Alternatives to... Re: cable drive for X axis

Hello,

You can easily buy timing belt in a 24 foot length... Many
distributors sell it by the foot.

Chain is available in long lengths too.

The cable stretch is gonna getcha, IMO. If you're going to use cable.
check out Sava industries. They sell low stretch 7x19 cable.

But if you use the timing belt face down, and use two idlers to
redirect it upwards (and provide a good "wrap" angle) over one timing
pulley, which is the driver; I think you will have best success. No
belt slap, and minimal chance for swarf to foul things up. This
arrangement is also common in commercial machines.

But you CAN use rack/pinion. Because the methods used to minimise
backlash are simple and well-proven in MANY commercial machines, and
have been detailed here on CCED a few times as well. Use 14-1/2
degree rack, not 20...

Hope this helps,

Ballendo

--- In CAD_CAM_EDM_DRO@yahoogroups.com, "onthemarcxyz"
<onthemarcxyz@y...> wrote:

> I don't know if I could find a timing belt 24' long and would have
> the same problem with it slapping around. I will have to run a low
> tech test on cable with 12' span and weight with multiple reversals
> in direction.
> I'm not sure what slippage you refer to. The cable would be a

closed

> loop system with a fixed end on the drum. The wraps on the drum
> would be side by side so the same
> feed rate would come from each revolution.
>
> Marc
>