Messages

11

General Mach Discussion / Re: is it possible to edit and modify the menu in mach3 ???

« on: September 27, 2007, 11:04:38 PM »

ok, I'm going to ask the stupid question, which could most likely be answered by RTM, but how do you adjust the x,y.z positions from the main screen? I know you can click on the offset button and then click on the line above the reset button and type in what you want, but to do this from the main screen evades me.. how is it done?

12

General Mach Discussion / Re: is it possible to edit and modify the menu in mach3 ???

« on: September 26, 2007, 07:37:47 PM »

this isnt my thread, but an "all safe home" button would be nice to have, where the "Z" raises first and then the X and Y return to home. This is especially handy in the event of a broken tool (been there, done that ).  Of course it would need to stop running the G code first...

Another neat feature would be a "run to line # _x_" button. This would allow you to run a program to a certain spot, then pause long enough to make sure the measurments are correct or the work is perfectly centered, ect. before continuing to run the G code.

I understnad that real estate on the program face is limited, but having an easy way to jog all 3 axis' would be nice to have also. Having this option would eliminate the need for the previous suggestion by allowing you to manually type coordinates and then have the machine go there to check for proper position of the fixture for the code you are running.

13

General Mach Discussion / Re: zero doesnt equal zero?

« on: September 26, 2007, 05:33:50 PM »

Thank you to all who posted.

Some how I managed to get this working today after trying zealous' suggestion. I started with a 1/8" tool that could withstand side movements without breaking and worked my way down from there. The program was repeatable and I could re-run it and have the tool exactly replicate what it had done before.

I just wanted to add that I think the problem was somehow with the tool offset being set to the actual length of the tool. After removing this setting, all else seemed to work fine. Since my machine doesnt have multiple tools, I dont htink I need to ever enter an offset. If I am understanding this correctly, this setting is for multiple tools where each tool may have a different length??

I also was able to cut circles and rectangles today with some limited precision.. I'll work on that since it is most likely a User problem. I learn better when I can figure things out for myself, but sometimes I know when it is time to throw in the towel and ask for help.

I dont know how to permanently encode a "Home" setting for all axis into the software, but I'll figure it out. My machine doesnt employ limit switches, but I can see where these would be helpful. Right now, it just bangs the limits of the machine (which causes offsets). I know I have seen software settable limits somewhere, but I cant find them at the moment.

Thanks again!
Ken

14

General Mach Discussion / Re: zero doesnt equal zero?

« on: September 25, 2007, 10:02:11 PM »

Thanks Zealous!  I'll give it a try and see what happens.

Thanks for the compliments ont he guitars too. I hope this mill will help to speed up my inlay work on the guitars.

Stay tuned, I'll let you know if this works.

15

General Mach Discussion / Re: zero doesnt equal zero?

« on: September 25, 2007, 08:23:16 PM »

One thought just came across my mind...

Is it possible that when the Gcode is drilling that initial hole at -0.2 that it is resetting my zero to that depth? It would make sense since the next step after that is much deeper... I dont know enough about the gcode to know if this is even possible...

16

General Mach Discussion / Re: zero doesnt equal zero?

« on: September 25, 2007, 08:12:08 PM »

Here is a picture of the mill. As I said, it is a home built hobby mill that originally came from someone on ebay.



I am not skipping steps and there is no hesitation or skipping in the process. The program starts at zero. This is a file that came with mach3 named roadrunner.tap and if you notice the first thing that the z does is to drill a hole that is .2 deep, then it lifts, moves a bit, and lowers again to -0.1 and begins the outline of the roadrunner. When the Gcode says it is at -0.1, it is actually much deeper (guessing somewhere around -0.4 or -0.5). I have broken at least 20 tool bits so far trying to figure this out. The bits are secure and not slipping in the collet.
attached is the roadrunner.tap file.

Thanks!
Ken

17

General Mach Discussion / zero doesnt equal zero?

« on: September 25, 2007, 06:47:56 PM »

 First off, I am VERY new to CNC and the Mach3 software. I purchased the full working version because it looks so simple to use.


I have everything set up, I finally was able to get the software working and talking to my equipment, and figured out that all of my motors needed to be reversed in order to work. A BIG thanks to everyone who posted replies in the forum's previous posts for your excellent explanations on how to solve these common problems!!

I have an issue that I cant seem to find a solution to with a search:

I can set my Z to zero, set the work thickness, and tool offset and  then manually jog the Z up and down to 1, then to -.01 (several times) and when the machine is at -0.1 ( running the roadrunner.set file) starts to run, the tool is actually much too deep (around -0.4) and immediately breaks my tool.  For the life of me I cant figure out why the tool is deeper when running the program than it is when I manually jog it to the same depth.

I have already tried setting the tool offset to 0.66 , and also setting it at zero. I have tried setting the work height at zero with no offset and also setting it to the actual offset height. I have tried setting the tool height to zero while touching the top of the work.

I'm stumped...

Can anyone offer a solution?

18

Mach4 General Discussion / Re: New people welcome !! Come in here and introduce your self!

« on: September 24, 2007, 12:07:41 AM »

Hey everybody!
I am as new to all of this as new can be, but I have just purchased my first hobby CNC machine and now just bought a registeration for Mach3. I know absolutely nothing about any of this, but I learn quick. I think I'll do more reading than posting for a while, just know I'm here and paying attention.

Ken