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General Mach Discussion / confused about how to interface Mach 3 to Mill ....
« on: November 22, 2009, 11:27:05 PM »
Hi!
A few years back I looked at Mach 3 and what it took to hook it to steppers to work a small router .... put the plans on hold while I got married and moved across the US (married a woman who is parlayed and needs 24/7 care .... want to set up a small home shop to make a living while watching her .... http://mcsele.shutterfly.com ).
I have just found a small bed mill with bad electronics that may be a good candidate for Mach 3.
It has 3 axis servos as well as several MPG's, limit switches and such.
First question .... is there enough outputs from parallel ports ( I assume I can still find / build a computer with two ports) to make a full blown mill work ? What is the most cost efficient interface board made that I can use to interface the ports with the servo amplifiers / controllers ( may need new ones also depending on what is presently on the mill)?
If I need (or should) look at a motion control board, again, what is them most economical to use? I see a few out there ( although most are for steppers and I need one for servos). I am hopping to get the mill for less that $1000 and am on a very tight budget. I don't want to spend several thousand on a board to interface the computer and mill. Electronics is a hobby of mine. Is there any plans or kits out there that would reduce my cost?
Any advice would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks .... Mike
A few years back I looked at Mach 3 and what it took to hook it to steppers to work a small router .... put the plans on hold while I got married and moved across the US (married a woman who is parlayed and needs 24/7 care .... want to set up a small home shop to make a living while watching her .... http://mcsele.shutterfly.com ).
I have just found a small bed mill with bad electronics that may be a good candidate for Mach 3.
It has 3 axis servos as well as several MPG's, limit switches and such.
First question .... is there enough outputs from parallel ports ( I assume I can still find / build a computer with two ports) to make a full blown mill work ? What is the most cost efficient interface board made that I can use to interface the ports with the servo amplifiers / controllers ( may need new ones also depending on what is presently on the mill)?
If I need (or should) look at a motion control board, again, what is them most economical to use? I see a few out there ( although most are for steppers and I need one for servos). I am hopping to get the mill for less that $1000 and am on a very tight budget. I don't want to spend several thousand on a board to interface the computer and mill. Electronics is a hobby of mine. Is there any plans or kits out there that would reduce my cost?
Any advice would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks .... Mike