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« on: September 19, 2008, 07:46:16 PM »
I'm getting really tired of sweeping/vacuuming up chips several times per day, so I've decided it's time figure out how to enclose my mill table, to contain the mess, and while I'm at it, I'll switch to flood coolant, rather than mist. So, I'm looking for advice on how to accomplish this cheaply, and effectively. Here's my current thinking:
Fabricate some sheet metal pans to attach to the saddle. These will extend outward from the center, with a plexiglas shield 6" or so in front of the table, and another mounted to the machine base in the back. Chips will then hit one of the plexi shields, fall down into the tray, and be collected there, while coolant will be strained and drop back into a reservoir. The front Plexi piece will be easily removable, for getting to the table. I'm thinking the sides will be more like baffles than anything else, and will be attached to the table, perhaps just in the ends of the T-slots. Perhaps with rubber pieces tying these side shields to the front and rear shields.
One of the complications is I have to be able to accomodate my vice, which hangs 6-8" beyond the front of the table, so simply affixing Plexi to the table itself won't cut it.
I'd be really interested in how other people have done this, and especially in seeing pictures. I don't want this to turn into a major construction project, and also don't want to spend $$$$ on it. Fortunately, I'll have access to lots of Plexiglas, as leftovers from a project I'm doing.
Regards,
Ray L.