Originally Posted by
Pearo
Righteo, so I pulled my finger up and have modelled the N4400 fence in Fusion 360. I'll embed the image at the bottom so I can leave it at high res.
At this stage, its solid. Here is the dilema, if I make this from steel, its going to weight a lot. How much I am not sure, but without calculating it its pretty obvious that its going to be several kg. The original cast iron part is about 2.5kg, so I would guess a solid steel unit would be better than 5kg. Best part about that is you wont break it.
Alternatively, its also possible to machine it out of aluminum. I cant see there being any strength issues if its kept solid, and it will be easier to machine. The downside is I reckon a piece of billet aluminium that side would set you back some where up near $100.
I am undecided at this stage about which way to go. There is also another option and that is to remove some excess material from the guts of it. Decisions, decisions...
Anyway, let me know what you guys think. I'll start a prototype going on the 3d printer to see if there is any issues with it so far. We are still building the CNC mill, so I cant see me actually turning out a steel/aluminium part this year. Still, its a start in the right direction.