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Messages - dphens

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11
General Mach Discussion / Re: Backlash or something else??
« on: August 26, 2010, 12:32:26 PM »
Sorry. I've seen digital readouts that you can add to tooling equipment. An external device that measures actual axis movement. Seems to be something more geared to retrofitting a manual mill, but thought it might be a neat project to try (especially if it gave me more accurate distance measurements).

Like these: http://www.hobbymetrix.com/scales/digitalscalemain.htm

12
General Mach Discussion / Re: Backlash or something else??
« on: August 26, 2010, 08:30:22 AM »
OK, I added .003 to the X axis for backlash comp and it's definitely helped. Still not perfectly round, but I can seem to find a number the eliminates it all. I've toyed with the idea of a DRO for the X axis so that I could see how far the gantry moves. Do you think this would help me determine more accurately how much backlash I have?

I was/am hoping to use the machine for small engravings, with letters less that .25" high. The backlash my make this unfeasible though.

13
General Mach Discussion / Re: Backlash or something else??
« on: August 25, 2010, 09:10:14 PM »
No problem Rich. I think that sentence was a little misleading.  :)

14
General Mach Discussion / Re: Backlash or something else??
« on: August 25, 2010, 09:01:26 PM »
No, I was indicating that circles .5" or so in size is where I was seeing the problem.

I'll have to measure the flat spot. How can spot or measure flex?

I'll play around with the backlash comp too and run a few tests.

Thanks for the replies!

Dave

15
General Mach Discussion / Backlash or something else??
« on: August 25, 2010, 08:24:23 PM »
Hi,

I have a new CNC machine and need some assistance. I am fairly new to the CNC world - been dabbling in it for about a year now and just upgraded to a 24x36 machine. I've been running some tests, making basic geometric shapes and verifying the size. Everything had been ok for the most part except circles. Larger circles appear fine, but smallers circles have flat spots on the left and right of the circle (along the X axis). I assumed I had some backlash, but when I use a dial indicator to try an measure it, I am getting results of .003 or less on the X axis. Is that enough to throw off a small circle (.5" or so)?

Are there any other issues that may also cause this?

If it matters, I am using Vcarve Pro to crate the gcode along with Mach3.

Any help is appreciated!

Dave

16
General Mach Discussion / Re: Help me understand....
« on: July 23, 2009, 11:36:26 AM »
Thanks Hood! That's what I needed to know!  ;D

17
General Mach Discussion / Re: Help me understand....
« on: July 23, 2009, 11:11:02 AM »
Right, but does that (should that) change the units in the DRO's? I am using Cut2d to generate my code and I don't think I saw either G20 or G21 in the code - need to verify that though.

Dave

18
General Mach Discussion / Help me understand....
« on: July 23, 2009, 07:44:35 AM »
Ok, I am about 95% of the way there (I think!  ;D). Last night I ran my first live test - tool in the router, router on, and workpiece (foam) on the table. I managed to run three small jobs and it worked! However, leading up to that, I spent about an hour in frustration, some of which I did figure out.

What I need help with is the measurement system. When I set Mach3 up, I just instinctively chose inches since it's what I am used to. I am using metric for most of the parts I am designing though. So, if I design a part in metric and then load the gcode into Mach, do I need to switch Mach to metric? If so, I assume I do this on the Settings tab and not through the config screen (heard that in the video tutorial).

Should the DRO's reflect the measurement system of the job or will they always show inches. Like I said, I did get three small jobs to run, but afterwards, I had a moment of "ok, how did I do that?".  ???

Thanks!

Dave

19
General Mach Discussion / Re: Workflow with Mach
« on: July 22, 2009, 01:14:14 PM »
Thanks Jeff! I'll check that out.

Dave

20
General Mach Discussion / Re: Workflow with Mach
« on: July 22, 2009, 12:31:01 PM »
Yep, just verified. States right in the program when trying to save toolpaths using different tools that "automatic toolchaging is not supported in this program".

Couldn't I just paste all the code from each file into one file and then insert code to perform a manual tool change?

Dave

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