Topics

1

Mach3 under Vista / uc100 in windows 7 having brain farts

« on: April 29, 2014, 11:30:46 AM »

Hi guys. I had been running my uc100 from a windows 8 laptop, with no problems. Then, I got a windows 7 tower, did a clean sweep, updated all the drivers, set it all back to factory conditions,, and began running my g540, with uc100 through the win7 tower. Its been problematic! Several times the system has freaked out, where I am using he keyboard to manually move the steppers, and the motors start making that rough, jumpy noise, and going the wrong direction.  The only way to fix it has been to shut everything down, unplug the uc100, arrange the cable slightly different, plug it back in, and then fire everything up again. Im pretty sure its an issue of interference from the stepper cables, or the power cords. Strange that it was never an issue with the win 8 laptop. Im using the high quality shielded cables and db9 connectors that commonly are sold with g540 controllers.

Is there a better, more secure cable for the uc100? Any tricks to shield it? Would a clean download of mach3 possibly help? The way it is now, Im running my original copy of mach3 from the win8 machine, in the win 7 machine.

Thanks!

2

Show"N"Tell ( Your Machines) / recommend a good bench top or knee mill cnc retrofit

« on: February 01, 2014, 11:05:56 AM »

Im looking to buy a good solid vertical mill, preferably easy to convert to cnc. It needs to be solid enough to cut aluminum, and thinner steel. Not deep heavy hogging, just hobby stuff, but would need to be able to keep precision. Larger than a sherline. I would consider older models too. There are so many out there, and many look the exact same with a different color or brand.  Plus would be including a DRO and power feed on 1 or more axis. Another plus would be taper tool holders so tools could be built to a spec, and changed without hassle.

What do you guys recommend?

3

Building or Buying a Wood routing table.. Beginnners guide.. / cnc6040 how to face the table?

« on: January 29, 2014, 09:08:26 AM »

I have been having tons of fun operating my Chinese sourced cnc 6040 router. Its a working nc machine, with some serious limits. Like many others, I have found that the supplied aluminum extruded T slot table is soo not flat that no precision cutting can be done using the table as a reference. So, I went about trying to face the table, with bad results. Lots of chatter, and steps generated resulting in a very bad finish. Also, the high spots seem to stay high even after cutting.  I know the tram that guides the y axis allows the bridge assembly( that literally is the x and z axis ) to rock back and forth about .1 inch! It rides on acetal, or nylon sliders on chromed tubes. Also, I dont have a large selection of end mills. So, anyway, Im wondering if some body can recommend some feeds and speeds, cutting depth and tool type to face my table. Also any way to tighten up the y axis guide sliders so it will not chatter? Writing the program and or using a wizard to create the code is no problem, but im quite sure my tooling is not ideal, and so everything else is not ideal either.

4

Bargain Basement / cnc 6040 3 axis router control box NEW

« on: January 27, 2014, 10:22:10 AM »

I bought a Chinese made cnc 6040 router. I never used the stock control box. Its brand new, un used, un tested. 3 axis control. No spindle control, as my machine came with a vfd separate.  I will also include the factory cables, but I have cut off the motor ends to use for my own cables. Im currently using g540, so this controller was never used or even plugged in.

Asking 150.00 plus shipping. Make an offer?

Ebay id rcwingsnwheels, if you would like to check feedback. I do accept paypal.





Thanks!

5

General Mach Discussion / feed command not responding

« on: January 20, 2014, 06:07:38 PM »

Alright, so I did search this topic, but not finding results. Im having trouble with feed rate in mach3. It seems like if I goto mdi and move the spindle, then back to run mode and start, then the feed will just run at rapid speed. This is not consistant! Sometimes, it dosent do that. While editing g code, I can change feed rate, and sometimes the machine will pick it up, and sometimes it remains at the previous feed rate. I was trying to use the feed rate over ride to get things moving, but then when I tried that, it finally picked up my new (slower) edited feed rate, and then it was too slow. I cannot get the same feed rate from part to part!  HELP!

n10  g94f6.x0.y0.z0.5
n20 x.12y-.25
n40 z-.053
n50 y1.2
n60 x.2
n70 y-.2
n80 x.4
n90 y1.2
n100 x.6
n110 y-.2

This is the first part of my program, just a portion of it. The first line is the only place I have the g94f6. at. Do I need a dot after the f number? What is wrong with my code? Does it need something else? Thanks!

6

G-Code, CAD, and CAM discussions / cnc6040 + gecko 540 = many questions

« on: January 19, 2014, 10:39:26 PM »

Hello. This is my first post. A little about my self. I am a production machinist by trade. I work on haas, and okuma  machines, running good ole fanuc controls. Ive not done any real programming, just heavy editing of known programs, for parts and materials that I am very familiar with.

So, I bought a Chinese made cnc 6040 router table, and a gecko 540 controller,, and figured it would be simple for a pro like me to just get it up and cutting chips in no time. Its a bit more complicated than I thought. Im trying to cut acetal plastic using a .250 2 flute endmill. Just a simple pocket. I thought it would cut like butter, but its more like aluminum. Initially I stalled out the machine by trying to take too big of a cut, and after E stopping, and raising everything up, I found that all 3 axis had lost position. So, when I went to "go to zero" it went a couple inches off from where zeros were set.

How can I prevent that from happening again? Do I have the velocity in mach3 too high? My settings are as follows : 10160 steps per inch, velocity 78, acceleration 7.8, step pulse 3 , dir pulse 2.   Speed is a bit fast, as I had to slow feed down in g code to f3, and then reduce manually on the mach screen to 60%.  Depth of cut was .05, and spindle speed was 15k. Yeah, Im pretty sure the vfd was reading 15k,, or it might have been 1500,, but pretty sure it was 15k. The vfd goes up to 40k, but its got the decimal point at a strange spot in the display, so im not 100% sure about it. Im controlling the spindle manually, as I dont know how to hook up the Chinese made vfd to the gecko 540 yet.

Regarding the machine itself; Can anybody recommend some T nuts and clamping hardware for the extruded aluminum T slot table? How about a good smallish (4"?) LOW PROFILE vice I can indicate for set up?

Thanks for your time!