How are you guys supporting your Y axis cable? I’m trying to find a food solution to keep it from dragging the table when it’s to the side closest to the board but keep drawing a blank on a good solution. Any good way to keep the slack up off the table?
Also, I have a single Z axis motor that drops when I turn off power to it, But the other won’t, is this an alignment issue? I’ve lubed the lead screws on both sides.
I’m still building but I plan to use the Tape Measure Trick
I’m successfully and happily using the measuring tape trick.
Well, I give up on it, I can’t get it to keep from twisting. Oh well 2 hours and a fatmax tape down the drain I guess. I feel like having no way to keep that cable off the work surface with the kit is a huge oversite. It beat me today, I’ll try again tomorrow.
Certainly not an oversight issue. Don’t get too frustrated either. This isn’t a spoon fed kit and I think there are many creative or off-the-shelf ideas to work with. I can vouch for the tape measure trick on a full sheet lowrider using a fat max tape. Not on the first try though. Just not that good at this stuff.
You’ll get it tomorrow.
I think my biggest issue is just that there’s no clear solution. I can’t find a good way to mount it to the machine. I tried finding a method to mount it to the y motor but can’t think of anything that won’t add to the heat it produces, that combined with me ruining a container I bought for the electronics and not being able to get that mounted in a good spot just has me frustrated for sure, it feels like I just took 2 steps back today and wasted a good amount of time and some money along with it. It’s just kind of defeating I guess. and I was going to just get a drag chain but all the ones I’ve really found are just too damn big and I’m worried they will damage the wires for just one motor. And after that I have to still find a way to get the router power cable out of the way… It’s like once you run out of the build guide everything feels… Well like it was forgot about. I don’t feel like when you get the full kit that finding a way not to chop up the cables when the machine is in use is a well thought out thing I guess. Sorry for being what my wife would call a negative Nancy. It’s just got me down today.
Didn’t the guide show the wires zip tied to the vac hose?
I set my first kit down for 11-months because I couldn’t reconcile I was using metric parts with imperial hardware.
The quick answer is to hang everything off the vacuum hose as mentioned by kd2018.
LowRider CNC V3 - V1 Engineering Documentation Not that I saw, There’s nothing in there about routing the wires other than.
Hose Channel¶
I use 1.5″-2″ aluminum angle with a few Velcro straps to keep the hose and cords contained. Bigger or smaller works depending on the hose size you use.
I guess I need to get a longer hose anyway for my shopvac and figure out a way to adapt it to the table. It’s a beefy one and the hose hookup is… well… A bit small for it.
You’re right, it’s not clearly shown. But if you look at the pics under the “Belt Ends” section they’re there.
I don’t use a vac hose so I bought a small drag chain from Amazon and then drew up and 3d printed a quick mount that attaches the chain to the carraige’s motor. The other end of the chain is just screwed on to the aluminum angle. The chain doesn’t need to be long. I think it’s a 1 meter chain for my 5’ axis.
If you have time could you post a picture of it? I have a 1m chain but I don’t understand how you mounted it from the motor and then the aluminum angle, My motor sits a good 2" behind it. Also would you happen to still have the stl for your mount? I’m not any good at 3d modeling lol. That’s a whole different barrel of monkeys that I have resigned myself to not being able to wrap my head around.
I don’t mind at all. It’ll have to be tomorrow when I get back to the shop.
One end of the chain is screwed into the angle at about the midpoint of its length. So it’s sitting at 45* angle, when the chain “rolls” it rolls out over the motor instead of straight up (I hope that makes sense). The mounting bracket just comes straight up vertically from the stepper 4 inches then bends 45* to catch the other end of the chain.
So is the chain not running parallel to the Y axis? Or is the chain mounted slanted then your print has a 45 on the top so it’s still parallel but just kind of tilted so it covers the distance? If I’m understanding it correctly then it’s tilted and running parallel and that feels like it works, where it ends at the 1/2 way point on the angle do you just wrap the Y cables into the angle from that point? Sorry, it’s been a long day for me as a truck driver by day it’s mentally draining 
I’m not normally this slow, I promise!
Actually, I do have the stl with me.
x_cable_chain_mount.zip (26.5 KB)
I used a #6 screw and a nylock nut to clamp it to the motor.
Depends on what you mean by parallel. It is parallel to the axis, it just kicks off 45 degrees from my YZ (your XZ) plane.
Yes, the mounts mounting surface to catch the chain is tilted 45 degrees to match the chain’s angle.
At the moment where the cables enter the cable chain from the aluminum angle they are not wrapped, but I intend to (work in progress). They’re routed up through one of the z tubes.
Okay seeing that makes me understand what you’re saying about how it’s mounted! Now to see if my printer can handle it lol, I don’t have anything but a resin printer that I use for making miniatures for D&D 
It’s not a large print volume, but if nothing else I can make something out of plywood for it I’m sure, I can’t imagine it would be all that hard.
Did you try this with your fatmax tape? https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3611502
No, I didn’t see that, but since I have a spare dragchain I think I will give that a go, it just feels a little less… hacky so to speak
You might double check that the mounting holes match your drag chain, I think I had them at about 19mm apart. This is the chain I’m using (15x30) https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01LYW0FKR/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Also, I learned it’s easiest to fish the wires through by pulling them if you can, or lay the chain out flat then push the wires through and then roll up the chain and connect it to the motor mount.
Oof those supports though the pains of a small printer lol, 18 hour print but it should work! Minor sanding to clean it up after.
This is the chain I have, I can drill a few holes in it to get it to work I think.
It just occurred to me, what are you going to do with your vac hose?
This worked for me because I’m not using a vac hose.
