[Oblarg]

Originally Posted by DampRobot

I think of the tensioner vs c-c debate like this. If you want to put a chain/belt between two points in something that is getting milled (like a plate or piece of tubing) and you don't care a ton about slack in the system, go with exact c-c spacing, as it'll make your life a ton easier. If you're going between two points where it's difficult to get good tolerances (like from the bottom of the robot to the top of a big welded superstructure to drive an arm) or where it's critical you dial in the tension so it can handle lots of torque, go with sliding tensioners. It'll be much easier to dial in the exact tension you want, and you can soak up the tolerance stack up through the sliding tensioner system.

This is very, very sound advice.

It occurs to me that I should try using one of those cams on a piece of 80/20, to capitalize on its natural sliding capability.