Shapeoko 5 maintenance

[crotalus258 (Terry Mcgleish)]

What is the recommended timeframe for oiling the rails and ball screws? I’ve already removed the screws on the bearing blocks and filled them.

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

See:

https://my.carbide3d.com/docs/maintenance/

c.f.,

Making rail bearing lube easier

I’m told that switching oil to grease or vice versa requires cleaning out the previous lubricant from the bearing blocks, so the first rule would appear to be, keep using whichever the machine shipped with unless you’re prepared to properly clean the blocks out. If you’re switching, avoid any of the greases containing ‘slippery’ particle additives such as graphite or Molybdenum Disulphide as these will make the balls slide on the rail instead of roll and destroy the blocks in relatively short o…

[crotalus258 (Terry Mcgleish)]

Yes, I’m using what shipped with the machine.

[gdon_2003 (Guy Donham)]

Be careful for the next week or two. When you oil the bearings many times the oil runs down the linear rails and drips on your spoilboard and/or your project. So place a paper towel under the parking spot of the router at the end of the day and at the beginning of the day wipe off the bottom of the rails to get rid of excess oil that dripped down from the bearing blocks.