Great slogan!

Whoever is doing the graphic design work - excellent work.

That sure is a chunky looking machine! Is it your new machine Jim?
Like the colour too.

You all look as though you are having a good time in Atlanta. How about putting names to the people in the photo!

Hope you sell lots of machines.

Rocket.

Searched the post and just wanted to say:


CAMaster, made in America!

Tom

The persons listed in the photo, Left to right, are:

Joey Jarrard, Paul Harrison, Bill Glenn, Josh Glenn, John Branham

If you want to watch the goings on at the show, watch our live video stream from the CAMaster CNC booth at IWF 2008 (http://www.camaster.com/iwf-2008-live.php).

Great meeting all of you guys! Had to leave last night, but learned alot at the show and the machine looks great, can't wait to get it in the shop. It's really a great deal when you compare it to the other machines in it's class. Heavier legs and table, 3 head setup, the table isn't 'sunk' between side rails, etc.. I just hope Bill gets that double sided taped cabinet door off before it gets here!! :)

First I want to thank all the guys (and doll) that I meet in Atlanta. All of you were true professionals. I esp want to thank Jim for all the information, advice and walk through. Without him I probably would not be the proud owner of the Stinger that was displayed at the show.

Get ready for a lot of stupid and not so stupid questions from me.

By the way, when are you guys going to get here to help me get this thing out of my truck?

Anthony

sorry the unloading is extra!! the learning curve is free!!

welcome aboard, "rocket", my friend on excitech and i have a phrase!

"Crank it up" the show was a great success for bill and all of us and proves luck is still just a product of hard work, the booth was built for bill by the "camheads" (as we are called) feel free to call as josh and joey know more about the controller type you have than i do! i will be getting a machine like your's here in columbia in the next month! more sleep is necessary and will be back tommorrow.

also to all camheads, this little fish is going to be a big part of our cnc lives,

more in time!!!

jim

The Deal is done! It took 2.5 days and a lot of walking (man was that show was big.) but in the final waning hours of Saturday, just as the show was closing I was able to negotiate a deal on a new 4x8 cnc router with Josh from Camaster. I had been talking with his dad on and off as I compared machines from other manufactures, and he came down in price quite a bit, but I was still outside my comfort zone. So after looking at every cnc router manufacture at the show and asking one thousand questions, I kept coming back to Camaster
because they have one well built machine at a great price, and the topper is they are just plain nice people to deal with. so I was explaining my dilemma to Josh, basically I was looking at a particular overseas machine vs. his machine and how the pricing was so cheap on the other machine that even if I had to replace the software and controllers with local made stuff that it was still thousands cheaper, but I really wanted to purchase from Camaster but the price was just out of my reach, well he worked with me we both made some compromises and came to a great deal for me.
my new baby will be delivered in mid to late October ( my requested time frame) and I am very excited.
Thanks Jim M.
Bill, and Josh

Ok, this is what I am looking for but have spent the past 45 minutes looking and have come up empty. I am looking for a bit that the center is a pin point then comes up and rounds... see attached pic.

The only thing different then the picture is that the area "B" is not small enough... I need it to be more like a point.

Any help would be appreciated.

Anthony

Is this what you are looking for? (http://magnate.net/index.cfm?event=showProductGroup&theID=57) Also search google for Point Cutting Roundover to see more.

PS: I have never used the magnate brand I linked to above, just used it as an example.

Yeap Yeap Yeap, that's it. So that helps me figure out how to round my objects like I want... now I need to figure out how to line up what I am cutting to the center of that line. From what I have been messing with for the last few hours, it looks like it will be cutting my material next to one of the round edges and not the point. A little more messing around with the program and then I will go and see what it looks like on the wood.

Now speaking of cutting through the wood, since I want to do this, what am I supposed to put under the wood, if anything, so the bit does not touch the pads on the machine?

Hey and thanks for the help on the bits. Now I can go out and search for a good one.

Anthony

There are many ways to do this. It is all up to the part you are routing. If the parts are to be ran in production I would get a 1/2" mdf blank to use as my spoil board cut it to the size of the blank you will be routing so you can use your clamps to hold down both. when you scar it up get a new one. Im glad you got it out of your truck im tired.
Anthony welcome to the family. I dub you a CAMhead!!!

Joey


Now speaking of cutting through the wood, since I want to do this, what am I supposed to put under the wood, if anything, so the bit does not touch the pads on the machine?

Hey and thanks for the help on the bits. Now I can go out and search for a good one.

