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Vinyl Application Roller table

Discussion in 'Other Builds' started by Mac6986, Oct 10, 2017.

Vinyl Application Roller table

Vinyl Application Roller table

Discussion in 'Other Builds' started by Mac6986, Oct 10, 2017.

Build progress of custom roller table for applying graphics

DIY roller table vinyl graphics application
  1. Mac6986

    Mac6986 New
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    #1 Mac6986, Oct 10, 2017
    shocker likes this.
  2. Rick 2.0

    Rick 2.0 OpenBuilds Team
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    Nice design. May have a bit of a rigidity issue in the frame over the top. To help resolve that I would suggest laminating another piece of 20x80 to both ends of the gantry, extending from the top of the upper C-Beam to the bottom of the side gantry plate. Clip it to the gantry plate with right angle clips and provide additional connection plates at the top to the end of the C-Beam. You might also take a look at how the side gantry plates work on the CRH C-BEAM Router, steel capable. This would greatly simplify your build and do it at a slightly lower cost.
     
    #2 Rick 2.0, Oct 10, 2017
  3. Mac6986

    Mac6986 New
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    Thanks for the input, the gantry is still a work in progress. not sure if i will be using actuators or linear thrust controllers for raising and lowering the roller. rigidity was definitely a concern with the gantry. the force pushing down on the roller will be roughly 25-30 lbs, no more.
     
    #3 Mac6986, Oct 10, 2017
  4. mcbuilder22

    mcbuilder22 New
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    Do you move it by hand or will you be powering it with motors to unroll and hold tension?
     
    #4 mcbuilder22, Oct 10, 2017
  5. Mac6986

    Mac6986 New
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    the gantry will be hand-pushed.
     
    #5 Mac6986, Oct 10, 2017
  6. Anthony Bolgar

    Anthony Bolgar Journeyman
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    I have been thinking about something like this for some time now. Am interested to see how this works out for you.
     
    #6 Anthony Bolgar, Oct 10, 2017
  7. GrayUK

    GrayUK Openbuilds Team Elder
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    Just a thought. :rolleyes: 25-30lbs pressure down will be reflected in 25-30lbs pressure up, as far as the lower wheels are concerned, and I don't know how you plan to generate that pressure. :confused:
    However, what about if the pressure was generated from underneath the table, i.e. pulling down by pushing up against the table/base? The gantry legs would extend down the side of the table, accommodate this, to some kind of torque ratchet/motor or something? The gantry would be in a whole different stress situation. I don't know, just chucking it out there. :D
     
    #7 GrayUK, Oct 11, 2017
  8. Mac6986

    Mac6986 New
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    The plan is to have a light duty actuator attached to the spindle on both ends of the roller, connected to dual pole, momentary switch so I can control height and force of the roller.

    I am no structural engineer, but my thought was that the force created is distributed across all the contact points. So since the roller pushing down, essentially would "lift" the weight of the gantry + pushing force, and the wheels under the table would bear all that force. 30 lb of force / 8 wheels = 3.75 lbs of force on each wheel. Is that the right way to think?

    I am trying to keep the system as simple as possible, I was trying to avoid moving the table surface up and down, too many moving parts.

    My other idea is to drop the whole wheel idea and use a pair of HG15 Blocks on each side with some linear rail.
     
    #8 Mac6986, Oct 11, 2017
  9. GrayUK

    GrayUK Openbuilds Team Elder
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    Okay, so, what about having the equivalent to the gantry, but under table with say, a 25lb weight hanging from it. Use the actuators to lift the roller, and therefore adjust the weight being applied to the surface? This way you can determine the maximum pressure available, maybe even adjust it to suit, by adding or subtracting the weights? Maybe forget about actuators and invest in some stepper motors and simply drive the weight, as applied by yourself, up and down the table?
     
    #9 GrayUK, Oct 11, 2017
  10. Jonathon Duerig

    Jonathon Duerig Journeyman
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    What about having weights attached to the ends of the roller? One or a couple of disc-shaped weights from a gym. They already have holes through them and can be added to the end of any large shaft. Then the gantry just needs to provide some kind of reasonable lightweight bushing and acts as a guide for the roller.
     
    #10 Jonathon Duerig, Oct 11, 2017
  11. Mac6986

    Mac6986 New
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    This is designed with no table legs, because it will be placed over top of an existing table. The exiting table underside is used for storage, so I'm trying this solution to try and keep from re-arranging my shop to accommodate all the storage under the table.
     
