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General Mach Discussion / After the crash....she's a no work no more.....Z

« on: March 24, 2013, 11:21:42 PM »

Hi:
Had a "Z mistake " a few days ago and now it won't home correctly. I'm seeking some ideas on where to start looking for the problem. Here is what happened :
I screwed up the Z offset for a tool and it dug into the work  and made some "ugly noises" before I could hit the E-stop. Now when I try to "Ref all home" the Z starts up and hits the limit switch with the E-stop message. The machine coordinates are say "0" in the Z.  I believe it is hitting the limit switch and backing of just a small amount. The DRO Machine coordinate are working and I can jog the Z normally. As before when "ref all home" is selected the the result is limit switch triggered. I am getting an "abnormal condition" amber light with the message: "Axis is not refed to normal condition" I changed to the diagnostics page and have the following: M1++ is yellow, M1-- is yellow, M1 home is yellow.
Am I correct in making the assumption that due to the "crash" the Z has lost it positioning reference due to excessive load on the spindle? Could it have physically moved the switch out of position? OR is this a software issue? So, the 64 dollar question is how do I fix it and get back running.
As always, your stellar advice is GREATLY appreciated.
Thanks
 Caddy 

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General Mach Discussion / My "manual limit override"........she's a no work anymore...........

« on: June 05, 2012, 01:31:42 AM »

Well, looks as though I've messed it up yet again. I had to replace a limit/homing switch and all seems to be back to normal EXCEPT, the "manual limit override" toggle and LED  on the Settings page has gone dark and won't respond
( red or green light) to any input. How can I reset this so I can use it if needed? Many Thanks to all of you that are burdened  with guiding  the "new people".......

3

General Mach Discussion / Normal/abnormal message

« on: June 02, 2012, 08:14:20 PM »

Hello:
I'm hoping someone has encountered this before and can guide me on how to resolve the issue:
When I purchased my machine, it was set up to home the full X+ and full Y+. I changed it to home at full X- and full Y_ . After that, the yellow/green Normal/abnormal light flashes at me all the time and when clicked on gives the message: axes not reffed to normal condition". Clearly this is from changing the homing position. I don't know how to tell the normal/abnormal light  that the homing position has changed. Have any of you experienced this and if so, please advise me how to fix it. In return, I would offer to dance at your next wedding.................
Thanks for taking the time to read and respond. And oh yes, obviously I'm not the shapest knife in the drawer on Mach 3 ..........well DUH !!

4

General Mach Discussion / "turn" question

« on: October 07, 2011, 11:20:20 PM »

Hi
 Newbie here. I need a bit of clarification here. When I D/L Mach 3 (trial ver.) I notice I now have two  "lathe" related icons. One for "Mach 3 turn" and another just labeled "lathe" When I open "turn" it appears to be a different animal than the "lathe". The lathe icon opens to a screen that appears to be identical to Mach 3 mill, while the "turn" appears to be specific to lathe operation. So.....what's the difference and which one should I direct my efforts to? From my perspective, it seems "turn" is the "correct" one to use?
Thanks Gents, as you can see, I haven't much experience to draw on..............

5

General Mach Discussion / newbie question

« on: December 26, 2009, 10:16:21 AM »

Good Morning Gents
I'm not sure this is the correct place for this post but thought a greater exposure would be here.
A basic question:
I have noticed that Mach will allow imports from numerous cad/cam programs. I have a VERY OLD Auto Cad program and have been trying to decide if it is up to the task. I have had a friend recommend "Inventor" as a good program as well. I am soliciting your input as to what programs you all like and trying to see which will work well. I'm going to have to learn how on some program so I would prefer to purchase one that will be suitable as well as user friendly.
Thanks for the input