New SB Arrives in December

[jeff_b]

Hello. I'm looking for some information and recommendations. We have a small custom cabinet shop & our new SB is Due in December. My partner & I are debating a few issues I hope some of you can advise us on. The first is SB placement in the shop for the most efficient use of the machine, IE first in line from the receiving door, mid shop, last in line. The second issue is ideas for fast loading & unloading to minimize the time that the machine is not cutting parts. And last but not least, and pearls of wisdom about tooling to have on hand for the first few months while we get used to the machine. Thanks in advance for all your help. This forum is a wonderful tool!

[thewoodcrafter]

I'm jealous.
Wish I had a new PRS coming.
I cut cabinets parts with my machine.
Locate it for easy loading of your sheet goods. I drive the fork lift up to mine and just slide the sheet onto the Bot.
Leave lots of room around the machine for unloading. You will have to get to all sides. Have an air hose close to reach all sides also.
The only tools I use for cabinet parts are 3/8" and 1/4" straight cut bits. I also use 5mm drill bits. I also have several replacement collets for my spindle.

What are you planning to use for software?

[bill.young]

Hi Jeff,

There are some suggestions on placing a ShopBot in your shop in the ShopBot wiki in the "A ShopBot in your Shop" section of the "Hardware" main topic. http://shopbotwiki.com/index.php?title=SBLocation

Another option is to use the free version of Google's Sketchup to create a model of your shop, and then download models of the PRS ShopBots from their 3d warehouse to try out different layout options. The ShopBot models are at http://sketchup.google.com/3dwarehouse/search?q=shopbot&btnG=Search&styp=m and you can download Sketchup from http://sketchup.google.com/

Bill

[wegner81]

I am in the process of ordering a shopbot and am wondering how much time I need for assembly and set up before my 1st time running.Thanks for any advice.

[scottcox]

Kevin,

If you have your electricity in place, you could be cutting after one long day of assembly, but take your time and get your table and gantry aligned right the FIRST time. It's time well spent. Also take a close look at how you will route your electric/control wiring and dust collection. Planning ahead here can save some time. Realistically, give yourself two days minimum.

I also recommend downloading the control software and becoming familiar with that. And definitely search the forum for any questions you may have and take notes.

It's a slippery slope. Good luck!

[jeff_b]

Well, the blessed day arrived, and the bot showed up week before last. New PW software, New Air Drill, a Becker pump, and a 4hp spindle. But the best part was Dirk, the guy Shopbot sent to set up our machine. We're up and running pefectly, and the new PW software is great. But we are having horrible problems with KCDw, and since we're a cabinet shop, it is esential we have this software working properly. The main issues are: 1)Enrout hangs requiring reboot to nest another file, 2)dado widths do not calculate properly, rabbits don't cut at all, and the post processor for the new drill sets depths too deep. Basically the only thing it does right is cut pannels to the correct size. Not quite what I had in mind while forking over almost $13,000. Kcdw is working on the problem (with no sense of urgency), and Dirk's been great (spent extra time with us trying to figure it out). But I could really use some help from some of you guys out there using this combo successfully. I'm getting further behind by the day. Sorry for the lack of replies to earlier posts, I didn't know I needed to set my preferences to get & email when someone posts to the thread. It's fixed now though, Fire at will!

Thanks!!