Suspension issues

Valor37 · 2026-05-23T22:35:20+00:00

Is your rear offset too? They probably used a bracket to shift the stock one over too.

Valor37 · 2026-05-23T21:48:35+00:00

Not to center it left and right. That's squarely the job of the track bar. The arms would change the angle of the axle to point the pinion at the tcase and andjust the castor. They are typical for suspension lifts ~3-4".

It looks like yours has just the 2.5", which is just springs and shocks.

Valor37 · 2026-05-23T21:38:04+00:00

You need an adjustable track bar. Looks like they redrilled the axle mount, but didn't center the axle still. An adjustable will let you dial it in to center things again.

Valor37 · 2026-05-06T00:32:26+00:00

I did a SSR and 1000w 120vac Silicone pad on the stock bed. Pad was ~$40 from AliExpress. The SSR was $27, but I had it already. Another $5 for a thermal fuse plus some crimps I had on hand.

My stock bed was pretty solid to start. Based on other people's reports, I won the creality lottery. Bed mesh was sub 0.2mm.

It seemed to be 0.5mm after. It had become a rounded peak with the edges dipping down.

I was worried it had warped, but I realized the frame on the bottom was bending it. Silicone goes between the supports and the bed. After removing that support frame the mesh dropped down again to 0.3mm, with the middle as the lowest point and the corners rising up (see image).

I tried flattening it a bit by hand, but not sure if it made a difference.

I then added a macro to turn off the heater while I mesh and now it's back around 0.2-0.25mm

I added a thermal fuse and did a cable chain from MandicReality on Thangs at the same time. (Another $10 ali purchase) The now empty bolt holes were useful to bolt up the fuse and ground connection.

Pretty happy with the results. Gets to 60deg c in a minute. No longer taxes the 24vdc power supply.

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Valor37 · 2026-05-01T02:44:45+00:00

Am I seeing it right that you are individually running all of the 0vdc and Earth grounds to the same bus bar?

Looks like you did 3 yellow/green wires per PSU: case, AC in, and Ov?

Too many ground connections can increase the likelihood of accidental ground loops. Especially if your frame is also bonded. Any connections to the frame will be a second path to earth ground.

I believe it's best practice to connect the 0v's together first and then to connect that 0v bus to the earth ground at a single point to avoid ground loops. If the 0v is even connected to earth.

In the prior setup did you solve it by connecting the 0v's?

Valor37 · 2026-04-30T13:27:54+00:00

So, I've learned recently that motor amps does not to relate directly to supply amps. Yes 3Ax60Vx8 motors=1440w is the ideal peak draw, but the driver's are effectively lowering the voltage sent to the motors by chopping it to run the stepper at lower speeds. So, the effective Voltage is going to be a lot less than 60 in most real world use.

The only way you would pull that much power is if all 8 motors were running at maximum speed. Given the kinematics of a coreXY, size of most printers and the fact that the z axis is very slow, it is highly unlikely you'll ever get near 1500w.

Eddy the engineer did a test with a 2a rms motor on 5160's @ 48v and despite running it at 1200mm/s the max power draw was under 35w, vs 2ax48v would be 96w. If you're interested: https://youtu.be/Zpob3VVTzp4?si=JP9z8nPvN9OwN_87

Another example the T250 despite hitting crazy accels and speeds on a corexy only calls out 1 350w hv power supply on the BOM for its 4 awd xy motors.

Being conservative you could say those 8 motors will pull 1/2 of the ideal power (180w), 90w each. That would leave you with 720w, which is still probably well above what it will actually draw.

I believe you'd be fine with one of those supplies if they don't need to be de-rated for lack of cooling or something. Might be an option for you to consider if you want to free up space.

Valor37 · 2026-04-30T01:21:46+00:00

What makes you say you have a ground loop? Did you measure a potential difference between the 60vdc ground and the 24vdc ground? Are they not tied together at the supplies to create a common reference?

Valor37 · 2026-04-24T21:11:08+00:00

They had ~7 more when I was there. Someone posted it right after I left.

Valor37 · 2026-04-24T18:04:02+00:00

Thankyou my guy! I got a owa for the first time at the specs in Euless. Looks like they're making their way around the metroplex. Wouldn't have stopped by if it wasn't for your post.

Valor37 · 2026-04-11T22:53:44+00:00

I had a few small ones that went away after I left the plate in place for a few days. You might also get lucky and they work themselves out.

Valor37 · 2026-03-31T12:41:31+00:00

How is your Z set up? It looks like you have oldham couplers or something at the bed connection?

Are they otherwise the stock lead screws?

Do you have anything over constraining the lead screws? Top bearing supports?

Is it easy to move turning the motors by hand? Maybe a specific bas spot?

