Sidewinder V5 Care Sheet
Please watch the V5 tuning video on my site. It explains a lot.
DO NOT USE OIL ON THIS MACHINE! The bearings are grease lubricated, and the oil will have an adverse reaction with them.
KEEP STERILANTS AWAY FROM ALL MOVING PARTS!! I cannot stress this enough. Sterilants are very corrosive, and will deteriorate the electrical contacts as well as the bearings.
Use a good firm nipple/grommet. I recommend my Half Hard Nipples. (available through my site) Pinching the needle loop onto the sides of the nipple post helps a lot. Put a bend at the tips of the needles so that it “licks” the tip of the tube.
Use Three #12 bands, or one #27 or #28 band around the vice and motor.
Upon using the machine, you may need to adjust the stroke knob on the rear of the frame. It’s the easiest adjustment to get the hit where you want it, for the speed you want to run it at. Turning it in (clockwise) will make it hit harder. Counterclockwise will shorten the stroke, and make it hit softer. Stroke should be between 2.5 to 3.5mm Average volts is between 5 and 6.
After a while, the impact screw on the a-bar will wear into the frame, and will need to be turned in. This is a fine tuning adjustment, and 1/8 turn will do a world of difference. In most cases, the armature bar should sit parallel to the frame when in the down position.
There are timing marks on the cam and frame. Push the a-bar down and roll the cam clockwise till it touches the flat spring. turning the impact screw clockwise will raise the a-bar, and move the line on the cam up. Close one eye when aligning the timing marks. If the machine seems to have lost some hit/power, it’s probably because the impact screw has settled in, and needs to be turned in slightly.
Direction of the clipcord will effect the hit of the machine. Clockwise (positive up) will hit punchier, Counterclockwise (positive down) will be a tad more passive.