Messages

41

General Mach Discussion / Re: Mach3Turn Offsets?

« on: February 07, 2011, 12:30:18 PM »

Thanks for that. When you said long hand previously, I did it really long hand.
The first video I showed is as the drill code is produced from DT.

I will attach a screenshot of how I set that up to cut in DT.

Then in the code it produced, I modified it for this second video.
After a drill cycle and a retract, I would copy and paste that depth on the next line with a G00 instead of G01. Then from there it would feedrate drill the next step. Pretty quick to actually do. Makes the cycle a lot cleaner and faster.
That is finished code for my production parts.
Here is the link to video 2.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I2nH1NWm4dg

Next up will be some actual profile turnings probably in aluminum. Brass ain't cheap.

I also trued up my chuck before that video and reset my motor drive acc. It is a little smoother. This lathe is actually pretty light and not bolted down yet. I knew I had to move it soon.
The chuck in the first video was out by .003". Thats a good bit and think it happened during the few crashes it encountered.

It is now set at .0005". I can live with that.

42

General Mach Discussion / Re: Mach3Turn Offsets?

« on: February 05, 2011, 06:51:40 PM »

I still have some fine tuning to do to the code to get it to rapid in on the drilling. I got carried away with the zoom on this camera as well.
My other would not zoom in video mode.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6nNCWBqJOPU

43

General Mach Discussion / Re: Mach Turn Help Needed

« on: February 05, 2011, 06:49:47 PM »

I just finished setting mine up and I also had some issues with soft limits.
I just chose not to use them.
My zero points are different, so there are many was that you can setup and use a lathe.
I am using radius mode and have rear tool posts. None of my cuts are in X negative. They are all positive. My Z zero is always set at the end of the stock after a facing. Xzero done similarly after a fine turn cut and measure radius to get the center of the stock.
This method seems to work pretty well so far.

I just uploaded a Youtube video if you would like to see it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6nNCWBqJOPU

44

General Mach Discussion / Re: Mach3Turn Offsets?

« on: February 02, 2011, 12:00:14 PM »

I intend to goof around with the fixture tables just to wrap my head around them.
I'll let you know, but right now, it spits out pretty good code.
If my drills were set in the positive, I would not have to adjust the code at all.
I ban slice off a bit if I wanted. I think I may do that anyway.
As it stands, the way I have it setup, there are no negative X moves. Everything is done in the + side. Parting stops at zero, but everything is bored through, so doesn't really need to cut that close.
Working great now.

I am going top give my brain a break though. Who said the old dog new trick thing was true? It ain't. Not that old, but ain't no spring chicken either.
Thanks again for all the fantastic help from every. Especially Hood.
I will still post a video link in this thread when I get it done. I like to see threads that work out in the end. Makes them well worth the read and effort involved to document the issues.

45

General Mach Discussion / Re: Mach3Turn Offsets?

« on: February 02, 2011, 11:07:26 AM »

Thanks a bunch.
That one works much better.
The one with all the errors still spit out the code and it didn't look bad.
The drilling routines are much smoother now without the G83 as well.

I ordered a new camera. I have had this one for nearly 8 years now. Needed an update. Just bought a little Kodak for less than $50. Supposed to have hi def video and 12.3 MP.
I'll shoot some video with that when it comes in.
The old one is a Vivitar. The shutter covers flopped around all the time and a few other things were starting to fail as well.
Video never did work right. Only started recording sound a few years back.
It was time.

46

General Mach Discussion / Re: Mach3Turn Offsets?

« on: February 01, 2011, 05:47:56 PM »

Tried that one and it had about 25 post processor errors. Tried it twice.

Here is where I set tool change.

47

General Mach Discussion / Re: Mach3Turn Offsets?

« on: February 01, 2011, 04:08:11 PM »

I just started using that goto thing. It works great, but it doesn't remove unwanted moves. It still does those. Not a big deal to edit the code though for this dozen or so bushings it does mainly. It only takes maybe a minute or two to set them right.

