I have the lowrider kit and all the parts printed but im not sure exactly what size to make the cnc machine. ive never used a cnc machine before and am not an experienced wood worker so most of this is foreign to me but im excited to learn. the main purpose im looking to use my cnc for is to make my full scale pinball machine. the largest cut id need to make would be a 1/2” piece thats 45” x 20.25”. now i plan to find other projects to do with the machine down the road but i just am not as familiar with how useful it is to have a 2x4 vs a 4x4 table. i have the space either size but if i could clutter my garage less that would be prefered. i do not own a table saw or planer or other machines so id see more utility using the cnc for those purposes but i just am not sure because i dont know what i dont know haha.
i am also struggling with coming up with a table to mount the cnc to. are there any designs for 2x4 configuration out there or a 4x4?
https://docs.v1e.com/lowrider/#table has some info. But guidance is a bit light, partly because everyone has different project needs, and different space situations they’re having to work with.
There’s a collection of “parametric-table” tagged topics on https://forum.v1e.com/tag/parametric-table. Personally expected to see more topics list there, guessing some of the table related topics buried in the forum need better tagging. I’ll update table related topics as I come across them, hopefully others will too.
Personally built a 5’ x 9’ sled in the garage for full sheet cutting, but, ended up building a separate bench with 2’ x 4’ that gets way more use. The smaller bench lives in the basement which is nice during the cold winter months. Am mentioning incase weather seasons are something to consider for your situation.
For the 2’ x 4’ (plus extra inch in width and height for lead in/out…) usable cutting space bench I got home depot to cut down full 3/4" 4’ x 8’ ply sheet material (free service that most lumber yards provide) down to 42" x 66" that I use as a bench top, with cheap 5/8" thick 2’ x 4’ particle board fastened as the spoil-board.
You could lay that on flat’sh ground or another table/bench and still do your pinball and similar projects.
Consider getting cutting ASAP, avoid getting bogged down and overwhelmed by table options, start simple as possible. Get some fun and utility out of you machine, then invest additional time/material if/when you get more into making stuff.
A 2x4 machine is very capable and will not take your whole garage, plus with the lr4 gantry setup, you can pop the y belts off and store the table top vertically if you want. my setup is only 20x30 mounted on a solid wood door and works great for smaller detail items. I think you will find it plenty capable.
Everyone’s use is different. In my case - I have built two tables, the second slightly smaller and I am about to almost halve the size again.
I have had projects in mind, and have made them using other techniques before finishing the CNC! I say build to the largest size you need now, and later you can shrink it without fuss if you find yourself needing less.
function in the forum there is a lr4 parametric V1 official table and many others