so first, forgive this and all my future dumb questions. LOL
I went to the LR4 Calculator and calculated for the standard 48x 96.125 layout… in mm that is 1388 for the X, I then went to the vector page and put in 1388 for X which shows the strut plate to also be 1388mm. then I downloaded the SVG and imported to (don’t laugh) Lightburn and they appeared just fine… except they measure 1387.500mm and not 1388. I can constrain and increase to exactly 1388mm but is .5mm really that big of a deal? Just asking to know how precise I need to be on this and everything else. thanks.
this would all be so easy if I had a clue to what I am doing parts to arrive today. thanks Ryan.
Well spotted, the 0.5mm reduction is intentional to help ensure the Struts do not extend past the braces and cause the YZ plates to be out of square.
EDIT: Cool, found a related note in https://docs.v1e.com/lowrider/#strut-plates that explains “it will cut slightly smaller (0.5mm) by design”, but not why, hope the above helps.
Also, in case, you’re wondering, Jamie in his genius designed the strut generator so that it subtracts that little bit from the ends without changing the spacing on the holes. Thank you, @jamiek
I still have my yellow handled screwdriver. It fit no other screws but I will not toss it out. If you are anything like me this might open up a whole new world you never imagined. The CNC is super rad but all the other things I learned because of it are honestly even better.
Take your time, ask questions, get it dirty, have fun and keep sharing the excitement with us!!
Regarding the TABLE… I see @DougJoseph LR3 table and @vicious1 LR4 parametric table and I think Doug’s LR3 version would be a bit lighter and easier to build (less gluing and screwing) and more like building a large aircraft wing. . My plan is to use my table saw to make the table top ribs. I also wish to be able to remove the LR4, then store the table top on its long side in my shop (in that empty space right of the red model plane seen in another post).
Thinking I’ll add 2-4” to the min. table width called out on the LR4 size calculator and then size Doug’s X ribs of the table top to fit that width. Question then are the long rails the Y ride on…. Are they the same as Doug’s LR3 in terms of width of each long rail or would there be modifications needed to the ends of those X ribs?
Long question short… do I simple make Doug’s table ribs the exact same but only sized to the LR4 width called for by the LR4 size calculator?
A core difference on what I (and some others before me) did (way back) was to purchase Unistrut metal strut rails for the LowRider to ride on. The key problem / challenge with that approach is that those rails are only about 41.7 mm wide, and that is not wide enough for the belt tensioners and the LowRider side assembly to fit on comfortably. A way that I have been able to get my LowRiders (V3 and new V4 to mount to the same table) is to design printed table extenders and remix the V4 belt tensioners to work in this setup. It would be easier to have MDF strips or something similar (wider) attached to the top and let the LowRider ride on that. In fact, before I’m done, I might switch from what I have now to that. So the core answer to your question is: it depends on whether you are going to have strips of MDF that are wider for the LowRider and the belt tensioners on each side or not? If you are then what you are proposing could work perfectly.
For clarification, I made available two approaches, one with side rails made of MDF or wood, or something like MDF, and another for my Unistrut metal rails approach. If you are looking at the one for wooden side rails (or MDF side rails), that one should work fine. Simply scale to the width that you are getting from the Lowrider v4 Calculator.
Awesome. I am planning on MDF rails. Initially I wanted to put belts on side like you did, but now since going removable top with wheels, I need the belts on top as designed. I will post the results and parts for all to see/share. This is what inspired me to want a removable table top (Forget who got credit for this, but it was in a recent post). I will likely hang the table top on the wall with French cleats when not in use.
lastly on the strut plates, I just noticed the Advanced notations… where I am assuming I needed to replace the 8 with 11.5 since I am using 1" EMT from Lowes.
so when I set the wing size to 11.5, it comes out top is 90.50 and bottom is 78.50 and both being 1387.50 wide when stipulating 1388 as called out for full sheet build.
parts to arrive today. thanks Ryan.
. My plan is to use my table saw to make the table top ribs. I also wish to be able to remove the LR4, then store the table top on its long side in my shop (in that empty space right of the red model plane seen in another post).
