new to mach - what can i expect?

[farmertwingolf]

my machine will be setup next week. it is an older cnc mill, does not have a tool changer. the hardware is intended for mach3 so i have a full version installed on my pc.   what should i expect as far as configuring the software for my particular machine??  i will be using mastercam 9.1 for cam.  which post should i use??   im hoping to be an active member here and hopefully be able to contribute as much as i need help.   my direct email is farmertwingolf@yahoo.com         maybe some networking here can be possible also. thanks everyone

[Hood]

Software should be easy enough to set up assuming you know the connections etc that you have made.

Not sure what post is available for MasterCAM as I dont use it but if there is no post for Mach then a generic Fanuc may do.

Hood

[farmertwingolf]

I know where things are plugged into the breakout boards physically, how do I tell the software where it is?

[ger21]

the tutorial videos should get you started.
http://www.machsupport.com/videos.php

[farmertwingolf]

Ok thank you

[farmertwingolf]

Ok.    I watched the setup tutorial.  New question has to do with the dugong drives that are installed.  There is a slot on the cnc drive for tuning. And I saw on the video where they can be tuned through the software. If I tune them with mach3 software do they still need to be tuned through the actual drive?   Thanks

[Hood]

Yes,you need to tune servo drives as per Dugongs instructions, the tuning in Mach is then easy for a servo as you know the steps per unit, you know the Velocity so all you need to find is the acceleration by trial and error..
Hood

[farmertwingolf]

Thanks again hood.  Only thing I should have left is finding out which pin things are hooked up to. I emailed the guy at cnc4pc because I figure he should know since the c11 board has the parallel plug and the slots for the step, and direction wires for each axis.

[Hood]

Did you wire the BOB and drives? If so then you should know which pins they are connected to. Most BOBs have the pin numbers screen printed at the connectors but they will likely run in order, probably from pin 2 onwards.

Hood

[farmertwingolf]

Ok. I didn't know those coincided with the parallel pins.  The bob did have things like x step, x dir, and gnd printed on it. I will check their website to look at the wiring diagram again to see which numbers they were. Thanks