Wednesday, September 9, 2009

Adjusting the dome drive with the 300mm dome

Last night I thought I would mount the rockler bearing to the frame and see how everything fits with the new 300mm dome.

One thing I noticed quickly was that the new dome drive motor shaft will require trimming.


Then, upon looking closer, the dome plate makes contact with the dome drive wheel. Uh oh, not good!


I inquired with some fellow builders on the Astromech website and heard from others who had this issue too. The solution is a series of things. First, lower the dome drive by adding some washers to where it attaches to the frame. Then, cut the excess length off the dome drive shaft. Lastly, add some washers between the rockler bearing and base plate. I added in 3 small washers which worked perfectly.

Here's how the dome drive spacing with the base plate looks now. I also powered up the dome drive and made sure it rotated smoothly...it did.