Replaced pinion gears, have a question

[Bob T]

Had sloppy circles and lettering looked off, so replaced my gears. in my efforts to check movement in the carriages I noticed very little, but a "tic" in each side of the X. after messing with it a bit I pulled the motor out and noticed that the "tic" seems to come from the gear/ motor spindle connection. both parts are keyed, and that is engaged. so is that amount of play acceptable?

I would guess that the movement is between 1/64 and 1/100. you can notice it if you hold a block of wood against the front of the gantry and do the "tic"

[cowboy1296]

I think that a slight movement is normal. but only a slight. I noticed on mine that the play got larger as the gears got dirtier.

I tried replacing mine yesterday and the allen head nuts that hold the gear to the shaft were not removable. I tried heat and different solvents. I used everything from a allen wrench to a large driver and ended up breaking the nut. At this point the only thing that makes sense is drilling them out. I am open for suggestion if anyone has any thoughts.