Messages

941

General Mach Discussion / Re: Tool offsets and long delays vs Work offsets - help

« on: February 14, 2011, 07:50:54 PM »

Now that is WEIRD! All my code looks like that and loads and runs just fine.
OK, I have about 40+ years experience programming computers at all levels, so I tend to think that way. Mind-set!

I have attached a very simple version of that program with just one subroutine call. Could you try it maybe?

Spindle mode for threading - yes, I do that on the 'real' machine. The XML is from my simulation machine.

Cheers
Roger

942

General Mach Discussion / Re: Tool offsets and long delays vs Work offsets - help

« on: February 14, 2011, 07:10:25 PM »

The tools3.dat, renamed as TXT because I can't upload DAT files here.

943

General Mach Discussion / Re: Tool offsets and long delays vs Work offsets - help

« on: February 14, 2011, 07:06:26 PM »

The XML

944

General Mach Discussion / Re: Tool offsets and long delays vs Work offsets - help

« on: February 14, 2011, 07:04:57 PM »

The 4-head unit

945

General Mach Discussion / Re: Tool offsets and long delays vs Work offsets - help

« on: February 14, 2011, 07:03:17 PM »

The program

946

General Mach Discussion / Re: Tool offsets and long delays vs Work offsets - help

« on: February 14, 2011, 06:58:19 PM »

Hi Hood

I will ... but I seem to have hung up the Forum SW with the attachments. Working ...

Cheers

947

General Mach Discussion / Re: Tool offsets and long delays vs Work offsets - help

« on: February 14, 2011, 06:33:04 PM »

In Turn only the m6start is used. Dont recall whats in the m6 start macro as standard as mine is a custom one.

M6Start:
  tool = GetSelectedTool()
  SetCurrentTool( tool )

My spindle never turns off unless I press stop or call m5.

Yeah - that is what I want! But I can't get it to happen. Very strange.

Cheers

948

General Mach Discussion / Re: Tool offsets and long delays vs Work offsets - help

« on: February 14, 2011, 06:20:59 PM »

No, I don't need to stop anything. Just change the entry in the tool table being used for offsets.

I have the system configured to use the Auto-tool change option now, but it still stops the chuck when the program does a Tn command.
In fact, if it is using T2 and the program issues another T2 (for safety reasons and the program is modular), then it still stops the chuck.
I am using the stock M6Start mand M6End macros - they don't seem to do anything with the chuck.

Puzzling.

Cheers

949

General Mach Discussion / Tool offsets and long delays vs Work offsets - help

« on: February 14, 2011, 05:39:06 PM »

I am using a lathe with a custom multi-head tool holder.
Mach has a nice system which lets me position each tool to the job, hit Touch X/Z, and set up the tool table. This works well.

However, when changing tools (T202 etc) in the program, I have to M3 after each tool change, So there is a very long delay while the chuck stops, and then spins up again.  So, questions:

Is there any way to tell the system to just change the tool table entry used and NOTHING else? ie, no long delays. (Yes, I know I have to clear the job first!)

Or, is there any way to set up work offsets automatically, tool table style? I could juts as easily flip work offsets for this job.

Thanks

950

Mach Screens / Re: using my mill as a lathe

« on: February 08, 2011, 06:42:32 PM »

Do you mean you have a multiple tool holder along these lines?
I used the Tool Table screen and created tool offsets for each tool. It's a bit fiddly, but I can save and relabel the tools3.dat files.
Then all I have to do is re-zero the tool#1 which is (MUST BE) at 0,0

Cheers