WeMacro Stand on Steroids

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mawyatt
Posts: 2497
Joined: Thu Aug 22, 2013 6:54 pm
Location: Clearwater, Florida

WeMacro Stand on Steroids

Post by mawyatt »

I've been working with the nice Wemacro Vertical Stands for some time now, and have 3 of them they are so good. However I've wanted to use them with higher magnifications and resolution and looked to a means to increase the stability in both Vertical and Horizontal modes. This became even more evident when I began to test the various Piezo Stages and didn't want to tie up my Thor Labs Precision setup.

The general idea was to have a system that could operate Vertically and Horizontally and easily changed between the two with just Allens in a couple minutes. Also wanted to be able to use various focus rails including the popular WeMacro, Stackshot & MJKZZ rails as well as the THK KR types (15, 20 26) without any fiddling. Same goes for the subject stage, the Precision Wemacro XYR stage, standard XY stage and the various Piezo Stages I've been working with (P601K, and P603K types). Also a requirement was to use the cross coupled KR15 rails for precision S&S sessions without any significant fiddling and using only Allens. So the desire was to have a very flexible (pun intended) setup that could accommodate just about any stage configurations including the Piezo stages, but remain very stable and still somewhat portable.

Late last year I began a design to achieve such and ordered the components required. These arrived a few days ago and I've been busy assembling and doing the final machining to put things together.

The core is based around a solid very heavy 600mm by 80X40mm extrusion which supports the camera/lens/focus rail. In vert mode this is attached to the Wemacro base with the standard M8 hardware and braces as well as a bottom M8 thru bolt into the tapped center of the 40X80 bar. The camera support is by means of the 120mm long ARCA clamp attached to the bar with two 1/4-20 bolts and heavy "T" nuts, which allows the camera to slide vertically for coarse positioning. The Wemacro base is outfitted with a drilled and tapped 20X40mm 154mm long solid extrusion bar bolted to the base with three 1/4-20 bolts from the bottom. The various subject stages can be attached by means of "T" nut configurations that allow sliding along the bar for coarse in and out positioning. This works with the Wemacro Precison XYR stage, standard XY stage, various Piezo Stages and the S&S cross coupled KR15 rails (with a simple 100mm ARCA plate).

For Horizontal use the heavy 80x40mm bar is rotated and attached with two of the standard M8 and bracket hardware to the base. Two additional Wemacro M8 to 1/4-20 adapters provide additional support along the bar. A 300mm solid 40x40mm bar is mounted vertically on the end of the 80x40mm bar by means of two long M8 bolts that bolt thur holes in the side of the 40mm square bar into the 80X40 bar which has two deep M8 tapped holes. For additional support an M8 bracket is mounted to the "inside" of the 40mm square and 80x40 bar intersection. This creates an extremely secure and rigid attachment between the bars. Various subject holders and stages can be easily mounted to the vertical (or horizontal 80x40mm bar) 40mm bar by means of "T" nuts, ARCA clamps and so on. The Precision XYR stage simply mounts with a 1/4-20 bolt and heavy "T" nut and can slide up and down the 40mm bar (or horz 80x40 bar), or a ARCA clamp or plate can be mounted the same way with 1/4-20 bolts and heavy "T" hardware. Very flexible arrangement, but extremely rigid and can be used with vertical or horizontal subject positioning assemblies.

The setup is very heavy, about 40lbs with camera & lens. The solid extruded bars are very heavy compared to the normal hollowed extrusions.

Here are some image of the setups in horizontal and vertical orientations. One of these has been developed for a PM member.

Best,

Vertical and Horziontal setups
Image

Vertical Mode with P601K Piezo Stage and Nikon D850 with Wemacro Raynox 150 lens kit and Mitutoyo 20X
Image

Horizontal Mode with Precision XYR Stage, Nikon D800 & Nikkor PN105 on THK KR20 focus rail
Image

Tapped solid heavy 80x40mm extrusion end, note deep M8 tap
Image

Solid and Hollow 40mm extrusions with various mounting hardware
Image

M8 to 1/4-20 adapters attached to Wemacro base and to 80x40 bar
Image

M8 Hardware and Brace
Image

20x40mm bar mounted to Wemacro base with three 1/4-20 bolts from base bottom
Image

120mm ARCA Clamp mounted with low profile 1/4-20 bolts and "T" nuts
Image

XYR Stage on 40mm bar mounted with 1/4-20 hardware and "T" nut
Image

P601K with Precision XYR Stage mounted to 20x40 bar on base with M5 hardware and "T" nuts
Image

