Screw Mate
Makes a part advance along its axis as it turns, by the distance for one turn.
When to Use It
- A nut on a lead screw
- A jack screw
- A vise screw
Step by Step
- Open an assembly (assemblies need the Pro plan) with at least two components in it. See Assemblies: Start and Insert Parts.
- Click Mate on the Assembly tab (or right-click a component and choose Assembly tools, Mate...), then click the Mechanical tab at the top of the window.
- Click the nut's round face, circular edge or axis on one component. It shows as Nut.
- Click the screw's round face, circular edge or axis on a different component. It shows as Screw. The two axes must line up on one center line.
- Click Screw.
- Type the Distance for one turn (the pitch, times the number of starts). It starts at a small value (1 mm).
- Tick Reverse for a left-hand thread.
- Click the green check.
Options
- Distance for one turn: above 0 and at most 1,000,000 mm.
- Reverse: left-hand thread.
- Use for positioning only and Make first selection transparent work as on the Standard tab.
Tips and What to Expect
- Axes that sit side by side are gears, not a screw. The axes must be on one line.
- The window says "The two axes of a screw mate must line up (parallel)." when they are not parallel.
- The tree shows the pitch, for example Screw1 (1.5 mm a turn, left hand).
- Flip Mate Alignment is not available for this mate.
Common Problems
- Every button is grey. The picks do not fit any mate on this tab. The status line says what is missing, for example "Pick more entities." Remove a pick (click it again or press Delete in Mate Selections) and try again.
- "Collapse the exploded view to add mates." Mates cannot be added while the assembly is exploded.
- The Over defined prompt appears. The new mate conflicts with the ones already there. See Mates: Fixing Mate Problems.