Dang that looks good cathead,kinda adds little class to a mill.Well this weekend I will start on the z axes which I already have the scale mounted just have to attach the reader.Technical Ted since you have done this already wanted to ask about the shims that came with DRO.Going to shim the reader from the scale the same as what the blue plastic shipping tabs that holds the scale in place the same which to be about 2-3 shims.Ted did you have to use any of those shims get the reader perfectly in place?Seems like it would be better to let those readers kinda float little to make up what may not be a perfect fit.Say use 2" socket screws through reader into the machine so that reader won't move side to side but just move little up/down on those screws.If any of this makes since.But I watch ton of Youtubes,read T Teds process and no one has use a floating reader method.So going to stick with what works,just wanted to put that out there.Still will have to seat down and go over the instructions few more times before the weekend.
I would not want mine to float... any movement would cause reading errors and inaccuracies.
Somewhere in the paperwork, if I remember correctly, the folded up paper that comes with each head, it specs the recommended clearance between the reader head and the scale. I cut a piece of dense cardboard of the correct thickness to space the head the correct distance from the scale for final mounting. Once mounted, remove the cardboard piece. This is just used for locating during installation. Those blue plastic things are NOT the correct spacing per the paperwork. I'm thinking they are probably just from shipping. I just threw mine away.
I don't remember using any of the provided shims, because I made all my mounts right to the proper size so I didn't need them. But, using shims is fine to install the heads/scales properly. Just remember, nothing get permanently installed between the head and scale. There is just an air gap there. This is where the instructions could have been laid out a little better. But, after reading them and looking at the diagrams multiple times, this is what I came up with and it worked well for me.
1- Center the head with the scale thickness wise. I couldn't find a spec on this, but there seems to be some leeway here. So, I just tried to line up the center of the head with the center of the scale.
2- The head must be square and parallel with the scale. I placed the shim of the correct thickness between the scale and the head and held it tight by hand while mounting.
3- If you have the scale indicated in within a few thousandths and the reader head is square, parallel and at the correct spacing from the scale, everything should work fine.
4- The last thing you'll do is calibrate the system. Don't skip this step.
Ask away if you have any more questions.
Ted
