Messages

1

General Mach Discussion / Re: motors growling,help

« on: May 13, 2007, 07:27:07 PM »

Yes it runs find as long as I don't fire the torch, if I had built a router, I would of been fine. I am thinking about buying a new plasma unit. I am looking at a Thermal Dynamics, Cutmaster 51. Does anyone know for sure if a manual unit has a place for arc ok and tip voltage?

2

General Mach Discussion / Re: motors growling,help

« on: May 12, 2007, 06:34:49 PM »

It was just the third one, the first two cut normal, the motors sounded right. When I ran the third, the motors started started growling at the start of the cut,with the THC unhooked it did not fault and stop. It finished the cut right where it started, just about half the size of the rest. Same program.

3

General Mach Discussion / motors growling,help

« on: May 12, 2007, 02:25:01 AM »

Hello All
 I built a cnc plasma machine a few years ago and I was running with Mach 2 and no THC. I recently upgraded it with Bob Campbell's assembled enclosure and new stepper motors and I hooked up the THC300 and changed to Mach 3. I am running an older ESAB plasma unit with the high frequency start. I grounded my table and plasma unit to earth ground. When I ran a test program the torch would fault on the  THC and would stop. I would click the reset and the motors would start growling and jerking. I would have to reboot the computer to stop the growling. I thought I was getting noise back through the THC, so I disconnected the THC and just hooked a relay to an output to turn torch on and off. I made two test cuts, it seemed ok. On the third one the motors started growling and jerking. This time is it ran the program all the way through. It wasn't losing steps,because it went back to the spot it started and cut off. It was about half the size of what it should of been. Can this still be noise from the plasma or is this a problem with Mach.

Thanks
Chuck

4

General Mach Discussion / Re: limit switches on Fet4

« on: September 26, 2006, 05:44:26 PM »

Thanks Jim
 Actually Jim, I have got that problem solved and had been running with the THC300. Now I have a new problem, the relay on the sensor board has quit. I pulled the sensor board out and hooked up my old relay to torch on and off on plasma machine to finish the project I was cutting. I was wondering if the THC300 would still control the heighth if I didn't have the switch working Thur the sensor board.  I found that after I unhooked it, that it was working better than I thought. I started to go Thur tips again. So I need to get it going again.
 Thanks
 Chuck

5

General Mach Discussion / Re: rapid travel problem

« on: April 25, 2006, 04:07:39 PM »

Brian
 Yes that helps knowing that. But could you explain you formula a little more. I write down all helpful formulas with explanations to remember with. A lot of them I may go a year with out needing and I forget how and have to look it up. The past 5 years I have worked in a shop that has everything on CAD, no paper prints. That will really spoil you fast. When I have to do a trig problem I have to stop and think for a while.
 Thanks Chuck

6

General Mach Discussion / Re: rapid travel problem

« on: April 24, 2006, 08:59:30 PM »

Brian
 I think I got it fixed. the units per second wasn't set the same on x and y in the motor tuning. It hasn't stalled since. But the feed rate DRO is still showing to be going faster in an angular move. The FRO is set at 40 ipm which is tops for my motors.
 Chuck

7

General Mach Discussion / Re: rapid travel problem

« on: April 23, 2006, 02:39:47 PM »

Brian
 I haven't tried that yet, but I turned the aceration down some more. Then it started losing steps during the cut, but not while I was dry running a program or jogging. I have motors tuned to maximun speed that they can handle and I cut at the same speed.  When I first started running it was the same, now during an angler rapid move it trys to go faster than max speed. John is problay right because I am still in the go carts, no where near NASCAR.
 Chuck

8

General Mach Discussion / rapid travel problem

« on: April 22, 2006, 06:46:54 PM »

Hello
 I am running Mach 2 with a plasma cutter. I am having trouble with rapid travel overspeeding and losing steps. It only does it during a diagonal move. A straight line movement with x or y, it works fine, but x and y together, it jumps the speed up. It will do it running a program and jogging.
 Thanks for any help
 Chuck

9

General Mach Discussion / Re: THC300 Instaltion

« on: February 04, 2006, 10:59:26 AM »

Hello Art
 Thanks for the reply, I had tried that and the LED went out. But it still didn't light up when switch was tripped by hand.
 I have voltage at the switch. It is wired normally open.
 Thanks
  Chuck

10

General Mach Discussion / THC300 Instaltion

« on: February 04, 2006, 10:41:40 AM »

I am using Mach2 and I am installing Bob Campbell"s THC300 box. I built a floating head for my torch head and mounted a switch on it for a probe. I have it hooked up to sensor board, probe lugs. I have Digitize bock checked, port 2 pin 13 on Input Pins screen. Digitize LED is lit up on Diagnostics page. When I trip the switch by hand, the LED doesn't change, is there a way to check to see if Mach2 is picking it up?
  I was also checking the fine and coarse adjustment knobs on THC box. I had the jumper across TP5 and TP8 like user guide said. Turned coarse knob CW and the UP LED lit up on Diagnostics screen and THC box. Turned it CCW and the Down LEDs lit up. The user guide said it should of worked the other way. Does any one have any ideas?

 Thanks
  Chuck