5 Pro 2x2 - cut alignment problem

[GaryBr (Gary)]

Hi all. I screwed up and hopefully somebody on here can help me. I started a project and forgot turn the power on to my VFD spindle. The machine slammed into the wood before I could kill the power. I reset the project (turned on the power to the spindle) and tried again. The cuts were completely off. So I did a test (attached). It looks to me like the X-axis is possibly loose causing the cut issues.

I have more photos but apparently i can only post one? When the x-axis motor changes direction there is a gap that is created where the motor engages the ball screw. I think this is where the problem is but need verification. Has anyone had this issue?

[WillAdams (William Adams (Carbide 3D))]

Let us know about this at support@carbide3d.com — we have a PDF for checking the SP5 motion mechanics which we’ll send you.

[GaryBr (Gary)]

Thank you. I actually solved the problem. Part of the x-axis shaft became loose so the whole thing was shifting during the cut. I repositioned and tightened it down and the machine is back to work!

[profexorgeek (Justin)]

I did a similar thing and, if anyone else has this problem, I wrote a longer post with details on how to fix the axis shaft here:

Fixing limit switch clearing and sloppy axis movement

Glad it was helpful! In general you should expect bolts, wires, and other things to come loose or otherwise act up as you break your machine in. I recommend checking these regularly in your first couple of cuts. Setup, vibration, and movement are guaranteed to make a slightly loose bolt become very loose! Here are some other things mistakes I’ve made that maybe you can learn from: One of my Y Axis motor couplers came loose and the Y Axis got misaligned. I had to tighten the coupler’s collar sc…