Monday, March 14, 2016

CAM Adjustment




If one of your axes are not traveling smoothly or binding, there are cam adjustments to adjust the pinion gear to the gear rack. Too tight they mesh and run rough, too loose and they have too much play. If you pull your Y axis motor mounts off (It is easiest to remove the four screw holding the motor mount to the gantry arm and the X motor will come off with the mount.)


With the Y motors removed, manually push the gantry back and forth along the Y axis front to back. It should glide without much effort.

Is it rough and/or difficult to push?

 If so, DO THIS>>

 Remove the white delrin gear. (remove the center nut and loosen the two side set screws and the gear will pry off. (Sometimes it takes a little effort to get the white gear off.)




 Then you will be looking at a cam with three slots and a screw in each slot.




Loosen the screws and turn the cam counter clockwise. This will loosen the pinion gear from gear rack that runs the length of the y axis. Adjust both sides until the gantry is easy to push back and forth but do not make it so lose that the gear has more than 1/16 or so of play in it. Then just put the white gear and motors back on and run and see if there is improvement. There is adjustment on the x axis also you can check. Then you can do the motor tuning process after adjusting.