Launch monitor slider

[Capz65]

Anyone have their launch monitor on some kind of a sliding rail? I play with a lefty. Moving the R10 and realigning for tee shots feels like a pain. I'm thinking of adapting a linear CNC slide rail or a 4' camera slider. Just concerned raising the unit 2-4" above the hitting surface could be a problem.

[slipdog]

I think there are a few guys that put overhead LM's on a rail. I'm not sure I've seen any posts with a floor mounted one.

[GullLakeMi]

See my thread here... still working great.

Slider for GC2 - Golf Simulator Forum

[Capz65]

Exactly what I had in mind. I found the rails and bearings online. But do I need 2 rails? Are the bearing slides (not sure what to call them) stable on just one rail or do you need 2 parallel?

[GullLakeMi]

It seems possible to work on one rail centered, but two wasn't hard to align and slides very smooth.

[Capz65]

And found some diy vids to motorize it. Would be nice. If I'm gonna hurt my back I'd rather do it swinging too hard rather than bending over to slide it again and again. 😆

[GullLakeMi]

Better get the auto ball tee'r as well.

[nanvinnie]

You can buy a camera slider on Amazon which has a universal 1/4" thread to mount LM if it has it.AmazonSmile : Neewer Camera Slider Carbon Fiber Dolly Rail, 16''/40cm with 4 Bearings, Compatible with 13 13 Pro 13 Pro Max 13 Mini & Android Cell Phones and Mirrorless Cameras, Load up to 2.2lbs/1kg : Electronics

[Capz65]

Camera slider prob best best option. Motorized ones are pricey though. The three wheeled remote ones are cheap. Gonna try to find out if they'll work on tracks or copper pipe

[banjopete]

I built my first cnc router which was made up of 3d printed parts and it used a pretty slick set of roller bearing guides that ran on metal tubes. It would be an excellent and cheap way to do what you're trying to do. Metal tube or similar tubing for the rails is significantly cheaper than linear rails for cnc's too.

[Capz65]

I really wanted it motorized so I decided on a $60 RC camera dolly car. Planning on mounting the R10 alignment stand to that. It'll ride on copper tubes secured to the floor. Then I'll cross my fingers the added height doesn't affect the r10 accuracy. And I hope it moves fast enough to my liking. Slick CNC router! Impressed! I'm thinking of using tubes and bearings for an overhead projector slider. Are the linear bearings ok installed upside down?

[banjopete]

I'm no mechanical engineer but as long as the load you're putting on the bearings makes sense for their design you should be fine. If you're essentially hanging the projector from a trolley then the top bearings in the assembly in the cnc picture above should be all you need to get that movement you're after. Small bearings like those are super cheap, and great for all sorts of diy ideas like this one you've come up with. Good luck.