120mm ARCA Clamp mounted to 80x40 bar with 1/4-20 hardware and "T" nuts
Image

40mm bar attachment with M8 hardware
Image

Setup views
Image

"T" Nut insertion for XYR Stage mounting, bottom view of XYR stage
Image

P603K Piezo Stage mounted with M8 and "T" nuts to 20x40mm bar on base
Image

Base bottom view in Vertical Mode, note M8 bolt at top going thru base into vertical 40x80 bar, 3 bolts below hold 20x40 bar to base
Image

Precision XYR stage mounted to 20x40 bar on base
Image

Setup used for Piezo Stage Evaluation, D850 with Wemacro Raynox 150 lens kit and Mitutoyo 20X, P601K shown
Image

The image of the test setup above for the piezo stage shows the setup as horizontal but the piezo stage is mounted for vertical. This is because for testing the piezo stage moves vertically downward while capturing images with the lens horizontally which doesn't move. Sounds crazy, but what is happening is the piezo stage moves the subject (grey laser print pasted on microscope slide), then using stacking software (Zerene) to realign the images and record the necessary image shift. This shift is in Z axis is caused by the piezo stage movement.
Research is like a treasure hunt, you don't know where to look or what you'll find!
~Mike

cmagno
Posts: 57
Joined: Mon Oct 08, 2012 3:27 pm
Location: Porto, Portugal

Re: WeMacro Stand on Steroids

Post by cmagno »

Hi mawyatt,

Your setup caught my attention for its simplicity, versatility and apparent robustness.
On the other hand, there are some points in common with mine to which I would like to add a more robust vertical component using the Wemacro Vertical Stand.

For that reason I would like to ask you if the parts that you used to connect the 4040 extrusion slots, are the ones that come with the Wemacro Vertical Stand or did you manage to find a store where to buy them?

Wemacro_Stand_on_Steroids-Detail.jpg

Bets Regards,
Carlos Magno

ChrisR
Site Admin
Posts: 8668
Joined: Sat Mar 14, 2009 3:58 am
Location: Near London, UK

Re: WeMacro Stand on Steroids

Post by ChrisR »

Impressive article, Mike (pun intended) ;).
Chris R

lothman
Posts: 956
Joined: Sat Feb 14, 2009 7:00 am
Location: Stuttgart/Germany

Re: WeMacro Stand on Steroids

Post by lothman »

cmagno wrote:
Sun Feb 07, 2021 4:46 pm

For that reason I would like to ask you if the parts that you used to connect the 4040 extrusion slots, are the ones that come with the Wemacro Vertical Stand or did you manage to find a store where to buy them?
since the profile looks quite standard all the suppliers who offer the alumina profiles also offer lot of different right angle connectors, for example ITEM
https://product.item24.de/en/products/p ... 001012002/

mawyatt
Posts: 2497
Joined: Thu Aug 22, 2013 6:54 pm
Location: Clearwater, Florida

Re: WeMacro Stand on Steroids

Post by mawyatt »

Hi Carlos,

Yes these are the same that comes with the WeMacro kit, we also ordered some from 80/20 or Misumi but can't remember which nor the details. Make sure you get the one that support the M8 bolts and the proper M8 "T" nuts. If you haven't ordered the WeMacro kit yet, William can provide these at reasonable additional cost with the kit. Later we made this vertical bar even more robust with "L" brackets ordered from Misumi and removed the bracket you've indicated. This makes the fixture stiffer and removes the bracket which can get in the way under certain imaging conditions.

Best,
Attachments
IMG_2282.jpg
IMG_2281.jpg
Research is like a treasure hunt, you don't know where to look or what you'll find!
~Mike

cmagno
Posts: 57
Joined: Mon Oct 08, 2012 3:27 pm
Location: Porto, Portugal

Re: WeMacro Stand on Steroids

Post by cmagno »

lothman wrote:
Mon Feb 08, 2021 8:57 am

since the profile looks quite standard all the suppliers who offer the alumina profiles also offer lot of different right angle connectors, for example ITEM
https://product.item24.de/en/products/p ... 001012002/
In fact.... thanks for the suggestion, I will do a more focused search on the various suppliers of components for aluminum profiles.

