Shapeoko 2 - Work Area Assembly 3/3/14 2:41 PM

Work Area
Overview

The final assembly will be assembled, then the balance of the machine put together and mounted on it.

Waste Board Assembly (PS20024)

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1. 25286-02 M5 x 12mm, BHCS x 8 pcs.

2. 25287-02 M5 Flat Washer x 8 pcs.
3. 26016-01 M5 insertion nut x 8 pcs.
4. PS20001 MDF wasteboard (1/2") x 2 pcs.
5. PS20009 20mm x 20mm x 550mm aluminum extrusion, black anodized x 2 pcs.

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Start with the captive nuts in the holes (shown in the back right of the diagram).

Place a washer (#2) on a bolt (#1)

slide the bolt into a hole in the wasteboard (#4)
thread on an insertion nut (#3)
then slide the aluminum extrusion (#5) onto the bolt and insertion nut.
Repeat until all the holes are filled

Repeat the above process with the slots, but instead assemble the bolt, washer, nut combinations, slide
them into the aluminum extrusion, then slide the extrusion onto the wasteboard.

Carefully center and square everything up, then tighten the bolts. Square up the wasteboard assembly
carefully, since it will be the foundation for the balance of the machine.

Assemble the Frame

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Parts
1. PS20025 Complete Gantry x 1 pcs.
2. PS20026 Y-Axis Rail Assembly x 2 pcs.
3. PS20024 Waste Board Assembly x 1 pcs.
4. 8 25286-01 M5 x 10mm, BHCS x 8 pcs.
5. 8 26016-01 M5 insertion nut x 8 pcs.
6. 8 25287-02 M5 Flat Washer x 8 pcs.

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Note, the diagram shows the gantry MakerSlide shifted to the front of the machine ---to better balance the
gantry, it's best to have them shifted towards the back as shown in the photos.

Place the 10mm M5 bolts (#4) with washers (#6) into the bottom holes on the open end plates which are
attached to the MakerSlide, thread on the insertion nuts (#5), then carefully slide the rail assemblies (#2)

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onto the wasteboard extrusion. Tighten the bolts enough to be certain the threads won't pull free.

Turn the eccentric nuts on the V-wheels on the Complete Gantry (#1) so that they are as far from the static
V-wheels as is possible. Drive the Complete Gantry onto the two Y-Axis Rail Assemblies (PS20026), then
attach the open end plates. Make certain that a pair of Belt Anchor Clips is in each length of Makerslid
before fastening the end plates.

Tighten the bolts holding the MakerSlide, then begin tightening the bolts which hold the bottom of the
open end plates. Carefully center the Y-axis rails and gantry on the wasteboard. Move the gantry to one end
and continue tightening the bottom bolts. Move the gantry to the other end, then repeat. Go back and
forth gradually tightening things and ensure that everything is aligned and square and that the gantries
move freely.

Check the alignment with a known-to-be-good square. One can also measure the diagonals to test for
squareness. Ensure that everything is aligned squarely and that the Complete Gantry and the X-Axis Sub
Gantry move smoothly. Finish tightening the bolts. (These last steps are covered in more detail below under
Fine-tuning below).

Congratulations! You've built a ShapeOko!

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Fine-tuning

Squaring the Machine

Check that each component is square to the others using a known-to-be-good square. If you don't have a
square, measure the diagonals and compare the distances. Loosen bolts, adjust and re-tighten as needed
until everything is true and moves linearly.

Adjusting the V-Wheels

At this point, you will need to adjust the machine's V-wheels. These should be tight enough to hold things in
alignment, but loose enough that the machine moves freely and smoothly. The suggested technique for this
is, "Loosen the eccentric spacer until the V-wheel does not rotate when the carriage is moving and then
tighten just (and no more!) until the V-wheel rotates when moving the carriage. Overtightening will lead to
the V-wheel wearing out."

Slide the gantry back and fourth a couple of times to even out the rails and get everything roughly
lined up. It may still feel stiff when sliding, but you can adjust that later.
Slide the gantry to the back of the machine. Both V-wheels should be touching or at least be the same
distance from the belt anchors. Carefully snug up the four screws on the back end plates.
Gently slide the gantry to the front of the machine. Both V-wheels should be touching or at least be
the same distance from the belt anchors. Carefully snug up the four screws on the front end plates.
Slide the gantry back and fourth a couple times to see if anything is askew. Note: It may be tough to
move your gantry, almost as if it is binding, this is fine as you'll adjust that in the next set of steps.

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Steps for Silky Smooth Motion

1. Make certain that the four V-Wheels that are mounted with the eccentric nuts are loose. You should
notice some slight play once loosened.
2. Slide the gantry back and fourth. It should feel as if it is gliding freely and smoothly. Remember how
this feels as this is what we are striving to reach.
3. Taking one V-Wheel at a time, adjust the eccentric spacer and fully tighten it. Slide the gantry back
and fourth, is it still how it felt from step 2? If yes, then move on to step 4. If no, then repeat this step
until you achieve smooth, gliding motion.
4. Repeat step 3 until all V-Wheels are properly adjusted.

Mount the Belts

You should now mount the belts on the belt anchors. Note that the pulleys should be mounted with the set
screws toward the motor housing and the pulley itself at the end of the shaft so as to move the belt away
from the carriage plate and line up properly with the idler wheels and the slot at the top of the MakerSlide.

Divide the belt into thirds (one-third for the X-axis, two equal lengths for the two sides of the Y-axis)
Loop each belt into a belt anchor at one end and tighten it
Loop each belt under a smooth idler, over the pulley and under the other smooth idler
Loop each belt into the remaining belt anchor
Use some technique which allows you to tension the loose end of each belt and tighten it down (see
below).

The belts get routed through the belt clips by:

1. Passing the belt down through the back slot (closest to the screw).
2. From the back slot, they go down, and then back up through the front slot.
3. You only need about 12mm (1/2") of belting through the front slot to lock the loops together.
4. Making sure the teeth mesh together will ensure a tight (slip free) fit.

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As noted above, each belt goes under a smooth idler, over the pulley and then under the other smooth idler

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and is secured at each end by a belt anchor clip.

Tighten the belt

With the Allen wrench inserted into the button head cap screw, adjust the screw so it's almost tight. Then,
gripping the Allen wrench, pull it back towards the end plate so it's very tight, once it's tight, rotate the
Allen wrench clockwise to finish tightening the screw. Like so:

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(If you can't get enough tension, place one of the 13mm wrenches against the far side of the Allen wrench
and use it as a handle to pull the Allen wrench to pull the belt anchor to tension the belt)

Note that it is important to get equal tension on the two belts for the Y-axis --- uneven tension seems to be
a possible cause of missed steps.

Next Step Wiring

To express concerns, post on the forums, to suggest improvements without using github, edit this wiki
page.

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