My edit of esbowman's v27 Tensioners

[SEBRET]

First of all I would like to give credit to esbowmen for all the development work he did on his tensioner designs. The reason I made my own edit is more personal taste than functional but I will list the changes and the process behind them.

01 - Stability
The v27s are more than capable in their own right, but I'm the type that likes to over engineer everything. So I made the overall device bigger and thicker to reduce flex and increased the surface area that rests against the melamine. I also added a lip on the center so that it will grab the thumbscrew spacer without needing the screw. I recommend installing the screw anyway, but at least you have the option. The body now snugly grips the sides and back surfaces of the tower top so there is very little play.

02 - Aesthetics
I'm a sucker for symmetry/simplicity, so i wanted the design to be smooth and somewhat monolithic. I also wanted to hide as much of the hardware as I could, because i like the cleanliness of it all.

03 - Function
The mechanics are essentially the same. I designed the slides to take a nylon lock nut so that one you get the pulley screw in, you don't need to worry about it again. The design is also laid out for use with a 2.25inch and 2x1.75inch #6-32 socket head cap screws, which i got here http://www.mcmaster.com/#92185a161/=z4kwbn and the heads are embedded to be just below the top cover which I'm going to add access holes to so I can adjust them without removing anything. I'm considering raising the heads of the adjustment screws above the body so that they are flush in the holes of the new top cover I'm designing, but I'll update if that pans out.


If there is any further interest, feel free to ask questions. Once I finish the other two towers i'll clean up the models and add them to the thread.

[jason128]

Very nice- I like the use of the cap screws rather than bolts - very clean

[SEBRET]

And here are the Parts

part 1 is the top and is installed last. First make sure to insert a nut into the bottom of part 2 and 3. Slide the 2.25inch bolt through part 2 and install it. put a lock nut in part 3 and screw the two parts until firm, but not too tight as it needs to be able to move up and down. Slide part 1 down on top of them and insert 1.75 inch bolts. Turn until they engage the nuts at the bottom. Tighten as necessary.

Both part 2 and 3 have notches that will leave room for the zip tie used to hold down the tower wires, so it doesn't matter which side you install each on.

[stonewater]

if you could put some mouse ears on the corners that would help with the corners lifting while printing in ABS

Tom C

[SEBRET]

If you want, I'll whip some up when i get home. have you tried abs juice on the bed? I haven't had a single corner lift since i started using it. i just do a 5 loop brim and it holds almost too good.

[stonewater]

I will print it with a brim, I did one last night on a raft, what a pain.... print came out nice. what did you use for black bolt that sits on top of the top horizontal bolt?

Tom C

[SEBRET]

I'm not sure what your asking. The tops are held on with the original top plate thumb screws. The tensioner bolts are 1.75 inch #6-32 cap screws and the idler has a similar screw through it but in 2.25 inch length.

[stonewater]

hymmm my top plate never came with top plate thumb screws or anything that went into the top holes.. will have to look back at the V1 assembly manual.

Tom C

[SEBRET]

Here's the model so anyone can alter it. Just let me know if you find a way to improve it.

[SEBRET]

hymmm my top plate never came with top plate thumb screws or anything that went into the top holes.. will have to look back at the V1 assembly manual.

Tom C

I don't recall the V1 having a top plate. I started with the V2 so i can't say for sure.

[DeltaCon]

I know that this is an oldie, sorry to bring it up again. But I am interested in these tensioners for my V2. Just a question: The original V2 has a much more flexibel design, and the sliders are intended to be fixated by the bolt. In this remake thare is no posibility to adjust the axle-bolt anymore after the sliders ar attached to the upper bridge. So, it looks like it is inteded to leave the sliders un-fixed to the tower, and that way "by design" leaves play in the belt-tension. So I guess my real question is: has anyone used these succesfully?

[SEBRET]

I know that this is an oldie, sorry to bring it up again. But I am interested in these tensioners for my V2. Just a question: The original V2 has a much more flexible design, and the sliders are intended to be fixated by the bolt. In this remake there is no possibility to adjust the axle-bolt anymore after the sliders are attached to the upper bridge. So, it looks like it is intended to leave the sliders un-fixed to the tower, and that way "by design" leaves play in the belt-tension. So I guess my real question is: has anyone used these successfully?

I'm not sure where exactly your stuck on this so ill try to do a full run through again. The top piece is meant entirely to support the two vertical adjustment screws. The heads of those screws sit flush with the body so the top panel can go back on. In hindsight I would now choose to leave them proud and drill matching holes in the top cover so they instead sit flush with that, allowing adjustments without removing said panel. At the time I hadn't considered it, because me and many others were tinkering with it so often that we never really re applied the top cover, much less the side covers and acrylic windows.

The two lower sections ride up and down in the captive channels of the top piece, allowing for per side adjustments, which helps with the belt tracking. Installation is a bit wonky in that you have to install these two before the top bridge. once installed the vertical bolts block access to the pulley shaft/bolt. The key is that the shaft is snug but loose enough to slide, thus the whole assembly is free to float on the two adjustments bolts. there is no need to worry about it coming loose as the pulley shaft is caged by the two vertical bolts.

All in all, I would change the one issue with adjustment access, save for the fact that once i set them i never had to readjust, and that was years ago. The overall look of the design was more a combination of aesthetic reasoning and wanting to beef up the bridge, as it has a few inherent weak points even in my version.

Hope this helped, and feel free to ask more questions.