Gear for hobbed bolt hard to turn

My hobbed bolt won't turn now when trying to print. If I try to turn it by hand to rotate it and try and clean it, it is very hard to turn. Is this normal? And are there any things I can do to get it turning again. It seems bound by stress even though the two tension screws with springs are out. Thanks.

 

It seems the nut was on too tight. There really should be two nuts next to each other that are tight to keep it from binding on the bearings then have the gear wheel and the outside nut. IMO.

 

It should 't need it as the friction from the nylon nut should be enough to turn the bolt. If it is tightening on you, then you probably need to lubricate the bearings that the bolt goes through as it's generating too much friction.

 

I wasn't too clear in that explanation. But what worked for me was to add two more washers near the middle to act as spacers and keep things aligned. And then as I tightened the bolt, I had a thin wrench on the central nut and adjusted it to prevent the bolt from tightening on that nut. The goal is to tighten the bolt while leaving the hobbed area unsqueezed. Bicycles axles have two nuts side by side to prevent this sort of squeezing.

 

And you aren't trying to turn with stepper motors on are you?

 

When power was off I could not turn it by hand unless I forced it. Now it is fixed.