3 ms·
It is, in my opinion, no coincidence that backlash and battiness both start with a B. Keeping up with (semi) predictable flexture would be... well, not a doddle
by stan_rogers 7y ago
It is, in my opinion, no coincidence that backlash and battiness both start with a B. Keeping up with (semi) predictable flexture would be... well, not a doddle as such, but... if you didn't also have to deal with backlash. Sure, there's a point where everything is, to a first approximation, made of rubber, but it's a lot easier to move that point by modifying or improving the tool than trying to trim the end of a diving board with a laser-assisted pole-mounted pruning saw.
- colechristensen 7y agoMy thinking goes, the end of the road is always "everything is rubber" when it comes to precision, so I might as well start off with that reality and see where it can take me. On the other hand: wear. Even the best machines all experience wear all around and there is a lot of work keeping up with it or recovering from it. Keeping precision despite drift from wear and being able to trivially quantify it are really valuable.
- jbay808 7y agoThe very best machines don't really ever wear out. The surfaces mate over the full area so even sliding bearings experience hydrodynamic contact. Or, they're built with fluid bearings to begin with. (Assuming they're handled properly and kept clean, of course).