DO NOT use the CNC machine without having received instructions and official permission from an authorized person.
¶ CNC machine
Please read the Space Rules first, especially the sections on "safety" and "use of machinery".
This page is intended as a reminder and does NOT replace a personal introduction to the drill press.
¶ Slides
¶ 3rd party links
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Tutorial CAM in Fusion 360 (in German), gute Videoreihe vom Setup bis zum Postprozess: youtube playlist
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What is this screen with all these buttons and Numbers: Mach3 Overview
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What is this G-Code thing: Mach3 G-Code Manual.pdf
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Sorotec Schnittdatenrechner: https://webseite.sorotec.de/download/fraesparameter/Schnittdatenrechner.zip
¶ Safety
CNC mashines go where the computer tells them to... and dont care of anything else. So keep clear of it while it's running. Also it likes to shoot fast rotating things around at ridicioulus speeds if you do anything wrong.
- Eye protection (recommended for everyone in the room)
- Hearing protection depends a bit on what you are doing and for how long (recommended for everyone in the room)
- Never leave the machine operating by itself!
- Make sure your workpiece is properly secured. If you by yourself can push it out of its holding the CNC for sure can and will.
- Collet has to be tight, but reasonable tight...please dont rip the threads from the spindel.
- No workholding in the machinepath (tripple check this one)!
- If you are unsure of your toolpath run it in the air as a test before working on your actual workpiece.
- I in doubt of anything use the overwrite feedrate to slow the programm down and have your hand on the Esc key to stop the programm if needed.
- If the spindel slows notably down immediatly stop programm or adjust feedrate
- If loose parts exist remove them before they become projectiles.
- Take care that the dust extraction is not obscured by anything and can work properly.
- Use manufacturer recommended speeds and feeds.
¶ Get going
¶ Start the machine
- Turn machine power on (in case of reboot power down everything for 1 min because otherwithe the VFD can error).
- Press the PC power button.
- In Mach3 press the Reset button multiple times until it becomes green.
In case of error unplugg the USB controller card and plug it into a different USB port. - In Mach3 press Reference all home. The machine will drive to the upmost left front point.
- Connect the hoover through the cyclone to the dust shoe.
The machine now knows where it is, can be jogged around and can run programms.
¶ Setup / workpiece coordinates / local coordinates
- To open the jog panel press Tab.
- Beware of the step size and step mode before you start jogging.
- You can switch between continous and step mode.
- Zero out every axis according to your Gcode by pressing the associated Zero $axis button.
¶ Cleanup
- Reset any changed settings.
- Undo the chuck.
- Vacuum up any waste.
¶ Lets make Gcode
To produce Gcode any CAM sollution that can produce Gcode for Mach3 is usable. Some very good open source options are Free CAD, OpenSCAD, BlenderCAM. There are more depending on what you want to do with it and how you like to work.
Format: *.nc, *.tap, *.ncc or *.txt.
¶ Fusion360
After you modeled your part with the limits of the machine and the tooling in mind switch to the CAM module of fusion.
There you will need to create a Setup and a Post Process before you can create any toolpathes.
¶ Post Process
Post Prozess file: mach3mill_fusion360.cps
¶ Setup
For the Setup create some mapping of the model axis to the machine axis that makes sense in your scenario.
¶ Toolpathes
After that you are ready to create toolpathes that meet your requirements.
¶ ToDo
- write a wiki manual
- add images
- add setup instructions for other CAM solutions
¶ Machine Infos
¶ Work area
the current Opferplatte is 60x60cm
the area that the mashine lets you drive in until it stops for the softlits is:
60cm x 60cm x ? (XYZ)
¶ Axis configuration
If you stand in front of the machine:
Z+ is up
Y+ is forward away from you
X+ is right
Endstops?
¶ Motors
¶ Spindel
Type?
¶ Steppers
The steppers are open loop. That means if you drive the machine to hard they will loose steps and the whole machine coordinate system will be permanently shifted until you re-home and potentially reset yout work offsets.
¶ Motion Card
wixhc mkx-iv II
¶ Shortcuts
- Hobelhöhle
- Circular saw For ripping timber in fibre direction and panel materials
- Miter saw cuts timber and boards to length with angles of 90-45°
- Band saw for curved cuts or rough cutting of timber
- Thicknessing planer Makes timber thinner
- Drill press Makes holes in pretty much everything
- Lathe This is our lathe. There are many others like it, but this one is ours.
- CNC Does what the computer says
- Tormek Wet grinding machine for tool sharpening
Short URL: https://t1p.de/h2t3h