LinkBack URL
About LinkBacks
Is the motor pulley alligned with the spindle pulley? If not the belt will wear out quickly.
Just a thought.
Don
| | |
Destroying Taig Belts!!!??!!!?!!?!?!? Just got my brand new taig, but it is destroying belts. The first one lasted the better part of a week, after i got the second one (and a spare) it lasted couple of days. The third one less than a day. I average a few hrs of milling a day. What is going on? My motor plate gives a little but from pics I've seen this appears normal? Right? What could be causing this?
I install the belts vvvvv toward the outside of the loop, this is correct right? Ive seen and heard the belt contort itself so that it remains this way on one spindle and inside out on the other. I fix it and it goes right back. It will run like this for a little while until it snaps.
I ordered my cnc-ready taig from locomotion and the only instructions i received were a post-it saying cut 3/4" lengths of tubing with and angle on one end and a crude illustration of how to install the stepped motor mount. For a grand it seems like someone could provide at least a page worth of instruction.
I have the er-16 spindle, which i guess is probably relevant. Help would be greatly appreciated because my little taig's to-do list is getting longer by the minute...
Is the motor pulley alligned with the spindle pulley? If not the belt will wear out quickly.
Just a thought.
Don
is it normal to have to do this to a new mill?
Hi,
Welcome to the Zone.
Your belt needs to be aligned, otherwise it is going to break prematurely.
See the attached link.
http://www.cartertools.com/beltalign.html
Jeff Alessi
Another reason people buy from Carter Tools.
I install the belts vvvvv toward the outside of the loop, this is correct right? Ive seen and heard the belt contort itself so that it remains this way on one spindle and inside out on the other. I fix it and it goes right back. It will run like this for a little while until it snaps.
I think we found the problem here.
Proper alignment is necessary, that is something to check on of course - AFTER you put the belt on the right way. Flat part goes to the outside, V goes to the inside, fits right into the matching v-shaped grooves in the pulleys. Just like an old car fan belt, but smaller. Run much quieter that way, too I'll bet.
Might want to clean any of the black gunk off of the pulleys from the previous belt destructions, and make sure the pulleys aren't nicked or damaged. Beyond that if you mount the belt the right way round, make sure it is running true, and tension it properly and make sure your adjustment plate is cinched down, a belt can last for many years.
For a Taig, the original poster DID have the belt on the right way. Take a look at the Carter Tool's link above. The Taig does not have a cogged pulley setup, the inside of the grooves are smooth. V's on the inside would be a no-no.Originally Posted by Stepper Monkey
Actually, the Taig Pulley system has V "ways" on the inside, the V of the belt does go inward while the flat side should be facing you.
-Jason
i just talked to dennis from super tech and he says my problem could be too much tension, esp. since i'm running at 10k. i only apply tension with my hand, could it be too much? nick carter seems like an authority on taigs and both he and the others guy's pics he has on the link show the v's to the outside.... maybe it just doesnt matter??
It matters quite a bit how the belt is positioned, I think we simply have a problem with terms describing the belt. The cross-section of the belt is a v, and the v cross-section does indeed fit into the v-shaped grooves in the pulley. The flat outer side of the belt has little relief notches in it spaced every few millimeters, and looking close at a spare belt the notches are also rather v shaped as well. So I think we are all talking about the same thing in different ways.
Anyway, I have never experienced anything like what you have got going on in any Taig setup I've ever worked with. I would imagine that you either have a misalignment issue, which can be determined by eye or with a straightedge. If that is all correct then it may well be tensioning. You need a reasonable amount of tension, but not so much you are overloading the bearings or tightening the belt to the point the motor won't start.
Try swinging the motor out to the point it takes up slack, then lightly use a screwdriver or other lever against the motor, add some extra tension and retighten the screw. It doesn't take any extreme force, so don't overdo it.
When you are done the belt should be taut, with maybe a quarter of an inch or so deflection when you press on the center of the belt between pulleys. Too much deflection and its too loose, no deflection means its way too tight. There should be just a little give.
Once you get the hang of it you shouldn't have belt problems again, unless you have a cat like mine that chews through them and makes off with them as cat toys on occasion when she sneaks into the shop...
I don't think I have any picture showing the vee belt with the vee outside?
The vee profile of the belt rides in the vee grooves of the pulley.
The pulley grooves have to be coplanar, that is aligned so that the spindle and the motor shaft are parallel to each other and the vee grooves are parallel. Check that the motor mount is perpendicular to the table.
10K rpm makes this extremely important.
As for tension, you want it tight, with about 1/4" (+/- 1/8") deflection pushing with a finger, but it's an experiential thing.
Once a belt starts flipping around, it's usually toast.
Nick Carter
Largest resource on the web about Taig lathes and mills
www.cartertools.com
stepper monkey is correct in that there is some confusion, when i said "vvvvvvv toward the outside" i was referring to the relief notches
i have realigned my pulleys and ill make sure to get the right amount of tension when my new belts arrives
thanks guys
Posting Permissions
| | |