    #11 Mac6986, Oct 11, 2017
  12. Rick 2.0

    Rick 2.0 OpenBuilds Team
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    With proper gantry plates you shouldn't have any issues pushing down on the roll with 25-30 pounds of force. Simple concept shown below using XL Gantry Plates.

    Outside.jpg Inside.jpg
    Note, 20x80 framing shown but using C-Beam sections for the verticals may provide stiffer joints at the upper connections.
     
    #12 Rick 2.0, Oct 11, 2017
    Mac6986 likes this.
  13. Niyazi Haneefa

    Niyazi Haneefa New
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    Hi, Have you completed the project.... Niyazi
     
    #13 Niyazi Haneefa, Dec 24, 2017
  14. Keith A Parker

    Keith A Parker New
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    Hi wonder how this is going?
    I was looking at these at a recent trade show here in the UK, just wondering where i could get a roller?
    Keith
     
    #14 Keith A Parker, Apr 29, 2018
  15. Anthony Perkins

    Anthony Perkins New
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    I've been working on a roller table design of my own and came across this post. I'm having trouble finding the actual roller. Did you have to build the roller or did you use an existing? Would love to see how this project is coming along?
     
    #15 Anthony Perkins, Jun 1, 2018
  16. Mac6986

    Mac6986 New
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    Hey guys, Long time no talk!

    short answer, yes. I finished it.

    The longer story was that it sat wit the frame and the MDF board inside, and for about 8 months, I had a very expensive table topper. My workload, plus getting married, and then buying a house, just took all of my free time and I wasn't in a desperate need of it, it was just going to make my life easier.

    I slowly acquired the parts, and I took your advice @Rick 2.0 for the sliding carriage for the gantry. Had some custom brackets 3d printed, got the wiring harness with a momentary switch off amazon to control the actuators and slapped it all together.

    Ill get you guys some pictures and a final build tally, but it works great.
     
    #16 Mac6986, Jan 28, 2019
    GrayUK and Rick 2.0 like this.
  17. martin cull

    martin cull New
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    I'm really keen to see your finished pics... we really need one of these in our sign shop :D
     
    #17 martin cull, Jan 31, 2019
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  18. Lars S

    Lars S New
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    Would love to see this in action!
    Any chance, you'd update with pics and/or video?
     
    #18 Lars S, Jun 3, 2019
  19. Daniel Craig

    Daniel Craig New
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    Can you post what parts you got where? I’m looking to build one!!
     
    #19 Daniel Craig, May 23, 2023
  20. Alex Chambers

    Alex Chambers Master
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    @Daniel Craig the last post on this thread was in 2019, and the original build goes back to 2017 - you might need to find your own sources, but do shout out for anything specific. Most of the parts used can be found in the parts store (OpenBuilds Part Store).
    Good luck if you decide to build one and let us know how it goes.
    Alex.
     
    #20 Alex Chambers, May 24, 2023
  21. Ahmet Cemiloglu

    Ahmet Cemiloglu New
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    I built one with a slightly different approach, but I think the rubber on my roller is either too skinny or it's too hard (55HA measured with a Shore A Durometer). I'm getting bubbles, so I can't use it as a lamintor yet, but I can mount adhesive vinyl with air channels or application tape on cut vinyl.

    I built it on top of an extended Kreg table kit (customer care told me not to do it). I built the top with 10-series T-slot extrusion. I had no idea OpenBuilds existed, I could've used the gantry systems here. I used linear rails and cheap pneumatic parts from Amazon. I don't use any CAD software, so my messy drawings are on Corel Draw. My initial design had controls on either side, but the cheap shuttle valves I got leaked air and didn't work. Also need to redo the hoses to evenly distribute the air at the same time, I did a quick fix when I removed the shuttle valves and the air cylinders don't move in perfect sync at lower pressures. I'll revisit them all once I figure out the bubble problem. Maybe the table isn't rigid enough because it's a suspending design. Still in progress, but I use it daily.
     

    Attached Files:

    #21 Ahmet Cemiloglu, Aug 29, 2023
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  22. jchestnut

    jchestnut New
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    That's amazing! I stumbled across this post over the years looking for options out there. I have no experience with building anything like this but I would love to learn. Would you mind sharing your CorelDraw files? What roller are you using? Is it from an old laminator?
     
    #22 jchestnut, Oct 27, 2023

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