Flimsy Z stage

[destroyer2012 0]

So I have been able to print a couple of things on my new UM, but the one thing that's bothering me is the need to level my stage every time.

When doing this i noticed that the far edge screws (towards the front of the machine; away from the rods & leadscrew) are actually kinda useless because the entire platform flexes ~2 mm when I apply any tiny amount of pressure on the screws in the process of leveling the stage. This makes it difficult to level the stage because i have to move the print head over there and very CAREFULLY turn the (difficult to turn) screws without putting any downwards pressure on the platform. This can't be right.

Is it normal to have that much flex? Did I miss something during assembly? Is there any object I can print out to make alleviate this problem?

[Daid 298]

Did you put in the springs? Are the springs giving enough tension? You could screw the whole bed down a few mm for extra tension. (if there is room, I have an old style 6mm bed instead of the new 10mm bed)

[destroyer2012 0]

The flex is coming from the entire wooden stage assembly. That part moves by ~3 mm at the forward edge when i touch it with mild force. The mild force occurs when i try to adjust the bed leveling screws, which is making it really hard to put the bed exactly at nozzle height, not to mention probably causing some of my bulging layer issues during printing.

So yes, I am aware of the springs and this is something different. I can tighten the springs all the way down and that flex will still be there.

[Daid 298]

That's odd, mine flexes 1.0-1.5mm with a lot of force (enough to compress the springs). I also cannot imagine all that wood (what is it, 5 layers?) flexing under light force.

[destroyer2012 0]

I think the problem is in the one layer of plywood between the arms, because that's what the stage is attached to. I'm not near my UM at the moment but its good to hear that you got everything tight. It means my issue is probably an assembly issue and thus fixable. I'll report back once I get home and scrutinize it more closely.

[IRobertI 486]

Yeah my platform flexes quite a bit as well with a bit of pressure and I was concerned about it in the beginning. It hasn't posed much of a problem for me though so I've just pushed it out of my mind. In a way it's kind of a feature as it allows the bed to move out of the way a wee bit if it hits a bump during the print. When leveling the platform I do have to avoid pushing down though as I wont see how much I've actually moved the thing otherwise before I take the screwdriver away.

A slightly more annoying issue though is that the left ... uhm... "support arm" (sorry, it's late, my english are failing at me ) is sort of crooked. It actually curves a bit and as a result the front left screw has to be screwed down _hard_ to allow enough room for the other screws to level out the platform. On the plus side I very rarely have to re-level it though, I think I've only done it three times so far.

[destroyer2012 0]

Couldn't figure out how my assembly was wrong. The arms are definitely flexing down, as if the linear bearings at the back are not attached solidly. Could be they are a bit too big right? Anyway I am going to take I Robert I's view and not care. Although another problem is that my bed leveling screws are very hard to turn. Thus, again, making it hard to level the bed. Bed leveling is just such an annoying thing!

I've also discovered that my acrylic is warped up a bit in the middle. Oh well, perhaps it's time to switch to aluminum or glass... all the better for the heated bed I guess. I just wish the default bed setup was easier (three thumbscrews from below?) so I wouldn't have to muck about with it as much.