This is in reference to the 3in MAXSwerve Module. In the Steering Gear Subassembly, when you Install the UltraPlanetary stack on the top of the Bottom Plate and tighten the four long bolts, the steering binds and will not turn. If you loosen the bolts enough to let the pinion gear turn, you end up with a gap between the UltraPlanetary Block, and the Bottom Plate. If you assemble it without the pinion gear, there is no gap. We measured the gap with a feeler gauge and removed that much from the bearing land of the pinion gear on the end that does not have the gear.
Insert standard disclaimers, DO NOT do this if you are not an experienced machinist. This has worked for us, I cannot guarantee that it will work for you, you could always leave the bolts loose and put Loctite on them.
Did anyone else have this issue? If yes how did you fix it?
Our team overtightened on our first assembly last year. Our swerve assembly captain now instructs “There is a happy medium of not too loose and not too tight”. She “puts loctite on those bolts and sets them where they need to be”. No issues yet with any during competitions last year. This included 2 regionals, Houston, State championship, 2 off-season tournaments and several outreach events. Our off-season Olaf bot with Maxswerve survived the theater in a Disney Frozen production. We are looking forward to running the Maxswerve on this season’s robot as well.
Ultra planetaries are very easy to over tighten. I remember hearing that finger tight and loctite was the suggestion from REV, though I don’t remember who I heard it from. If you really tighten up the bolts till they feel tight to someone used to #10-32s, the gear box will seize. But that doesn’t sound like your problem, I’d make real sure that everything was assembled properly before trimming any parts, but you probably already did that. A student got a drive pinion on upside down on one of ours and totally seize the drive on that module, but so far the only problem we’ve had with the 8 MAXSwerves we’ve assembled is some over length bolts for mounting the 550s.