Finished up the enclosure this morning. I mounted the fan and vent covers, that went together pretty easily.
I then added the dust port. I had to print this one twice, the first time around I did not take into account the fan mounting bolts. They almost lined up with the holes in the dust port, but not quite. Rather than trying to get all to match I simply made it rectangular instead of square.
I'll be using a dryer hose to get rid of the smoke. I probably could use regular dust collection hose as well, but metal seemed a smarter option. Probably overkill.
Next up was some cable management. I thought about mounting a power strip at the back of the case for a cleaner look, but I really wanted an "OFF" button in case of an emergency. Plus, this gives me a spot to easily plug in my laptop as well. So I simply ran the cables underneath the case, the feet provide plenty of clearance. The clips are also 3D printed.
Here is the laser installed. It came with some simple brackets to attach it to the surface. I don't know how often I'll be removing the laser, for example to put it on top of the work piece if it's too big. For now, they are just screwed down, but I can always put in some threaded inserts and use a bolt instead.
Here is the case fully assembled. I still need to make a window insert for the window you can see in the background to exhaust, but that'll have to wait until next weekend.
All in all a fun project. Mistakes are less stressful when you can use wood filler and paint to cover things up. I was also finally able to use some hardware I bought on clearance 10 years ago. I am not a hoarder, I'm simply cheap and love bargains, but from the overflowing cabinets it's hard to tell the difference!
I then added the dust port. I had to print this one twice, the first time around I did not take into account the fan mounting bolts. They almost lined up with the holes in the dust port, but not quite. Rather than trying to get all to match I simply made it rectangular instead of square.
I'll be using a dryer hose to get rid of the smoke. I probably could use regular dust collection hose as well, but metal seemed a smarter option. Probably overkill.
Next up was some cable management. I thought about mounting a power strip at the back of the case for a cleaner look, but I really wanted an "OFF" button in case of an emergency. Plus, this gives me a spot to easily plug in my laptop as well. So I simply ran the cables underneath the case, the feet provide plenty of clearance. The clips are also 3D printed.
Here is the laser installed. It came with some simple brackets to attach it to the surface. I don't know how often I'll be removing the laser, for example to put it on top of the work piece if it's too big. For now, they are just screwed down, but I can always put in some threaded inserts and use a bolt instead.
Here is the case fully assembled. I still need to make a window insert for the window you can see in the background to exhaust, but that'll have to wait until next weekend.
All in all a fun project. Mistakes are less stressful when you can use wood filler and paint to cover things up. I was also finally able to use some hardware I bought on clearance 10 years ago. I am not a hoarder, I'm simply cheap and love bargains, but from the overflowing cabinets it's hard to tell the difference!