Ridges on ground edge of rails.

[john_l]

I just noticed that all along the ground "V" edge of all my X and Y rails there is a continuous burr at the base of the ground edges, fairly sharp too. The last 8 or 10 inches of the rails do not have these sharp edges so I guess it is a burr from the wear of the V rollers?

I haven't noticed any ill-effects in cut or alignment. I have cleaned and given the rollers a shot of chain lube every so often along with all the racks and driven pinion gears. Not a set schedule but I have kept at it.

Is my stuff starting to wear out or is this something everyone has?

[joe]

Naw, It's just good soft old metal. Nothing to worry about.

Joe
www.normansignco.com (http://www.normansignco.com)

[john_l]

I coundn't find anything using a few different search terms that I came up with specific to this.

Not trying to beat it, and it's not causing me troubles, just wondering if me and Joe are the only ones.

I am going to leave that sharp edge on there cause I suspect and hope the build of material there will help (in a small way) support and prevent further wear. Just wondering if it wears down to about where mine is at (guessing it to be about a .020" burr) and kind of settles in there.

Any other thoughts or reports appreciated. Has anyone else seen this?

Thanks!

[john_l]

Crude cross section of rail showing where I am talking about.


6533

[joe]

John,

I can't imagine what problems this would you are having.

To my way of thinking, even if the rail was reduced down a 1/4", when you zero out, it would be factored in. Now if there's a low spot in one only one spot, that could cause a very small difference. I'd doubt you have that problem.

You could replace these rails. I wouldn't unless you had no other choice.

Happy Routing

Joe Crumley
www.normansignco.com (http://www.normansignco.com)

[andyb]

John,
The burr is normal wear and tear. There are other post on this subject. I did a search on burr and rail. Here is a link about dressing the rail. Check Brady's post at the bottom of the thread.
http://www.talkshopbot.com/forum/show.cgi?tpc=7&post=89639#POST89639

Andy B.

[curtiss]

Can the rails be taken to a machine shop and be re-ground to original spects ?

If so, what profile/ angles need to be ground ?

[john_l]

Andy, Thanks for posting that. I did the same search terms a week ago because I remembered reading that thread when it was originally posted... and I got nothing. Maybe a site or google glitch.

The wear on my rails is mostly even.. end to end. The only obvious fallout I see is that someone could require some stitches if they aren't carefull loading and unloading the table. I will be filing mine down on the sides.

[navigator7]

I dunno.....I'm having a little trouble understanding this detour.
I'm interested in 48 Buddy. For evil profit.
The Troubleshooting section is awash in a new operating system glitches costing guys dough. I hoping this clears up soon.
I'm confident the gremlin will be uncovered and destroyed but it's keeping my wallet closed for the time being. I'm not interested in learning work arounds while learning a new program.

Back to the vee rails.
I've got years on relatively heavy metal lathes.
Some were much older than me.
The ways are protected by design, by covers, by lubrication.
The ways are hardened but the saddle is not.
Years of heavy use or abuse damages ways but properly cared for...ways on a lathe will last lifetimes.

I've yet to see close up shots of a SB ways but .... is there a shield, brush or a blast of air utilized to keep the ways clear?

Are the wheels on a SB hard too? Do the wheels fully contact or is there a relief to give debris a chance to escape? Something should be more sacrificial than the other. If the ways are pricey then it only makes sense the wheels should be the cheaper replacement.
Hardened wheels on hardened ways wear out both and depending on engineering gives different B-10 Life Values.

A while back there was talk of wheels breaking and now hardened rails giving up metal. Both should not be happening.

What I am trying to understand is how hard these machines can be pushed. In my past life, "utility" is what puts food on the table and keeps the wolf away. The absence of utility is my biggest foe.

[jerry_stanek]

Chuck you don't have to run the latest control software on a new buddy You can drop back to one that works without the SB link.

[beacon14]

I have the burrs also, very normal and except as you say for the likelihood of getting cut not necessary to do anything. A light filing will make them a little safer.

Chuck the machines can be pushed plenty hard, I've been cutting 20 sheets of 3/4" melamine at a time for the past 3 years, will do close to a thousand sheets this year. The rails will last longer than me as far as I'm concerned. Many owners have added felt pads or brushes to keep the rails clean; it's always been on my wish list but it's never been a big enough problem to make it to the top. I think the wheels are harder than the rails so with an occasional filing of the rails I've never had a problem in 5 years of regular use.

As has been suggested the machine itself is a proven performer, the software problems will get worked out but in the meantime there is a robust version available as long as you are not using e-cabinets.

[thewoodcrafter]

Well said David.
This is not really a concern and no one should spend much time worrying about it.

The wheels are hardened and the rails are not.
The rails will harden somewhat with use.

[Gary Campbell]

Chuck...
To clarify... the rail issue is relevant to the PRT not any of the PRS models. Machines since 2007 have hardened V rails.

