Built a scanner? Started to build a scanner? Record your progress here. Doesn't need to be a whole scanner - triggers and other parts are fine. Commercial scanners are fine too.
Built on Mdf.
Originally I used some drawer sliders (metal rails and wheels etc) for the cradle but gave some teflon-coated furniture sliders a try (kept in line with plastic bars) and they are alot smoother and more responsive than the sliders. I used some wax to see if it would affect the sliders but it slowed them down. Removed with solvent cleaner (stains on board). Will have to leave some of the mdf raw when I paint so as not to affect the smooooooooooooth ride.
I have been thinking about the camera-computer setup and will try breeze-systems multi-ps software combined with 2x appropriate powershot cameras. That way I can use laptop as a monitor and save scan pics straight onto my hard drive. yaya
Last edited by Anonymous on 26 Jul 2009, 04:33, edited 1 time in total.
holy sheet
just added some strips off a cutting board and its magic - faster and smoother than running on mdf
would really recommend this setup to builders - i have tried two types and multiple setups of drawer railings and (in my opinion) this is simpler and works ALOT better. I never got around to trying a setup with wheels though...
Next steps will be paint and finding a grippy compound/solution for the cradle (cant find any of the toolbox liner in my town) Then start on camera/lighting frame next weekend!!!!!!! (I have my eye on a clothes rack for this) Exciting shizzy. Better go finish uni work now.
Do you want me to grab you a roll of toolbox liner and mail it over? You need the surface to be flat and booksafe, so your options are limited. Where are you at?
The sliders were $12.00 Aud.
Oh man I would be keen as for a roll of tb liner! Would be happy to paypal costs or I could send over some of these sliders etc?
Thanks heaps for the offer.
An alternative to toolbox liner is drawer / shelf liner, the kind of stuff people put on their kitchen shelves and in the silverware drawers. There's a type that's kinda foam like and very grippy. I was lucky enough to find black, but I think you could use any dark and flat color (I've seen dark blue and dark green). The stuff is really cheap - about $3 for a roll.
I love those furniture sliders. I should've thought of that idea myself. I bought a HUGE kit of them to put on all my furniture only a month ago - same time I started this project! I have wood floors all over the house and they protect against scratches and make it really easy to move furniture, even really heavy stuff.
For your second attempt, you said you cut a couple strips of a cutting board (black strips)? Was it thinner than the cutting board (white strips) that you used? I guess I'll have to try a few surfaces to see what works best. I love this idea as it was really hard for me to install the drawer slides just right. They have to be perfectly parallel or else you introduce friction making the cradle not move that smoothly.
All said and done, I've found that the cradle gliding isn't super critical to a successful scan. You only have to adjust the cradle a few millimeters every 20-30 pages, I usually adjust the cradle manually whenever I notice the platen isn't sitting perfectly parallel. I don't really rely on the glidding action of the base. So the important thing seems to be to make sure the base slides in a consistent direction. For that, the original design will suit my next version just fine. (although I do intend to tweak it with the furniture sliders)
