Re: [CAD_CAM_EDM_DRO] ballscrew swarf protector

Paul Kelly wrote:

>I'm having some difficulty keeping swarf out of my lathes Z axis ball screw.
>My installation has it running up the center of the bed, tidy but ALL the
>mess goes there!
>I've tried various saddle aprons and even built a lobster tail arrangement,
>however they all seemed to limit the saddle travel at the worst possible
>time..
>I have some space under the headstock (which bolts onto the bed), and was
>thinking of one of those spring steel coil thingys (ie question 1 is; "can
>anyone give me the correct term for these")
>
>

I think that is a "rollator" spring, also known as a constant-tension
spring. The problem
is you still need a wiper for the spring, or it will jam. The advantage
of this is
it needs very little room at the end of travel. It is basically like a
roll-up steel measuring
tape. In fact, there are some wider steel tapes, like 1.5", that have
been used for
this purpose. I think they use a little brush to clear the chips. As
long as the tape
is a little wider than the screw, it should prevent any chips from
falling on the screw.

Or, are you talking about the helical overlapping spring that telescopes
around the
screw? I think you'll find this also takes up a significant amount of
room at the end of
travel. They work great, and are pretty self-cleaning, but chips do get
into the
screw as the spring works back and forth. Oh, if there's no bearing at
the headstock
end, then you can mount the end as far back as it needs to be. I have
no idea where
to get these.

Jon