I got the MegaRail 80 and the MegaRail Z from the supplier. They look great! They’re both very beefy. They’ll be a huge improvement in rigidity over MakerSlide.
I have added them to the store, pretty much at the price I had anticipated a while back. The listing is very bare-bones at the moment, but I’ll add drawings and more information about the features and uses of the profiles as I find time over the next few days. In the meantime, here are some older posts: a description of both profiles, the two candidate MegaRail Z profiles (I chose the one at the top), and the post where I guess at prices.
Many people have asked whether I will design and sell a machine using MegaRail. Yes, I will! I have already started, in fact. (More on it soon.)
I still don’t know how the Z profile is used! In pairs, but attached to what and how?
The Z profile is used in pairs. It’s attached either to the moving part or the stationary part, whichever works best in your application. The bottom T-slot is designed for attaching the profile to a flat plate. The T-slot is 10 mm wide with a 6 mm opening, so it takes many of the insertion nuts that also work with MakerSlide and Misumi HFS5 profile, including the inexpensive stamped ones (available in M3, M4 and M5). It also takes ordinary M6 thin hex nuts, or, even better, M6 thin square nuts, which will be available in the store soon.
The side T-slot is mostly for accessories, such as cable clips, dust covers, or limit switches.
This is all going to be in the documentation, which I’m writing.
This is great. Can’t wait to see the design for the MegaRail machine.
I’m just thinking with the added structural strength it might be a good idea to add the option of gear rack drive instead of toothed belt for higher drive torques. I’ve seen DIY machines using those and I think there are many advantages while not being overly expensive. One can add positional feedback with Hall-Effect sensor for example.
I’m glad you like the profile.
It would be nice to have a gear rack drive option, but I’m focusing on a belt-driven machine for now. It has some advantages over rack-and-pinion: it’s simpler, cheaper, and has virtually no backlash out of the box. Once that’s done, we’ll see. Of course, you’re more than welcome to design your own rack-and-pinion machine. I’ll be happy to supply the MegaRail 80 for it. 🙂
Positional feedback (closed-loop control) would require entirely different electronics, so it’s not something I’m considering at the moment.
I see the main dimension for the rollers is 86.4mm, and the Shapeoko 3 dimension is 88mm. Any thoughts about using MegaRail as a replacement for Shapeoko 3 rails directly? Wanting to extend my SO 3 Y axis but don’t want to swap anything else if I can avoid it.
I suspect that I have the 1.6 mm adjustment, but would love to hear from you.
I don’t have a Shapeoko 3 or any Shapeoko 3 rail, so I can’t really tell whether it will work with MegaRail 80. Worst case, if you don’t have the adjustment, you can take a file or a rotary tool to the top holes (the ones for the fixed wheels) and make them slightly oval, so that you can lower the top wheels a millimeter or so.
Hi – how is the MegaRail design getting on?
As usual, life is getting in the way. I’m ready to cut parts for a prototype, just need to find the time.
Any news on the design? I have a basic metalworking shop at home if you need help with anything…
Hi – just a regular query about progress on the MegaRail design. I’m guessing that you won’t have time to do anything before the new year?
We’ve heard nothing about a MegaRail design for over a year now – does that mean that it is no longer going to be progressed with?