I just got the quote for extruded MegaRail.
Based on that, it seems the retail price of MegaRail 80 will be £40 for a 1 m length, and MegaRail Z will be £4.50 for a 250 mm length, or £12 for 1 m.
To compare, this is how much the rail for a 1 m × 1 m gantry-style CNC router table or milling machine would be:
- 4 × 1 m MakerSlide (for a dual-rail gantry) + 1 × 250 mm MakerSlide: £52
- 3 × 1 m MegaRail 80 + 2 × 250 mm MegaRail Z: £129
I would say that’s not a bad price for the huge increase in rigidity.
MegaRail Z will be available in 250 mm (to be determined: could be 275 mm), 600 mm, and 1000 mm.
MegaRail 80 will be available in 600 mm, 1000 mm, 1500 mm, and 2000 mm lengths. I’ll try to get 2700 mm lengths too, but those would ship only within the UK.
Assuming reasonable carriage widths:
- A machine with a 1500 mm gantry can cut the entire width of a full sheet of plywood, MDF, or chipboard (2440 mm × 1220 mm). With indexing, it can cut a whole sheet in several operations:
- a 1500 mm × 1500 mm machine can cut half a sheet without resorting to indexing, or an entire sheet in two operations;
- a 1500 mm × 1000 mm machine can cut a third of a sheet in one go, and it can still fit a whole sheet through and cut it in three operations, with indexing;
- a 1500 mm × 2700 mm machine, if it ever became available, could cut a full sheet in one go.
- A 1000 mm × 1500 mm machine can cut a third of a sheet of plywood, or an area the size of an A0 sheet of paper (but a slightly longer and narrower shape than A0).
Hello,
will it be possible to upgrade to MegaRail 80, from the current eShapeoko?
Best regards,
Magelan.
I’m afraid not. MegaRail 80 is twice as wide and twice as tall as MakerSlide, so it simply wouldn’t fit. You’d have to replace all four motor plates, and the end plates too.
Thanks.
And can MegaRail Z be used with teh current eShapeOko?
Best regards,
Joao Quaresma.
I suspect it can, in more than one way, but it’s a serious modification.
You could replace the Z rail with a plate with two pieces of MegaRail Z, with the rails facing each other, so that they run on the outside of the existing Z V-wheels. I’m not sure whether the new Z rail would clear the heads of the bolts holding the X V-wheels, though.
Hello,
Have you an idea of availibility of kit with this Rail
i’ve send a mail for preregister a kit with “normal” rail
yesterday and be interested by this upgrade
i hope it can be available next month 🙂
Thanks
That is practically impossible. The rail will take a minimum of two months. Working in my spare time, I would not be able to design a new machine, build a prototype, and find a supplier for the custom parts in one month, either.
Ok thanks for answer
So
How many times for a standard kit ?
and if i want a “new” style rail i have to wait 4-5 month ( it’s correct ?)
i think i take a normal kit 🙂
It’s about five weeks for the standard kit.
The new machine will take a while, but hopefully not that long. The rail is the hardest bit, and I’m working on getting that started.
So what is the process to reserve one kit
To reserve a standard, MakerSlide-based eShapeoko: http://amberspyglass.co.uk/blog/2014/06/30/reserving-an-eshapeoko-kit/
I’m not taking pre-orders or reservations for the MegaRail-based Sparrow L-100 yet — not until I am confident about the fabrication of the rail.
ok i’ve normally made a reservation sunday
( say me if you don’t have it )
Thanks
I have it.
Ok i’ve just to wait and prepare the sanctuary of Shapeoko 🙂
i need to construct a table 🙂 in five weeks !!!!!!!!
i can do it …
Hi Catalin, when you have the time, please see if you can post an update on your MegaRail project 🙂
I’ll have an update in a few days.