My issue has been that my drills are in the negative Z. Just a hair, but still in the -.0147" and -.0324". This means you cannot move to the X offsets until you are at like Z.0325". I use Z1.0"

It always has the X moves first in Dolphin, so a little mod here and there and viola.
I guess I will resort to doing the deep drills long hand as well.
Once done, thats it.

Then I will turn some darn profiles. Like chess pieces and things. That was my reasoning behind doing this stuff now anyway.
If feels pretty good to have tackled it and set it up to be able to do cad drawing in a proper turning format.
I shot a video earlier, but it looked bad and sounded worse. I was way too close to the action.
I'll do another and get it posted up soon.
Thanks.

48

General Mach Discussion / Re: Mach3Turn Offsets?

« on: February 01, 2011, 05:39:38 AM »

Ahh. Fixtures. That is something that I haven't toyed with. That may actually solve the dro jumping to a negative of the tool offset and then traveling back to zero to cut at the offset. That is the only thing I didn't like about it. I couldn't watch the DRO's and adjust my code accordingly.
I can't get Dolphin to produce code that I can use.
It must be tuned up by hand.

Since all my tools are on a gang setup, there is no need for basic parts to have a tool change.
I ignore tool change in M3T for these parts. DT puts a spindle stop M5 in at each tool.
Then at each tool, it goes to safe Z and then back to zero using a G28. No idea how that gets in there.

Since all three tools are not at zero in Z, they cannot travel in X at zero to the offsets. They have to do traveling at Z1. I need single axis moves instead of both.
I am wondering if Exact Stop might help there?

Something Odd that M3T is doing too with G83.
The first deep drill cycle I use works great.
After the first part is parted, the second deep drill cycle is doing stuff it shouldn't. Like initially plunging to new cut depth at full rapid. That's okay, but then it will G01 back to zero, then rapid back a few times until if finally starts to do the deep drill cycle like it should. I'll try to get a video of it.

I did find the zip file on here concerning this and did install the files in the correct folder, but not getting different results yet.

I still have a lot to learn about both M3T and DT, but I am producing parts again.

49

General Mach Discussion / Re: Mach3Turn Offsets?

« on: January 29, 2011, 05:39:43 AM »

Thanks a bunch, Guys. I really like that tool setup. Looks like it works out great.

There is obviously more than one way to wrestle this mule. I have tried every different configuration possibility at this point between M3T and DT.  I am spoiled about the dro's showing me the exact values of where the tools are in relation to the spindle. I guess that is because I hand coded these before, so it is a simple matter to get my mind around that concept.

The two programs were competing against each other and cancelling or doubling offset values depending on how it was setup. Of the two modes, radius seems to allow the dro's to follow exactly along with offsets when they are programmed in DT. This doesn't happen in M3T. What happens there is it goes into machine coordinates. It just posts the opposite of your offset and then travels to 0 in the dro, which is your offset. This makes it more difficult for me to dress up the gcode as output by DT.
It does need some dressing too. It overtravels back to home too often. It doesn't allow single axis moves with each type of operation. It does for some, but not all.

Sooo.....the best for me is not tool offsets in Mach. Load them in DT instead. Keeps dro's in the actual program coordinates. That is a single system and easy to keep track of and recognize what it's doing at any given time.

These are production parts, so these offsets won't really change.
I'll always just reset them there.

I'll snap a few pictures of the gang setup now.
It is similar to what I had before, but now the drills are on one plate and have collets for changing drills.
I do use boring bars sometimes, but they go in the QCTP instead of a collet.

That is the best thing about Mach3. There are so many ways to do something with it that you are bound to find one that works for what you want to do.

50

General Mach Discussion / Re: Mach3Turn Offsets?

« on: January 28, 2011, 06:41:16 PM »

I did have both in radius. Tried Diameter too without a lot of success. Here is a screen shot of the tool offsets in DT.