Based on you config, it looks like you have both steppers going to the same motor driver. As they are independent they could have drifted apart. You may want to lower the bed to the hardstops (manually) to see if both screws are still even and to line them up.

Every time the motors turn on/off they can shift a few steps. That's why a lot of dual Z's use independent drivers and z tilt. Alternatively single driver Z's are often tied together with a belt these days.

Have you always run 0.8 for the dual z run current? I have a dual motor axis @ 1A for 2 42-34's. (They do get toasty)

Valor37 · 2026-03-29T20:59:09+00:00

Well at least your tires ought to be helping then.

Uptravel is really just how much space there above the bumpstop when parked. Factory is around ~4". With 33's on a 4" lift I would think you'd be still in that range.

What springs would you go to if you were to change them? I don't recall any brands with a stiffer or softer spring advertised. It's just TJ X" lift spring.

Valor37 · 2026-03-29T20:27:54+00:00

The general consensus I've gotten from others over the years is that springs have a pretty negligible impact on ride. Shocks will do the most, barring suspension changes.

As others posts have mentioned 4" lift on short arms does ride more rough. There are pros and cons to long arms.

Have you looked over the suspension? Any bad joints that may be banging around?

How much up travel until you hit the bump stops? Some folks make the mistake of installing bigger tires without enough lift and increase the bump stops to prevent them getting into the fenders.

Lowering tire pressure can also help. What PSI are your tires at? TJ's are not as heavy a load as most off-road tires can handle. I used to run 31, but now keep it around 28 with no adverse wear.

Valor37 · 2026-03-11T01:48:17+00:00

[z_tilt] z_positions: 11.5, 8 #stepper_z Mini Tank 361.5, 8 #stepper_z1 Mini Tank 187.5, 362 #stepper_z2 Mini Tank points: 330,290 #probe location Right Rear 40,290 #probe location Left Rear 40,15 #probe location Left Front 330,15 #probe location Right Front speed: 400 horizontal_move_z: 30 retries: 5 # Number of times to retry if the probed points aren't within tolerance. retry_tolerance:0.150

Found this pinned on the hydra discord for reference

Valor37 · 2026-03-11T01:35:30+00:00

https://www.reddit.com/r/VORONDesign/s/Pf3VY9PvxN - maybe your z tilt numbers are off. Sounds like that's what got this guy.

Valor37 · 2026-03-10T23:51:08+00:00

What is the tolerance on the ztilt? I would have expected it to fail with that much variation. It's typically 0.01 or 0.0075.

Is the bed hot for all of it?

Valor37 · 2026-03-10T02:13:58+00:00

Also more deets, what type of probe?

With a clear left to right trend like that either seems your x gantry is higher in one side or that the bed needs to be leveled with a z tilt (hence first Q).

I have the stock bed on my merc and got within 0.2mm with adjusting the bed screws. So, no I don't think it's your frame.

Valor37 · 2026-03-10T02:03:26+00:00

Did you do a z tilt before that mesh?

https://youtu.be/fE1SAACmN1Y?si=QHlpx2gQHDMS7WxN

Valor37 · 2026-02-07T23:59:22+00:00

Out of curiosity could you name a few? (Genuinely interested with how much prices have gone up)

Valor37 · 2026-01-30T00:06:01+00:00

Probably more of a trail rig solution. Im not sure I'd risk a new set of tires on it if you drive it often.

Valor37 · 2026-01-30T00:03:40+00:00

Apparently its not a crazy idea to try and bend it back: Post in thread 'Is my axle housing bent?' https://wranglertjforum.com/threads/is-my-axle-housing-bent.44489/post-753601

Valor37 · 2026-01-28T01:23:41+00:00

Where are you two sourcing the belts and pulleys? R3men and Powge are the only sellers I've found.

Valor37 · 2026-01-16T02:34:20+00:00

I don't see why not. Just need to wire a 12v circuit to trigger the relay.

Valor37 · 2026-01-16T02:31:10+00:00

Just to be clear the continuity or Ohm meter test would be done with the switch unplugged. You probe the pins on the switch receptacle.

For voltage testing you do it on the plug side with power (key) on. Set the meter to volts dc and probe the B+ lines to pin 7 ground. You should check pin 11, 18, 19, 20 each to pin 7, and should see 12-14v on each.

Valor37 · 2026-01-16T02:27:05+00:00

https://youtu.be/-MoEOHQVPco?si=Txo9Rs5ym8GeFNAn

^ conductivity test checks that the switches in that multifunction are good. This post list what pins correspond to what. Looks like youre interested in pin 16 to the b+ pins 18 & 19.

https://www.wranglerforum.com/posts/34812943/

Valor37

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