They seem to be a dimensional match, the holes in the HDZ blocks (couldn’t measure well without disassembly) seem to be on the 26x26mm square of the HGR15 and the HGR15 block slides nicely on the HDZ rail.
So it would seem that an HGR15 rail block from Fred @ bstlinearmotion on AliExpress or any of the clones on eBay would be a reasonable bet for somebody who’d exhausted the options with Carbide support, but I would definitely start there.
It’s the HDZ on a modified version of Dan Story’s rail conversion.
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Griff
(Well crap, my hypometric precursor device is blown…)
24
Perfect, just what I need, thanks.
For the record, I asked C3D support earlier today if it is possible to purchase spare rail blocks from C3D. Was told, not at present time. Which is understandable, I can imagine the support calls from guys chasing balls.
Also in DuraLube… which I run in all crankcases because of the PTFE. Along with a bit of Lucas oil of course.
The PTFE resin in DuraLube is, by theory, supposed to penetrate into small holes and bond there, creating a very smooth surface. By itself though, not a lube…
or at least that’s how I understood it, but then again that was 35-40 years ago
Their gmail address is on the page there, very helpful if you email them to ask which is the best thing / package to buy. They even asked if I wanted the rails cut to length with symmetric distance between the ends and the mounting holes and then did so properly.
If you just want four blocks for example, no rails, just email Fred and ask.
I will say, on the HDZ I’m not sure you’ll see the advantage of the OEM Hiwin, given the four bearing blocks and the very small leverage the clones might be OK too, they have these clones
Anything that reduces the coefficient of friction is a lubricant. PTFE is a “solid lubricant” similar to Teflon.
Edit: Naturally something being a classed as a lubricant doesn’t make it a suitable lubricant for a given purpose. You wouldn’t put intimate lubricants in your engine block, for example. And (mostly) vice-versa.
It occurs to me that it’s worth mentioning a few reasons why people might not want to take their HDZ apart based on my experience with an initially faulty HDZ (that Luke rapidly fixed).
The HDZ is built with a ballscrew as well as the linear rails. The ballscrew has no realistic play or slack to allow for any misalignment, ballscrews are also rather easy to bend or damage if assembled with any misalignment, the stepper can turn the screw hard enough for the ballnut to bend the screw.
The ballscrew nut and linear rail blocks must travel almost exactly parallel paths in a common plane to avoid binding up or bending the ballscrew. If you bend the ballscrew fixing it is not easy and I’ve no idea where you would source a spare with the ends machined to match the Carbide unit (they aren’t all standard sizes).
The HDZ is designed as a precision machined set of parts which do not require shimming or adjustment to make the faces of the rail blocks and the face of the ballnut coplanar. This means if there’s any dimensional difference with your rail blocks you may have to resort to unusual measures to make things fit at all.
The design also has no lateral adjustment for the top and bottom bearings of the ballscrew and little movement for the linear rails in their milled slots in the mounting plate. These are relatively easy to get parallel compared to the coplanar requirement but it’s still a hurdle.
On my unit the ballnut mounting face was not parallel to the ballscrew and this caused the Z plate to bind up and not travel all the way to one end. The fix was to replace it with a part whose dimensions were within tolerance.
All the other warnings about not letting all the little balls drop out of the linear rail blocks, ballnut etc. also still apply.
Hope that saves somebody a frustrating learning experience
@Luke Maybe do a video on the process as well as documentation? This is a maintenance item I know I didn’t anticipate - so many others are going to be “surprised” as well. The clearer and simpler you can make the instructions, the more likely folks will do the required maintenance!
Thanks.
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Griff
(Well crap, my hypometric precursor device is blown…)
37
Indeed. I want to see how to inject lube into the lower HDZ block without taking it off the machine.
And, I’m a little surprised we haven’t heard more about this issue. HDZ’s have been around a few years, I know most machines get used a lot more then mine. This was a show stopper for me, the HDZ stopped working.
Thanks for this @Luke. But hmm, the smallest quantity that I have found so far is one pint. I wouldn’t be surprised if C3D buys it in 5 gallon (18.9271 liter) pails, but I just can’t see using even a pint over the life of the HDZ. Has anyone found smaller bottles yet?
Yes, for the first couple of weeks I had to check and wipe the rails and ballscrew before starting a project, but that excess is gone now and I’m anticipating the need for adding lube at some point.