Although its not 100% clear, we software users that have swapped versions may have "mucked up" some of our settings and therefore caused a portion of our problems. There was a beta version of the software out yesterday that went a long way to fixing a good number of issues. That version, coupled with a clean install is being tested at present.

There are many versions of the SB3 software that work very well. In some of the newer versions there is some experimenting going on. These versions need to be tested on dozens of machine configurations for compatability. Dont use ShopBots open forum policy against them. Most other CNC brands wouldnt allow you to read these or post on their forum prior to purchase.
Gary

[joe]

Gary is correct. It's a very generious policy Shopbot shows by letting the whole world post just about anyting on it's forum.

Lets be fair. This is the most open CNC forum on the market and is also the best. Where would we be without it.

I also applaud the moderator.

Joe
www.normansignco.com (http://www.normansignco.com)

[signtist]

Yea Joe, This is one of the most important decisions to me about what CNC to buy. This forum is great!
John www.signgraphics1.com (http://www.signgraphics1.com)

[navigator7]

Gary,
Thanks for the response!
To the contrary....Jerry, David, You, Joe and John all prove I'm on the right track.
The Open forum...or should I say "Transparent" forum is very much a part of my decision process.
I once put down 60K for a machine that certainly didn't do 60K worth of work. I'm not eager to repeat my failure.
Critical posts were wiped from that forum just like bad reporting in the new mini series "V" wipes reporters. ;-)

In lieu of touching, seeing, feeling, and hearing a SB up close, the only resource I have is this forum.
I hope my comments and questions aren't reflecting poorly on me or the product.

[Gary Campbell]

Chuck...
There are very few places where you cant visit a working ShopBot in an hour or 2 drive. Most users are happy to show off. Put a post in the "looking" section and see who answers.
Gary

[navigator7]

LOL Gary,
Try about 5 or 6 hours.
I think the closest guy is in another state.

But I'll bite.

Anybody close to Tonasket, WA?

(Insert overwhelming response)
http://www.abdn.ac.uk/~nhi708/classify/animalia/uniramia/pterygota/cricket.wav

;-)

[fredtoo]

Ditto what Joe C and John A said!

[Gary Campbell]

Chuck...
There are a couple guys in WA. Don Thomson is one.(Diamond Lake) and I cant think of the other one, possibly to the west of you.
Gary

[dlcw]

Chuck,

There is also a Shopbot owner in Bonners Ferry, ID.

I'm located about 40 miles north of Spokane on US2.

Don
www.diamondlakewoodworks.com (http://www.diamondlakewoodworks.com)

[navigator7]

LOL

http://s76.photobucket.com/albums/j18/Navigator7/?action=view&current=Picture18_2.png

I don't believe it!
Caught in my own lies like little Johnny.
4 hours away not 5!
And Don lives IN Wa not in Idaho.

Don, I'm going to Spokane this coming week for Fire Restoration Training.

We are going to Spokane for Thanksgiving.

I wonder how far "lost" I could get on our return trip before the wife noticed?

Thanks for the offer....I'll give you plenty of notice if anything develops!

[mark_stief]

Chuck that is one mean ass looking truck the hydralics and machining to make it work must be something to see as far as the programing for shopbots don't worry about it I don't have any of the troubles w/ it since I wiped everything out and started over w/ just down loading the newest version I think all the upgrades getting put in on top of each other just made things confuse each other and if there are problems they'll get em fixed Once again thats a NICE TRUCK could of used that about 2 yrs. ago

[kubotaman]

Chuck I am up here in the San Juan Islands. The city would be Friday Harbor out of Mount Vernon or Anacortes above Seattle. About as far north as you can get in Washington. Glad to show you my new Bot. I am not sure where Tonasket is.

[rb99]

Can a file be attached to the SB and run it up and down the rails, filing itself?

RIB

[ed_lang]

Richard,

That file has been installed with the ShopBot control software for years.

Look for this in the SBParts folder.

'S_zxrcis.sbp -- Exercise (break-in) Program

[jerry_stanek]

Ed I think what Ricard is talking about is a metal file attached to the shopbot to file away the burr.

[rb99]

Yes an actual metal file...

[john_l]

Richard, I really don't think I would want anything that could yield a shaving or filings on the gantry permanently. Granted the router or spindle does but we try to keep chips away from the rails and rollers if possible. The machine design does a very good job of this on it's own. Others have also installed felt pads, brushes, etc that I have seen on here.

Filing the burrs off of mine just took a few seconds, about 4-5 passes with a coarse metal file each side. Not a big deal. And these burrs didn't surface until after years of almost daily use.

I just wanted to make sure others saw the same thing and that it wasn't a sign of misalignment or some other trouble with my 2001 PRT machine. Sounds good.

[rb99]

I was not talking about permanently, only attaching it to take off the burrs in a perfect, uniform way.

When I read the other thread on removing the burr,
"your body position is everything when trying to hold a line or get good feedback from your hands while using a tool" I thought it might be better to have the machine go up and down the rails and have the file fixed to prevent any problems.

But I never meant to "permanently" attach the file.

RIB