Hey guys! I finally got some upgrade parts to reinvigorate my shapeoko. I have currently added the x axis extrusion and the gantry endplates. I am planning to add the z axis top plate and Acme upgrade, but I found that my delrin nut has a lot of play which seems as if it’s going to give me a lot of backlash in the z axis movement.
Has anyone had a loose delrin Acme nut? If so, how did you deal with it?
I finally got my drive belt for the X Carve Z axis conversion, so it went on my machine today! Finally! I have been anxiously awaiting the removal of the large tower that was the old Shapeoko motor mount.
Installing the acme threaded rod definitely showed that the loose derin nut is going to introduce backlash. I can grab the spindle mount and move it up and down an easily perceptible amount. Before I go raise a stink with customer service, can anyone tell me if their delrin nut has up and down play when installed on the rod and the spindle mount? My old m8 rod was perfectly snug with no play but the acme rod is noticeably less tight.
The delrin nut on my ACME rod was so tight that I had to run it up and down the threads about 30 times before it turned smoothly. I also used PTFE dry lubricant to help it out.
That’s pretty much what I expected. Thanks for the input Chris!
I would definitely talk to CS, they’ll get you sorted out. But, maybe not really “raise a stink” 
My threaded rod was warped, so it was binding in the delrin nut and wouldn’t even raise/lower. I would inspect both your ACME rod and delrin nut to be sure of the issue- one or the other may be malformed, and I’ve read about more issues with the ACME rod than the delrin nut. Then definitely contact customer service; I got a free replacement rod/nut the next day.
Ok using “raise a stink” as a figure of speech was probably the wrong thing to say. I have been nothing but impressed with inventables customer service. They have been fabulous to work with on multiple occasions!
Can any of you guys tell me the length of the spacers between your z axis wheels and the spindle carriage mounting plate? Does your machine just have an aluminum spacer or are there washers as well? I swapped mine straight over from my shapeoko with the single spacer (haven’t measured it) and they were too short. I had to add a washer to get the spacing close enough. Without the washer, the Acme rod was definitely held at an angle with the bottom of the rod being pulled towards the z axis makerslide.
I can’t find a bill of materials that lists the spacer part number to find if my spacers match what the BOM says should be used.
I think the ones you are looking for are on this page:
If it’s for the DW611 maybe also the others the spacers are:
25312-23 Aluminum Spacer 5.1mm ID 9.5mm OD 9.5mm LG
Customer service got back to me. They did say that they have had some quality control issues with the Delrin Nut. It sounds like they are going to resolve that issue.
Now, V-Wheel spacers… Customer service indicated that the spacers for the new configuration should be .375" long. So, for anyone looking to Ala Carte upgrade your Shapeoko 2, the spacers on your Z-Axis carriage are the wrong length if you use the new Z-Axis motor plate.
The spacers on my Shapeoko 2 measure at .312". Adding one washer bumps the length up to roughly .352". This length of spacer is somewhat usable but causes binding when the Z-Axis gets toward its highest point. I dont know that most washers are precision controlled for thickness, so I doubt washer stacking is the best option.
You can either buy the new spacers (25312-15 as indicated by Customer Service), or I suppose the holes on the Z-axis mounting plate could be elongated ever so slightly so that the rod could be properly aligned by sliding the Z-Axis motor plate using slotted mounting holes.
