Someone ended up with an extra H2S x-axis linear rail they are sending me, I’m going to take it apart for science.
Will I discover it is:
I’m guessing unlubricated, but would love to be surprised.
This doesn’t make sense 252525252
Shipping unlubricated rails is very common “let’s make a cheap 3d printer” cost optimization manufacturers love making.
Unfortunately if it is unlubricated, it’s unfixable in the printer without completely tearing the carriage assembly down. There isn’t any way to lubricate a linear rail without getting physical access to the slide block directly.
Very simple explanation:
Lubricated: Yea!
Unlubricated: Everyone is f*****d.
Then why do my printers with linear rails all demand that I wipe them down and re-oil the notch that the carriage rides in?
i think youre talking about different things
This is a linear rail
on it is a carriage, with bearings and presumably lubrication
what are you talking about?
From bambu’s maintenance wiki re: X axis linear rails and lubrication (and from the on-screen reminders when it yells at you to do this)
When: Every month
Materials & tools: Cloth,Tweezers, Lubricant oil
Solution: Cleaning, Lubricant oil
How to do: Use tweezers to clean the lumpy and filamentous foreign objects on the guide rail, and wipe the granular foreign objects and stains with a dust-free cloth; re-lubricate the X track, and slide the tool head back and forth after lubricating to ensure that the lubricant oil lubricates the entire linear rail.
A1 Maintenance Guidelines | Bambu Lab Wiki
The accompanying videos show the worker placing oil on the top and bottom guide channels. It is harder to apply to the bottom without tipping the machine over but nothing a q tip dipped in oil can’t get done
The H2 video is identical. Pretty sure now we are f****d.
How did you connect the dots
You’ll need to express yourself using more words. lol
Per maintenance, it’s lubricated. By you, the operator.
Are you trying to make some point about Captive Recirculating Linear Bearings vs Non-recirculating? I’m not sure what type bambu uses but in the end both of those will not transfer oil from top to bottom, if thats what you’re getting at…?
For reference, Here’s some photos of a spare A1 X-axis, as received.
The bag does have oil grime smeared on the inside of it, and the rail itself seems undry.
I think it is for shipping and against moisture during transport.
So, I don’t really understand the whole discussion. I installed Hiwin bearings and guides on a homemade printer. I opened the bearings and filled them with slightly larger balls to reduce play on the guides. With this type of guide, the balls essentially run in a circle on the inside, following a predetermined path. So, if I lubricate the groove and the balls in contact with the groove absorb the grease, it automatically distributes itself throughout the bearing.
It’s even recommended to thoroughly clean the bearings before installation. So I’m assuming they’re not greased, but simply coated with anti-corrosive protection. Unless it’s a fully assembled rail with the bearing already mounted on it, then it should be cleaned and greased.
There’s a reservoir in the cartridge, that is supposed to be filled with lubes like oil. I think OP is talking about that. I dont know if the reservoir is oiled, but I’m pretty sure monthly or even quarterly oiling the rail itself is good enough.
This is what I’m getting.
My bet is that it is not greased. Since greased slides can’t be converted to oil, either the maintenance instructions are wrong or they were never greased.
If you look at that photo in the red part there is a spot where you can install a zerk for oiling thats what we do on the presses at work. The only time we have to replace them is when some on does something stupid.
FYI this makes oiling the lower part of the rail way easier. And also oiling the backside of the linear rods is much easier with this.
H2D / H2S Super Lube Applicator Caps + Box by Henryk MakerWorld: Download Free 3D Models
That’s what I used. As far as I could tell, it works.
If we were meant to pump in more grease, the block would have a grease gun port on it.
It’s not carrying much weight, so maybe that’s how it gets away with just a bit of oil instead of grease? It does seem a bit weird that for maintenance we’re asked to apply oil to what are essentially “cracks” in the rail, but that also suggests there’s not much else lubricating it.
it’s definitely not supposed to be greased, because lots of them might be too thick for the bearings inside. The linear rails we have should only need oil. the only difference is that for some catridges they have a reservoir in the cartridge that can provide long term oil “self lubrication”.
However if you follow bambu guide, by adding the oil monthly, you re totally fine.
