Raising my Z axis.

[DanZ]

I just bought my first CNC...4' x 8'.
I also chose the Mach 3 Program.
...until I plane my sacrificial MDF board...I need to be able to raise my Z axis...so that it does not "skim" along the top when moving to the next cut. (Apparently, some places are a bit higher than others.)
Could you give me that info?
Thanks.
Dan

[Hood]

The axis moves are controlled by your code so your code will have to have the z heaight which is safe.
If you use CAM to write your code then you will need to tell the CAM what that height should be so that when the code is written it is safe.
Hood

[DanZ]

Thank you Hood
Does it matter if I'm using Cut 2D by Vectric?
AND...I thought I could find a screen that adjusted my Z axis to travel up .5"...instead of .25" before it started to  moved along the X or Y axis.
Wouldn't that be in the Mach 3 program?
Dan

[Hood]

I have not used Vectric cut2D but all CAM programmes will have a way for entering a safe Z height.

You can set soft limits in Mach so that the axis will not go beyond that setting but to do that you really need to have home switches (it can be done without). This will however not help in your case as it would not allow you to move lower than the value you have set for Z min so you would not be able to cut.

So in essence if  the problem is when you are running code then you need to have the code correct which is your CAM programmes responsibility (or yours if you code manually)

Hood

[Picengraver]

Dan,
In Cut 2D, on the Toolpaths tab, select 'setup material' icon and enter a distance for 'Rapid clearance gap'.

This will set your gcode to raise the Z axis between moves as you are asking.

Regards,
John Champlain

[DanZ]

Thank you...both of you.
I'll try this. I'll look at it tomorrow AM.
Dan

[manmeran]

if you want change Z manually, you can use THC option .

Amir

[DanZ]

Thank you Amir.
I'll look for it.
Dan

[Bob La Londe]

Hmmm... I use Cam Bam for most things and I can set the Z clearnace for each MOP.  For quicky jobs I use NFS Wizard and I can set it per MOP there too.  What I can't do easily is set a low Z clearance during the MOP and a high Z clearnace to move from area of the work piece to another before starting the next MOP. 

One example would be cutting a pocket inside of a pocket.  Why raise the cutter to a height above Zero only to drop it all the way down to the current work surface below zero on each position move.  Its waste of machine time. 

In order to do that I either need to manually edit my code for each MOP so the first Z position is truly safe or create a seperate MOP for moving from one MOP to the next. 

[manmeran]

Thank you Amir.
I'll look for it.
Dan

hey Dan
i attach image .

Amir