Originally Posted by Geof  This is correct but the left has both ends supported. The plate combined with the shafts make a little beam. On the right the unsupported length is only half the plate but the router is attached to the bottom of this half.
The lightest and stiffest way to do it would be to put side plates on the right; triangular shaped to span the full width of the router mounting flange and tapering to a point at the top. These would only need to be 5mm thick. |
Dear Geof,
I may have misunderstood.
In the "left" design, my guess is that , given that the vertical shafts contribute to a vertical beam function (as you suggested), the addition of vertical , triangular side flanges might work better on the left design. The lack of vertical length on the "right" design means that the side flanges might be less effective at preventing the spindle from flexing along the X axis direction. I'm ignoring weight issues BTW...
Sorry, it's getting a bit complicated to explain in words, and I have no means of doing it in pictures.
Incidentally, Joe's MDF gizmo takes a "belt and braces" approach that pretty much "boxes-up" everything. Pretty sensible.
Best wishes,
Martin