Messages

561

G-Code, CAD, and CAM discussions / Re: Problem with my X & Y

« on: October 15, 2015, 05:36:05 PM »

Wow that's a big glider!.... Never heard of DEVCAd but the website looks interesting.

Plasma is for steel, aluminium, stainless ... basically anything metallic (I've heard of glass being cut too... but never tried it [not likley to])  Not my machine... but very similar https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AyhV4oLOHEg  

I have a small plasma and can cut up to 6mm plate... but I'm looking to upgrade a little maybe in the future (speed of cut + quality of cut with a newer machine).

I have an expensive hobby with Landrovers (I've ended up with my own R&D department... haha), so am keen to build my own parts, given every time I ask someone to make me something (or build something) I don't end up with what I asked for.... trust no one believe nothing (I use CAD for a living to drawing is easy for me... the thing that always took the time was the making of the parts and getting alignment etc... now I go from idea to part in minutes all welded up and complete)

I use sheetcam http://www.sheetcam.com/ ... which you can use for all other manor of things (not just plasma)... basically all you need is a drawing and import that.... the only thing is it does not do 3D only flat objects (there is a 4th Axis option but that is only for plasma).

Rob

562

General Mach Discussion / Re: problem with Z axis

« on: October 15, 2015, 05:21:52 PM »

well... I don't "make" g-code.... I use CAM software .... there are a few about, but my chosen one is http://www.sheetcam.com/

the thickness of the material to to be cut is not entered anywhere except in the CAM software...

It all depends upon what you want to cut and what you are going to cut it with (feedrate and cutter speed)...

I use a plasma cutter so cutter speed is not really of a concern to me... but feedrate is (the speed the plasma cutter moves)..... the cutter speed is the RPM (revolutions per miniute) of the cutter.

Also the depth of cut comes into play.

I would suggest having a look at a number of youtube videos as its a long process but by far the easiest (and cheapest) software for me was sheetcam.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hk7WNZ-erY8

563

General Mach Discussion / Re: Best digitizing kit?

« on: October 15, 2015, 04:42:33 PM »

This is a nice piece of software / plugin I've found useful http://www.craftycnc.com/probe-it-wizard-mach3/

Another one is scanything (but it's not a probe software but camera scanner) http://www.sheetcam.com/Scanything/index

Rob

564

G-Code, CAD, and CAM discussions / Re: Problem with my X & Y

« on: October 15, 2015, 04:38:32 PM »

what CAM software are you using?

(to answer one of your earlier questions, no I don't have a stepcraft... I've a home built plasma, with a few other bits .... needed to be able to be packed away and assembled on demand, and I'm awaiting a 3040 frame kit to arrive for some PCB / aluminium work). 

What materials are you cutting & what are you making?

Rob

565

G-Code, CAD, and CAM discussions / Re: Problem with my X & Y

« on: October 15, 2015, 03:43:23 PM »

Item 2 is it not triggering the soft limit?

You may need to change to upper soft limit to +1 (ie 1mm above zero as zero is the home switch...?

Someone else may have a view
Rob

566

G-Code, CAD, and CAM discussions / Re: Problem with my X & Y

« on: October 15, 2015, 11:11:28 AM »

Copied from here: https://en.industryarena.com/forum/axis-not-refed-normal-conditions--53149-2.html

For those of you still fighting with this, I think I got it figured out:
Assuming your machine works perfectly well and you still get that annoying Yellow light "Abnormal Condition" .....clicking on it gives the hint "Axis are not Refed to Normal Condition"
....You need to inform Mach3 what a normal condition is for your setup:
Start-up Mach3 and click [Ref All Home] when all axes have homed to their limit switches, click drop-down menu [Operator] and select [Set Normal Condition]
Mach3 should now accept this state as the "Normal Condition" and you should have a Green light indicating such when the machine has been home referenced.
Worked for me!

567

G-Code, CAD, and CAM discussions / Re: Sheetcam + Mach3 for 3D

« on: October 14, 2015, 02:18:10 AM »

I suspect it won't work....

1) best to ask on the sheetcam forum as Les Newell (the creator) does frequent his own forum a lot.

2) sheetcam is 2.5D machining .... so you can cut the outside / inside of the object (2D) ... and you can also cut the relief (height of the object at different depths) [the 0.5 bit]

What you have there requires a rotating axis... and although sheetcam does have a plugin for rotary pipe / tube cutting it is not a turning function / 4th axis function ... what you need there is either a lathe (more likely as you need the hole in the object .... unless you are buying it as a tube or have some other way to make the hole in the bar stock .... ) or a 4th axis to rotate your pipe and machine the flange lip on the end and then machine your flange


But someone else may know better  (still suggest ask on the sheetcam forum)

Rob

568

Mach4 General Discussion / Re: help to AKZ250 breakout board

« on: October 13, 2015, 02:05:44 PM »

No it won't work as it does not have a Mach 4 driver..... Only Mach 3

Rob

569

General Mach Discussion / Re: soft limits not working

« on: October 13, 2015, 01:17:43 PM »

Check what your machine coordinates are reading .... Are they outside the limits set in config >>>>> homing limits.... If so rezero your machine coordinates

Rob

570

G-Code, CAD, and CAM discussions / Re: Problem with my X & Y

« on: October 13, 2015, 01:13:45 PM »

No problem David, happy machining.

Note you may need to tune the z axis soft stop relative to your bed, and spindle or router and presuming you have a spoil board...

Consider this that your z axis has 82mm of travel, but by the time you have a router or spindle in the tool holder, and a downward projecting chuck, and a spoil board on your bed, the effective travel distance will be less... Then you add a cutter to the spindle or router, now your z axis travel is very much reduced

Hence if you told the machine to decend 80mm it will most definitely crash into the spoil board

Hence you may need to tweak the soft limit for the z axis, to something like 1mm below the spoil board with a cutting tool installed.

Someone may be able to give some better guidance, because I'm sure that you could via script reset the z axis soft limit every time you install a new tool, and use g31 to set tool offsets

Rob