Best regards,
Carlos Magno

cmagno
Posts: 57
Joined: Mon Oct 08, 2012 3:27 pm
Location: Porto, Portugal

Re: WeMacro Stand on Steroids

Post by cmagno »

mawyatt wrote:
Mon Feb 08, 2021 10:19 am
Hi Carlos,

Yes these are the same that comes with the WeMacro kit, we also ordered some from 80/20 or Misumi but can't remember which nor the details. Make sure you get the one that support the M8 bolts and the proper M8 "T" nuts. If you haven't ordered the WeMacro kit yet, William can provide these at reasonable additional cost with the kit. Later we made this vertical bar even more robust with "L" brackets ordered from Misumi and removed the bracket you've indicated. This makes the fixture stiffer and removes the bracket which can get in the way under certain imaging conditions.

Best,
Thanks for the reply and directions.
The Misumi website even allows me to specify my own bracket ... which opens up many more possibilities, together with the possibilities available for aluminum extrusions.

Adding Wemacro Vertical Stand to my setup, for now, is still an open problem but now full of interesting alternatives.

Thank you very much for all the answers.
Best regards

Carlos Magno

mawyatt
Posts: 2497
Joined: Thu Aug 22, 2013 6:54 pm
Location: Clearwater, Florida

Re: WeMacro Stand on Steroids

Post by mawyatt »

cmagno wrote:
Tue Feb 09, 2021 4:38 pm
Thanks for the reply and directions.
The Misumi website even allows me to specify my own bracket ... which opens up many more possibilities, together with the possibilities available for aluminum extrusions.

Adding Wemacro Vertical Stand to my setup, for now, is still an open problem but now full of interesting alternatives.

Thank you very much for all the answers.
Best regards

Carlos Magno

The 80X40mm extrusion (solid fill) shown is very rigid in this configuration when replacing the standard supplied 40X40 bar supplied with the WeMacro kit. Make sure to pay attention to the bar slot dimensions relative to the "T" nuts utilized, use only M8 bolts and "T" nuts like WeMacro uses, and study all the dimensions and types carefully as there are many selections. I can't remember the details when we ordered long ago, but do remember spending many hours/days studying things to make sure everything fit as designed, and it did :D

Best,
Research is like a treasure hunt, you don't know where to look or what you'll find!
~Mike

lothman
Posts: 956
Joined: Sat Feb 14, 2009 7:00 am
Location: Stuttgart/Germany

Re: WeMacro Stand on Steroids

Post by lothman »

as long as you choose the 8mm groove/nut parts from different suppliers should fit together.

But instead of angle brackets I would use those automatic fasteners because those tighten the two profiles together :D , the angle clamps just fix the in the position not pressfit between the two parts :|

If you buy the alu profiles sawed at length the machined end usually guaranties the right angel

see here a demo video.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Jv_g1D9N9c

mawyatt
Posts: 2497
Joined: Thu Aug 22, 2013 6:54 pm
Location: Clearwater, Florida

Re: WeMacro Stand on Steroids

Post by mawyatt »

lothman wrote:
Wed Feb 10, 2021 10:50 am
as long as you choose the 8mm groove/nut parts from different suppliers should fit together.

But instead of angle brackets I would use those automatic fasteners because those tighten the two profiles together :D , the angle clamps just fix the in the position not pressfit between the two parts :|

If you buy the alu profiles sawed at length the machined end usually guaranties the right angel

see here a demo video.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Jv_g1D9N9c
Actually the various 8mm bolts and "T" nuts do not always fit with all extrusions :shock:

Why we said pay close attention to the dimensions. There are different lengths of bolts and "T" adapters types and the depth of the extruded bar slot varies as does the width (there are different types of extrusions, even in the popular 40X40 types, just look at the two 40X40 end bar views above, the slots for the "T" nuts are totally different). Check the Misumi and 80/20 sites for more details.

Those automatic fasteners look nice, and I like the fact you don't need to drill and tap the bars, clever design!! However the bolt thread is just engaged with the "T" adapter thread depth and the force is just spread across the two "T" nut flanges. In our case the "L" bracket just improved the already rigid right angle connection which uses a pair of ~100mm long M8 bolts that screwed into the interior center line extrusion holes of the 80X40mm bar that were tapped allowing the long M8 bolts to be deeply engage. The bolts used large thick washers to spread the locking force across the entire surface of the right angle bar. Alone this produces a very stiff connection, and with the added brackets the stiffness is further improved. However, this doesn't impede transitioning from horizontal to vertical modes, which just requires removing and re-engaging a few bolts.

Anyway, note the extrusions, "T" nuts, and bolts dimensions carefully to make sure they fit without interference and binding.

Best,
Research is like a treasure hunt, you don't know where to look or what you'll find!
~Mike

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