Hello
I was running my shapeoko pro today with no problem. Near the end of the run everyting went crazy and the unit starting cutting in the wrong area. I stopped the run and it would not allow the carrage to go to the right hand side when trtying to intialize the unit.
i ended up manually pulling the gantry forward so i could see if anything was wrong. I know this isn’t ideal but i have my unit housed in a cover and this was my quickest option.
i found a small grup screw on top of the gantry and this was stopping the x/z assembly from moving over to the right,.
Can anyone tell where the grup screw may have come from. I can not remember having to tighten or install anything so small when i put the unit together.
I have upload two pictures, one is the grube screw and the second is the location i found it in.
Sometimes the oiling holes have a similar grub screw. The bottom ones tend to fall out. So check your linear rail guides for a missing oiling hole screw as well.
Hello John
I think you were spot on, I am assuming that the pully should have two grub screws in them. on the picture below it shows only one screw. the grub screw that fell out fits perfectly. If i am wrong and the pully should only have one I will investigate Guys suggestion. The second grub screw was also loose. Would it be wrong to use a very mild thread locker on the grub screws. As i am fairly new to this, is this something i should be looking at on a regular bases. I have only managed a few hours on the unit so I am surprised that they were loose.
Thanks for helping on this.
There should be two grub screws. Make sure one of them is centered on the flat part of the shaft - from your picture it looks like it may not be. Many people replace the stock grub screws with M4x8mm socket head cap screws like this, so they can tighten them a bit more:
If you use a locktite use only removeable. to remove permanent you need a flame and Shapeoko and flames dont mix. @ScottsdaleSteve is a good one. Additionally when you get your pulley back on and lined up put a mark across the center of the pulley and shaft with a sharpie so you quickly visually see if a pulley has come loose or moved.
Pullys coming loose is common on belt driven machines.
Indeed, there are two set screws per pulley, and I agree with the other posters that using removable Loctite is a good idea.
I perform regular maintenance on both my Shapeoko 3 and the newer 5 Pro. This includes checking that the V-wheels haven’t loosened, the belts are in good condition and properly tensioned, the linear bearings are lubricated, and all bolts are tight. The entire process takes only 10 to 15 minutes.
Additionally, I keep the machine clean by sweeping and wiping up any debris produced during machining, which makes regular maintenance much easier for me.
