpot board. By the time I’m done with both, I think I still come out at less than a Bob’s unit lol.

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