Mach3 is quite complex, and there is more to it than I will ever experience

I am more a used then a configurator.

Question 1):

How do I home out only ONE axis at a time.

Often times I want to send "Z" home but not XY

How do I do that?


Question 2)
I will have more questions regarding simple operation of Mach3 -- I cannot find this in the manual.

Is there a document that shows just simple step by step operation of Mach3?

Sorry for the overly simple questions.

1) There's a Ref Z button on the Diagnostics page.

2) That really depends on what you're doing. Here's what I do.

Turn on machine.
Home axis.
Load g-code
Mount Workpiece.
Zero Z axis.
Press Cycle Start.

Gerry,

Yeah I am OK with that part.

After I put t cutter in the spindle - I touch off on top of the workpiece.
I zero out the "Z" axis

I would then like to be able to just click a button on the screen - to move the tool straight up and out of the way
I would like to "HOME" the "Z" axis only.

I have a button on my screen that will move the Z up 10mm, very handy for the way I work and very easy to add to a screen with one of the screen editors available with Mach. You could also Jog up with the PgUp key or if you have a MPG use that, other option is to use MDI and command the move.
Hood

Right now I jog it up with pgUP

On my old software - I could just home the "Z" axis - kinda like "REF ALL HOME"  but with only the "Z", or the "X" or the "Y"

Not a big deal - I thought it was just a button click and I was missing it.

I am not ready to edit screens and ad buttons -- maybe some day - but it is nice to know that it can be done

Gerry told you about the separate Ref for each axis above

Hood

OK - I am confused.

I have a job running on the machine right now that will be running for about 7 hours

Then I will go explore the diagnostics page.

I do appreciate the help

Once you zero the Z axis to the part, you DO NOT want to home the Z, as it will change the zero.

Similar to Hood, I have button to go to Safe Z, and another to go to a Park position.

Is there a document that shows just simple step by step operation of Mach3?

Not really. There are two sides to Mach use, namely configuration and then setup on how an an individual will use Mach to accomplish their machining.
The manuals cover configuration but even that can be rather difficult for a new user as it is so configurable. Almost impossible to write a manual that would
cover all the possible machines out there.

Concerning actual operation, you can see just by the replies that different folks enhance Mach via screen modificatons, macros, or even basic setup before machining a piece.
Additionlay there are different types turning/ milling/ plasma each requiring a somwhat different approach to the machining.

Here is what I do most of the time ( don't have home swithes) :
- mount the workpiece
- load the program
- move / set cutter to work piece ( location based on the program code / some know piece location which i based the program on)
- reference the XYZ  
- cycle start
- code defines where i want the cutter to be when i am finished cutting the piece

RICH

I believe I can "ref all home" and not zero out the the "fixture zero" that is displayed on the screen.

Yes I agree - once the part zero is set - I do not want to loose that.

Perhaps - I need to learn how to add a button, to move the tool to a clear "Z" position.