Ball Screws 101

[Ken_Shea]

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[Walt@SGS.Inc]

With the quicker feed rates, I would suggest that the ball nut be scraped in where it contacts and is bolted to the slide assembly. If all the care in the world is used mounting the lead screw, preloading the bearings and aligning the mounting blocks etc etc, and then when mounting the nut assembly to the slide, the surfaces don't match, I will put a terrible strain on everything and cause excessive heating.
Regards Walt.
This should be checked again after the machine is squared up. Sometimes the axis are not square and when adjusting gibs to square things up, the ball nut will no longer be square with the mounting surface.

[NC Cams]

Walt: the same goes for screw squareness/parallelism with respect to the plane of movement of the table.

There is probably no more situation where parallelism is anymore important that with ball screws and the tables/plane of motion of the stuff they're moving.

[ironDigit]

after all the positive posts about linear slides and ballscrews(wich i fully support)i can't remember running into an article discussing the setting up of such a config.
Any1 have any clues were a guy could gather some tradeskills of squaring 6lineair slides into 3axes and offcourse the ballscrews into "absolute" parallelness.

Thx to all posters

[widgitmaster]

Originally Posted by ironDigit after all the positive posts about linear slides and ballscrews(wich i fully support)i can't remember running into an article discussing the setting up of such a config. Any1 have any clues were a guy could gather some tradeskills of squaring 6lineair slides into 3axes and offcourse the ballscrews into "absolute" parallelness. Thx to all posters

Doing that with a wooden or welded frame router is anyones guess, but a precision machined metal frame with dowel pinned intersecting plates will end up almost perfectly square every time. Providing all the parts were made from an established datum point of reference.

Even with precision machined parts, the assembly would best be done on a very flat surface. Then measurements can be made to prove all parts are parallel and perpendicular. My suggestion would be to make a gage with an indicator, and set the dial to zero at any one corner. Then adjust everything until you get the same zero on all four corners. This system can be applied to most components, as a gage can be made to measure between parts as well.

Good luck.
Widgit

[tootalew]

How about discussing where someone can have a ballscrew turned down on the ends and journals fitted?