Missing Nut

I have been able to troubleshoot I think nearly every aspect of my prints except for this last - it seems some of the issues with layers not being aligned vertically is that the lock nut on one of the bolts that holds the rails that the bed slides on is missing! Not sure if the printer never came with it or if it slid off, but it is not there so that corner of the printing bed can actually be lifted off the rail!

I looked at the Google doc with the parts of the Printer listed and thought it was an M4 lock nut - that's what it said on there anyways. I ordered it (comes only in boxes of 100). You can guess how this story ends - the M4 lock nut is too big. That is the incorrect size. The local hardware store also does not seem to have anything matching the nut I brought down. Does anyone know the exact type of lock not that goes with the bolts that hold the rails of the bed down??

Thank you!!

 

The M4 lock nuts just hold the y belt tensioners. For the rails they use M3 lock nuts. I've never found any M3 stuff locally unfortunately

I'd double check all your shipping boxes. Might have fallen loose.

 

Enrique,
On my November printer that is an M3 locknut. Around here I can find that nut at Ace Hardware in the metric bins. Ask for help at your hardware store. In mine there are so many bins that it took a while to fine that nut. I replaced these screws with flat heads to help it self center on the base plate holes. The round-head ones allowed the rail to slip in the larger base plate hole and caused my X/Y axes to go out of square resulting in non-square prints! I went back to the build video and they originally had a flat-head nut there. Probably changed it to consolidate the BOM.

 

Thank you guys!! ANd I checked and rechecked Mike - no nut in the box or the bags or anywhere.

My local ACE looked at me like I had two heads. Does it have another name? Or what are the dimensions?

When you say replace the screw Steve, are you talking about the bolt that goes on the rail and is fastened with the M3 nut? If so what specific hardware did you replace it with?


Anyone need 100 M4 lock nuts? =S

 

Enrique,
I think that ACE stores are locally owned so there may be a lot of variation in the inventory. My ACE has almost a whole aisle of metric bins across from the English ones. I would call around to a bunch or local HW stores. I replaced the 4 rail to base plate bolts with M3 x 22 flatheads like type "e" below. The original was type "c". Anything longer than about 15mm long will fit.

 

buy some M4-25mm or M4-40mm screws and use those for your connecting hardware for prints. M4 is my favorite size to use. Prints well and doesn't take up too much volume.

As for ACE, yeah I find the people there have this mentality that if they haven't heard of what you're talking about it doesn't exist. Even if you use the damn trade name.


M3 is .1181in whereas #4 is .1120 which is very very close. For temporary use you could use a #4 lock nut. Since they tend to have more imperial sizes.