Extruded aluminum enclosure build

I'm going to build an enclosure for my Taig mill :)

Attached to this post are a few renders of the design. The mill model is pretty crude, but it's representative of the real thing.

The outside dimensions are 26.5" x 51.5" x 35"

Features

• Made with aluminum extrusions (like 80/20 but from another company: Futura Industries)
• Vertical sliding door in the front (very similar to the one on www.nyccnc.com)
• Polycarbonate windows (the whole thing uses a whole 4' x 8' sheet)
• Lots of room inside (I hope)
• Open bottom for coolant collection
• Column reinforcing beam (middle beam in the back, I wonder how much this'll help)
• Doesn't use/need any expensive brackets (the ends of most of the extrusions are tapped and will be bolted directly to the extrusions they're butted up against)

Would anyone like me to make up a cut list? It has about 480" of 1" x 2" extrusions, 115" of 1" x 1" etrusions, and a whole 4' x 8' sheet of polycarbonate. My total cost is around $600, but I'm having all the extrusions cut and tapped by Futura, which is about $100 of the cost.

A quick update...
My extrusions came in (well most of them anyway). I've loosely put them together, just to make sure everything fit. I also stuck a few of the polycarbonate windows in. Everything looks good so far.

The sliding door needed a couple pieces that Futura doesn't offer. I ordered them from the 80/20 garage sale, but I was gone when FedEx came to deliver them. :(

Sorry for the bad angle of the picture, it's a little crowded in that room.

I also just Finished my Enclosure with sliding door...

I went a tad wider to help with the slider, Still have to finish my Coolant pan

Those both are looking fantastic - :)

Hirudin, how did you do your 3D sketch?

Dave

Quote:

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Originally Posted by fretsman

Those both are looking fantastic - :)

Hirudin, how did you do your 3D sketch?

Dave

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I know Futura has a free downloadable add-in to Solidworks which contains all of their parts and prices.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Anokiernan

I know Futura has a free downloadable add-in to Solidworks which contains all of their parts and prices.

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Ah, interesting, I'll have a look- :)

Dave

Quote:

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Originally Posted by fretsman

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Hirudin, how did you do your 3D sketch?
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I made it in Rhino. I pretty much just made the outlines of the extrusions and... uh... extruded them.

I attached a Rhino (.3dm) file that has the few profiles that I've made so far. They're real easy to edit if you need some other size.

Ah, thank you, I don't have Rhino but thanks for offering the files.

It looks great-

Dave

Alright, I finally took a couple relatively good photos of my, now 90% completed, enclosure.

It pretty much went together like I wanted/planned. There was a little hickup with one of the beams below the mill though. It got itself wedged/bound up so bad that I resorted to pounding the living crap out of it to get it apart. You can see the beam propping up the door on the right in the shots. I also added a couple additional pieces to the top. The center section is open and for the time being the wires that connect the drivers to the motors hang through it. I plan to make it pretty one of these days... we'll see if that ever happens.

At the moment the window panels are just slid into the grooves of the extrusions. Right now they rattle around and make a pretty good racket at the slightest movement. I need to find some very thin rubber strips or something to jam in there to shut 'em up.

I plan to add flood cooling sometime in the near future, until then I'm using that pump-action spray bottle you can see in the back. I'm no expert, but I'd say it works pretty well! Much higher volume and pressure than your average "mister" spray bottle. Also it has a wand so you can keep your fingers a good foot-and-a-half away from the spindle.

Oh yeah, the slides on the door didn't have any mounting holes on them, which meant I was left up to my own devices to drill them. Since my CNC-device wasn't up and running at the time I used my benchtop drill press. Well, they didn't come out very good so the door is quite difficult to lift. Under my spray bottle you can see some new slides that I plan to CNC one of these days...

I also uploaded the photos to my site if you want to check the high-res versions...

6000.jpg
6003.jpg

By the way, if you're planning to build an enclosure like this, you might want to consider the "Quick Frame" extrusions offered by 80/20. They're cheaper*, easier*, and better for this purpose*.
*by the looks of it
Here's a nice enclosure that fretsman made using quick frame extrusions.

Looks Good....

Where did you get the Grate Material for the Floor..?, I like that.

I think it looks great, my friend, and as far as your panels rattling, 80/20 carries the rubber gasket/seals that "deaden" everything and is relatively important, for me at least, to keep my sanity :cool:

They're so easy to install and are tight as a drum.....priceless. Just be sure to get the right ones depending on how thick your panels are.

You can see them here:

http://search.stores.ebay.com/8020-I...537225QQsofpZ0

Dave

Thanks guys!

The grate material came with the bench it's on. I found the bench on Craigslist. I guess it was used in a trade school originally as a hydraulic test center. Under the grates is a slanted bed with a drain hole in the center.I'm not sure if it'll have enough drainage for the amount of coolant I plan to spray around in there eventually though.

I actually got some of that gasket material (the black/rubber gaskets for 10 series extrusions) but there's no way it would ever fit with 1/4" panels (even though it clearly says it will in the auction description). The slots aren't much bigger than 0.25", and my panels are 0.22" (I think). Maybe they sent the wrong stuff?

At least I couldn't make them fit. Maybe there's a technique that I don't know about... I haven't tried coating them with oil yet.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Hirudin

I actually got some of that gasket material (the black/rubber gaskets for 10 series extrusions) but there's no way it would ever fit with 1/4" panels (even though it clearly says it will in the auction description). The slots aren't much bigger than 0.25", and my panels are 0.22" (I think). Maybe they sent the wrong stuff?

At least I couldn't make them fit. Maybe there's a technique that I don't know about... I haven't tried coating them with oil yet.

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I'm only guessing you're trying to install it wrong as I'm using 1/4 panels and they work beautifully.

Maybe I can take a picture to show how I installed it in mine for you.

Dave

Ok, here's 3 shots forou, hope they help!

Dave

Thanks for posting those pics! I wish it were so easy!!
The slots in the quick frame are much larger though.

Crap, I see, I had no idea those were that size, I just figured they were the same.

I suppose a shim of teflon or similar material would be best.

Dave

Where can I purchase some?

What a weird coincidence... I haven't been on this forum for... well... a LONG time and when I do come on there's a post in a thread I started.

You can get these from several sources. It seems like the biggest manufacturer of these extrusions is "80/20 inc.". Here's their website; use their Distributor Lookup to find a dealer near you.

80/20 also has a "Garage Sale" on eBay where you can buy pieces that have been cut for other jobs (I think). They are sometimes used and are sometimes new. If you're price-conscious you might want to check your local distributor first. They may be cheaper AND they may also be willing to make you a deal. Also, you support your local economy - which is always good.

Another manufacturer is Futura Industries, here's their distributor lookup page.