Question:
The turkite has started to come unglued on a machine I am trying to rebuild. I am considering replacing it and wonder if doing so would cause problems when the ball screw is reinstalled. I know the ball screw should to be aligned accurately but just how precise does it need to be?

Answer:
It depends on many factors but assuming it is a high precision machine with a quality ball screw the alignment needs to be commensurate with the accuracy of the machine. Ideally alignment in all plains should be 0.001 inch or better but on some older machines it may prove impossible to achieve. It has been said that the single most critical alignment for a ball screw is the ball nut contact flange mating surface. You can always double check for tightness with a good quality dial type torque wrench.