Hi All,
I’m just curious how others clean their linear rails between uses. I don’t think it’s probably the best idea to wash oily rags in my washing machine so ive just been buying cheap rags at the $1 store, using them a few times and tossing them. I thought that was working well enough but when looking a my linear rails up close today when i was working through an issue with support, I noticed I’m getting a lot of little scratches on my pro xl rails. Just a little worried i’m not cleaning the rails properly. do you guys use some type of disposable cloths for wiping down the rails? or have a way of cleaning clothes between uses?
Paper towel + a few drops of Mobil Vactra oil #2 here.
I don’t do it after every job though, the dust shoe usually keeps most of the chips off the rails, when there are enough of them on the rails that it bothers me or that it is fine dust that may get its way into the bearings, I will give the rails a swipe of Vactra.
You don’t have to rub it in hard either, maybe that’s the source of the tiny scratches you have ? As long as a thin film of oil ends up on the rail that’s ok. Actually I will put the gantry to one side, swipe the oil roughly, and the manually move the gantry slowly to the other side, one or two times.
On a side note, I think I read somewhere to not let oiled rags accumulate in a bin when it’s hot, there is a risk of self combustion or something.
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I have been thinking a lot about this lately. Is there a published PM guide to make these machines last? I tend to blow everything off with air and generally just try to keep it clean, but there has to be something that I am overlooking
That’s certainly the case with certain products such as Danish Oil containing Linseed Oil.
On the rails, I wipe mine occasionally to clear any buildup. I don’t apply oil directly to the rail, I squirt it into the linear rail blocks so that the oil is clean going into the bearings and working out past the seals, this helps the seals work.
As for scratching, only the four rounded, angled surfaces around the sides of the rail that the bearings roll on really matter, the large front face with the bolt holes is not load bearing (as well as not being a reference surface for measurement). So I’d only worry about the four bearing tracks on the rails, the rest is cosmetic.
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Thanks for the tip Julien, ill switch over to paper towels. Should make life a little easier.
Sorry for being such a newbie but by oiling the linear rail blocks are you referring to the grooves in the linear rails? I just thought id post a pic of the little scratches im seeing, most seem to be on the top side of the top rail when looking down.
EDIT: Please disregard my question regarding linear rail blocks, did a little research and i understand what they are.
I have a small square of a rag in a sealed plastic container that is soaked in Vactra #2. That way it is always ready to use. But at that point I’ve already vacuumed and wiped the rails to remove the big stuff.
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One other question I have while we on on the subject of cleaning. The maintencence guide mentions wiping down the lead nut and oiling the ball screw. Where are those located on the pro xl? After looking into maintenence a little more closely , I realize i’ve misunderstood a few parts of the machine.
If the scratches don’t run down into the curved track for the bearings (looks like they don’t) then I’d not worry.
As for the blocks, yes, those are the units bolted to the moving carriage, follow the maintenance instructions for how to get oil into those through the oil ports.
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