Do I understand getting rid of backlash?

[dubliner]

PRS BT32 Std with spindle. So if I understand it properly, after making sure my pinions and all the usual suspects have been dealt with, do I have to get a better spring tension on the Z in order to keep the pinion tight against the motor so that the "slack" is always under spring tension? and when the motor moves the backlash is buffered by the spring?

[Brady Watson]

Nev,
The BT and PRS series of tools no longer rely on any kind of spring to keep the pinion engaged in the rack. All meshing and backlash is adjusted by the motor mounts themselves and hand force to get a good mesh. This includes the Z axis.

On the Z-axis, the springs' only function is to counterweight the mass of the spindle, allowing the motor to work just as efficiently when raising as it does when lowering.


FYI - From Wikipedia:


6623

Backlash, sometimes called lash or play, is clearance between mating components, sometimes described as the amount of lost motion due to clearance or slackness when movement is reversed and contact is re-established. For example, in a pair of gears, backlash is the amount of clearance between mated gear teeth. In other words it is the difference between the tooth space and the tooth thickness, as measured along the pitch circle. Theoretically, the backlash should be zero, but in actual practice some backlash must be allowed to prevent jamming of the teeth due to tooth errors and thermal expansion. This gap means that when a gear-train is reversed the driving gear must be turned a short distance before all the driven gears start to rotate. A similar effect is the taking up of slack when a train starts to pull away at the station and each car bumps as its link becomes tight. At low power outputs, backlash results in inaccurate calculation from the small errors introduced at each change of direction; at large power outputs backlash sends shocks through the whole system and can damage teeth and other components.

-B

[dubliner]

Hey Brady, thanks for that. I'll go fine tune everything. I've tried to email you a few times but it comes back a few days later & undelivereable, Comcast V's Time Warner? any way, good wishes sent your way - Nev