Hey Nate,
Really nice to see this level of involvement from both you and Ahren; not too many worries about product support on my end, after hearing from both of you personally. Very impressive. Not to mention how amazing these forums are; just an incredible community of people and expertise.
Your remarks echo my thoughts regarding overhead gantries. Power is also an issue; mahogany guitar bodies are 2" thick, neck blanks are 3.5". The forces trying to pull a wraparound gantry out of square while doing that kind of work give me the willies.
I don't see any reason why a well built 8020 cnc wouldn't be able to perform the functions of a tablesaw, jointer, and planer for my purposes; I'll just have my wood supplier provide me with rough cut stock. Perhaps the durability of the machine chassis is an issue, over time? Still wrapping my head around some of this; the shop footprint keeps shrinking, nearly to the point of being a long workbench, as I ponder and research what can be done with cnc. As I'm writing, I'm wondering if I really need that drill press after all...
As for the upcoming rack and pinion setup, I'm hoping it'll be out before I get to the build stage, especially if it'll allow me to get my yz assembly from you. My machine will definitely be made of 8020, using the gecko 540 controller, and I'm pretty sure I'll be going with the kress spindle.  |