Heh. Any one want to buy an Acupath mill? (minor problems with X axis)

Pete C. wrote:
RoyJ wrote:
I've got an 'Acupath mill' ( Taiwanese import mill vintage 80's) with a
trashed X axis ball screw. The move crew took it apart to get it in the
room, the results was the little balls all over the inside of the knee.
I think I have a way to fix it.

I need to find a stray ball somewhere in the nooks and crannies of the
machine so I can order some new balls. McMaster has a huge selection of
inch and metric balls, usually run about $.10 each, need perhaps 150 of
them so $15 or $20 would cover it. This site shows how a ball screw nut
is threaded on a ball screw:
http://www.nookindustries.com/ball/B....cfm#BallArbor
If the arbor was a chunk of aluminum in the proper size, had a suitable
groove cut in one end, one should be able to populate the ball screw nut
by holding the grooved end up and dropping them in one by one. Once it's
full, transfer to a tube with a sharp edge, screw it on to the screw.

Wadda ya think?

Probably do-able, but not a lot of fun. Check carefully as there are
most likely two sizes of balls that alternate.