Messages

11

Building or Buying a Wood routing table.. Beginnners guide.. / Router has died Need advise

« on: December 28, 2013, 07:51:23 AM »

My Router has died and I need advise please.

The time has come to replace my black & Decker router with another router or a spindle air cooled or water cooled. For me it is a bit of a mine field on what to pick now I have a budget of not over £200 and I would prefer if it was less.
I manly cut up to 6mm ply and balsa but I do have one job to cut out some brackets from 6mm aluminium, 
now I know that a spindle is a lot quieter but what size, the router I had was 600 watt will a 600 watt spindle do the same job. Would I be better going for water cooling and spending a bit more or will air cooling be just as good and what about VDF for control, there is a 1.5kw spindle air cooled with a 1.5KW VDF inverter for under £200 just add mounting. Or would I be better going for a 600Watt air cooled spindle with a power supply for Mach3 with mounting for under £150.

What would be the easiest way and best way considering my budget?  Or should I just stick with the noise of a Router?

12

FAQs / Re: Zero tool height.

« on: December 28, 2013, 05:12:34 AM »

Many thanks for all your help and advice, That's another bit sorted.
Mike.

13

FAQs / Re: Zero tool height.

« on: December 27, 2013, 11:01:03 AM »

Hi ger21,
Many thanks for your help I got it working this afternoon, Changed a couple of things set the  Probefeed = 100
Code "G31Z-5 F" &ProbeFeed is now changed to Code "G31Z-15 F" &ProbeFeed
and Code "G0 Z2.0" 'Change the Z retract height here is now changed to Code "G0 Z12.0" 'Change the Z retract height here

The only thing I'm not sure is when I lower the Z axis just off the work piece, I have to ZERO the Z before pressing the Auto Tool Zero to get it working correct, I just thought the script would automatically do this. Don't get me wrong I'm happy with the way it's working, it's just a question why and if there was a way to add this to the script.

14

FAQs / Re: Zero tool height.

« on: December 26, 2013, 10:30:10 AM »

Hi ger21,
Thanks for the quick answer.
So instead of this line       PlateThickness = GetUserDRO(0.80) 'You could put your z-plate thickness here instead     
 All I should have is this.
 
PlateThickness = 0.8
and the same as the next line
Probefeed=20

Is this correct, I can delete all the rest of the two lines?

15

FAQs / Zero tool height.

« on: December 26, 2013, 09:15:07 AM »

I'm having real trouble with setting the zero tool height.
I have followed a few threads here on machsupport forum and on you tube but still cannot get it to work correct can someone please help.
This is what I have first my breakout board is a HG07 and is wired as instructed with a 250 resistor, with the probe as port 1 pin 12 the E-Stop is on port 1 pin 15, this is as the instruction that came with the board and I have checked this with other instalment instruction that came with my stepper motor drivers.

My Mach 3 setup is in metric ( MM.)
The Machine touch plate is brass which is 0.80mm thick.

I first press enable button script next I press the Auto tool zero, this opens a Hidden script editor  window I paste this to the box.

Z zeroing macro by Scott Worden - Timber Lake Creations (and a little "Probe Var" tip from Brian ;-).

CurrentFeed = GetOemDRO(818) 'Get the current feedrate.
PlateThickness = GetUserDRO(1151) 'You could put your z-plate thickness here instead
ProbeFeed = GetUserDRO(1152) 'You could put a probing feedrate here instead.

Code "G90 F" &ProbeFeed

If GetOemLed (825)=0 Then
Code "G4 P5" 'Time to get to the z-plate
Code "G31Z-5 F" &ProbeFeed
While IsMoving()
Wend
Code "G4 P0.25"
ZProbePos = GetVar(2002)
Code "G0 Z" &ZProbePos
While IsMoving ()
Wend
Call SetDro (2, PlateThickness)
Code "G4 P0.5" 'Pause for Dro to update.
Code "G0 Z2.0" 'Change the Z retract height here
Code "(Z axis is now zeroed)"
Code "F" &CurrentFeed
Else
Code "(Z-Plate is grounded, check connection and try again)"
Exit Sub
End If

I save script when the box closes.
when I try to run the auto tool zero I get error no feed speed. and the Z axis vibrates up and down very quick.

I changed the
PlateThickness = GetUserDRO(1151) 'You could put your z-plate thickness here instead
to this PlateThickness = GetUserDRO(0.80) 'You could put your z-plate thickness here instead
and changed the
ProbeFeed = GetUserDRO(1152) 'You could put a probing feedrate here instead.
to this ProbeFeed = GetUserDRO(20) 'You could put a probing feedrate here instead.

Can someone tell me what I'm doing wrong. as This is a large learning curve for me, and I would like to understand it.
also could you please adjust the script to the correct values ie. Plate thickness and speed in metric.

16

General Mach Discussion / Re: Soft Limits Help

« on: September 26, 2013, 04:29:08 AM »

I always try to do a build review on the appropriate forum, and I always try to be helpful as I can. The help I got here has been some of the best.
I will keep coming back here to this forum it is a great and friendly  place to learn about Mach 3 and I hope some day that I can help some one else. 
My thanks again Mike.

17

General Mach Discussion / Re: Soft Limits Help

« on: September 25, 2013, 08:44:31 AM »

Hi Hood and Fastest1,
Well I have spent the morning checking my CNC router. I traced it down to the fault that after I home all axis then jog away from home the limit switches would not work till after I pressed the Reset button on then off after I done this the limit switches would work as would the soft limits, also I found that after I homed all axis and then jogged away from home that it would not home till once again I pressed the rest button on and off.
But I fixed it, I went through all my setting once again and I found in the engine configuration ports & pins on the input signals, that I had the A axis enabled with the same port 1 pin 10 that is the same as my X axis. Now I have two stepper motors on my X axis and I have them slaved X and A axis together but I only have limits switches on one side and I wrongly thought that by enabling the A axis with the same ports and pins it would just copy  the signal that it received from the X axis limit switch. I was Wrong, I disabled the input signal from the Axis and now it works great I am so chuffed.  
Many thanks for your help.

Mike.

18

General Mach Discussion / Re: Soft Limits Help

« on: September 24, 2013, 07:04:18 AM »

Thank you for replying Hood I appreciate the time you are taking to help me sort out my CNC Gantry router
I found this in the Mach 3 folder and I hope this is what you need.

Mike.

19

General Mach Discussion / Soft Limits Help

« on: September 22, 2013, 10:52:11 AM »

Soft limit switch
First time on this Forum and it wont be my last, What I have been reading has been a lot of help, But now I am stuck.
I need help in setting up my soft limits This is my first CNC router That I have built it has a cutting table size of 850mm X 500mm it also has limit switch's on all axis.
The computer is an old windows XP that I got from a friend that hadn't been used since 2005.  
When I start Mach 3 and get it to run a G code, all is well and it will home  when asked. Then I will jog the X Y and Z to a new position that will be fine also,  Now when I press the soft limit button and I jog back to the end of the table near the home position it will crash into the ends bending the limit switch. I do a manual check  and find the limit switches are not working, I can move the axis away from the end and press the limit switch with my finger and none of the limit switches are working, when I switch off the soft limit and reset Mach 3 the limit switches are back working.
I have set the size on the Motor home / soft limit  to 5mm smaller that the cutting area hoping that it would not bang into the stops, but I have already had to replace three switches as it hit them hard.
What am I doing wrong? I have attached a picture of the setting I have on the Motor home / soft limit screen.
Or could it be the computer does not have enough RAM to keep up with Mach 3 program.

Mike.