Quick question on Z travel-

[fretsman]

Hi guys,

How low can the headstock go before disengaging from the Z axis leadscrew? Is there a measurement I can do to make sure I don't do this? Possibly from the headstock base that is connected to the leadscrew nut(not the dovetail or actual spindle extrusion)?

Sometimes I'm doing jobs and I'm just waiting for that headstock to come crashing down so I'd like to make a reference mark on the column somewhere just to be sure.

Thanks-
Dave

[Hirudin]

Hopefully this will help...

Attached is a render from the 3D model from cartertools.com . All the measurement I'm about to cite are from the model, not actual measurement from my actual machine.

The screw (blue) is 9.32" from the support block (gray) to the bottom and the bottom of the nut (dark green) is 2.50" from the top of the Z carriage (light green).
If these measurements are correct you should be able to get 6.82" of Z travel IF the Z carriage was able to go all the way up to the screw support block. On my machine the gib adjustment screw hits the support block and leaves a gap of... oh, maybe 0.2". So we're left with 6.62" of actual travel.

Note: Since the nut is 1" long (according to the model) you could probably get away with using an extra half-inch if you really needed it. I don't know if this would be a good idea though.

Also, if the bottom of your spindle is flush with the bottom of the Z carriage the spindle will hit the table before reaching the bottom of the screw.

[fretsman]

Thanks so much for taking the time to check that out, my friend. I am a bit leary as to how accurate that model is and wonder if they've changed things over time.

It should be interesting to find out for sure and compare.

Thank you again -

Dave