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Author Topic: Mach 3 Lathe setting up tools and offsets. hair already gone...teeth next...  (Read 29628 times)

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Offline Hood

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I am wondering how you are doing things when you say you think its the macro. If using offsets are they all in your code? If they are then I would imagine you have Mach set to Ignore Tool Changes. Is that the case? If it is then the M6start macro will not be used at all. Maybe you have the offsets in your macro instead and have it set to Auto Toolchange?
Hood

I still use manual tool changes with a QCTP, as it's only the drills that are ganged.
One of the reasons I use G52 is to avoid having to click start between drills.
I'm sure there is a better way to do things.

Ok I see what you are meaning now, you are using both tool calls and G52's in the same code dependant on which tools are being used.
Best way is to just set the tool table up and forget the G52's

Hood

Offline Hood

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Ok! I made a bit more progress.

First- G28 does not stop on a home switch for me. it just kept going...

G28 sends Mach to the Home position, if you have not homed then Mach may think your home position is further than it actually is :)


But, I now have Mach3 homing the Z and X (manually) by pressing "set home Z" and "set home X"

This works, but I would have thought "home Z" and "Home X" would have been the correct commands....
As mentioned earlier the screenset is a bit weird when it comes to things like homing ;D

Also, could this macro be written to then assign a number to the home locations IE: Z 4.00 and X 16.00?

If you are meaning to set the Machine Coords at something other than zero when you have homed then you do that by entering a value in the Home Off box on Homing and limits page.

Offline mc

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Ok I see what you are meaning now, you are using both tool calls and G52's in the same code dependant on which tools are being used.
Best way is to just set the tool table up and forget the G52's

Hood

Will that not mean the lathe will stop and wait for a toolchange between drills?

Offline Hood

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The way I would get around that is have it on Auto and have the macro look at the tool being called, if its a tool thats on the QC post then have it turn off the spindle and  and then exit the macro. You could then change the tool and press Start. If the tool being called was a drill then you could have the macro just continue the code.

Hood
Update-

I now have the limit switches installed/wired and working.

When I "set home X" the machine goes to home in X, steps back off the switch and records the position that is entered in the "home off" box. Same for Z. This is much of what I have wanted to accomplish!

Now I need to figure out how to record the offsets for each tool in the gang bar.

Offline Fastest1

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Mach 3 Lathe setting up tools and offsets. hair already gone...teeth next...
« Reply #35 on: December 15, 2012, 08:53:54 PM »
Do it by touching off each tool to a piece in the chuck of a known diameter.
I want to die in my sleep like my grandfather, not like the passengers in the car! :-)

Offline Hood

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...maybe when I get the wee lathe up and running fully I can, big lathe is just too big to be able to set up a camera for that.
Yes please...show us how you set up and use your tool table too!:)  You make it sound so easy and I'm sure it is once one gets "over the hump."

Video showing one method of setting lathe tools in Mach, it is a bit wobbly I am afraid but hopefully it will help to show how easy it is.
http://youtu.be/mWnfioI3G0E
In this video the lathe doesnt have home switches so I will set tool 1 X and Y coords but have zero offset in the tool table. When I start Mach I would just take a light skim of the face and set that as Z Zero and same for the Dia but this time measure the Dia and enter that into the X DRO. Any tool called after that will be offset from these dimensions.
If you had home switches that were accurate you could use them as your "master tool" and set all tools  in the tooltable in relation to the Home position rather than a master tool as I have done.

In the video I  have used a device I made up for setting the tools in the big lathe, it consists of two bits of steel separated by a delrin insulator and then I have a LED and battery that I connect between the two part, when the tool contacts the front part it completes the circuit and the LED lights up.

Ok so for setting tools I take a face cut and a dia cut and can then set the rest of the tools without having to actually cut any more stock as the LED will light when I touch the part. This device is not needed as you can just take a skim cut of the Dia with each tool and measure each time and for the Z just touch off the end with a feeler but on my big lathe the tools are behind the stock so its hard to see and this just makes things easier.


Hood
Awesome Robin, thanks, that helps a lot! ;D

Gotta get after it the 1st weekend after New Year's Day.  I'm sure I'll have more questions to ask but hopefully they'll be a lot more intelligent.
Milton from Tennessee ya'll.

Offline Hood

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For you it would be easier as you have accurate homing. All you would do is home then move the first tool and take a skim off Z and then enter zero into the Z's Part zero DRO and press touch Z, Take a skim of X, measure and enter that into the X's part zero DRO and press Touch X, repeat for the rest of the tools. Your home switches would basically be taking the place of tool 1 in that video, ie they would represent the master position of which all tools would be referenced to.
Hood

Offline Dan13

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Hi Hood,

This is a very helpful tutorial video of setting tools on a lathe. Keep seeing people asking just about that every now and then. Sure the video will help many. May be the link could be put under Members Docs section or something.

Dan