Anthony

welcome aboard james!! there are others who will be here in a few days to join us

jim

joey, gather up all the pages i have sent and i'll do the same we will need to blanket the bits and other info to the new and old camheads

jim

Hay if u here from Tom from fla. have him e-mail me his ini file so i can change his rapid speed. my phone is dead and were looking through boxes trying to find the charger. Im at home today.
thanks,
Joey

joey, gather up all the pages i have sent and i'll do the same we will need to blanket the bits and other info to the new and old camheads

jim

Jim, I like the new term "camheads". It was a pleasure to see all of you at IWF and finally put faces with names.

Cheers :cheers:

thanks bclark we are all camheads now!!

joey i emailed you toms info!!

thanks bclark we are all camheads now!!

I use RSS feeds on some of my other forum sites and they work great.
I see that cnc zone has Rss feeds for some of its more popular forums.
Because I am not only a new Camhead but new to cnc i will have a lot of interest in this forum, and a Rss feed would be nice.
SO how do we get this forum posted as a Rss feed?
Any ideas whom i need to talk to?

not sure about the RSS capabilities here, but you can always 'subscribe to this thread' under the thread tools above. That's what I do and it sends an email to me every time there is a post on the thread.

[quote=cabnet636;492862]sorry the unloading is extra!! the learning curve is free!!

welcome aboard, "rocket", my friend on excitech and i have a phrase!

"Crank it up" the show was a great success for bill and all of us and proves luck is still just a product of hard work, the booth was built for bill by the "camheads" (as we are called) feel free to call as josh and joey know more about the controller type you have than i do! i will be getting a machine like your's here in columbia in the next month! more sleep is necessary and will be back tommorrow.

also to all camheads, this little fish is going to be a big part of our cnc lives,
more in time!!!


Myshadowboxes - CRANK IT UP SON!!!!

Jim, thanks for posting those Excitech pictures.
Are you going to give us the lowdown on the happenings at the IWF?

Rocket.

rocket, it was alot to take in and CAMaster is taking a lot of new "camheads"
the after show request for the machines is really strong!! bill showed a three head machine that was perfect for the guy who wants to do it all with out the full boat cost of an atc, the machine is a real piece of ingenuity!!

i would also like to thank tony mac and james booth for thier support and seminar they did at the CAMaster booth, the vector art and vectric software make carving and machining success available to all who want it!!

more later still un packing and lots of video and pic's

i will say this, there were a lot of big iron cnc companies playing putt put golf in there booths!! i saw one bunch of tight shirted executives play "bowling" on a Wii system, dumb,dumb,dumb

jim

Welcome Anthony,
Just grab a few of your neighbors and a 12 pack of their favorite brew and its amazing how 1500lbs comes out so easy. :)
I posted a vid a couple of post back on how I got my machine out.
Enjoy!!!!!
Tom

First I want to thank all the guys (and doll) that I meet in Atlanta. All of you were true professionals. I esp want to thank Jim for all the information, advice and walk through. Without him I probably would not be the proud owner of the Stinger that was displayed at the show.

Get ready for a lot of stupid and not so stupid questions from me.

By the way, when are you guys going to get here to help me get this thing out of my truck?

Anthony

anthony, how you moving along?? joey has ordered some more of the stingers and i want one!!!

i will be painting my 2oo cobre with the new yellow mounting the new motors
today or tommorrow,

all of the older bill hog and camaster owners we met at the show please contact me with your email so we can put you on the owners (CAMheads) list

jim

Going a little slower then I would hope. Due to all this rain, my shop has decided to take on a little water. Water came from under the roll down door and the front door. So I had a little mess to clean up. I have been working on Vcarve Pro, added a bitmap of the shadowbox, traced it by hand several times before I saw you can have the program do it : ), made my toolpaths now just need to lay the wood down and cut. I still need to call Josh and make sure everything is done right. However I still have not received my bits to make the round over so I am still at the begining of the project. Bad thing is I have 3 boxes to make and would have loved to done them on the router and not by hand. I actually got the router in the shop last night. Had one end sitting on a furniture dolly and the other lifted by a two wheel cart. Man this thing is heavy. Should have the 220 outlet finished tonight so I can plug it in. The only 220 power in the shop runs the saw and compressor and both of them use the large plug.

One thing I could not figure out is how to make the picture larger in vcarve. To me it looks like it is going to cut a 10 inch shape out of a 24"X24" piece of wood.

I am going to have to retire from the military just to get to use this thing : )... OFf to work

Anthony

anthony, how you moving along?? joey has ordered some more of the stingers and i want one!!!

i will be painting my 2oo cobre with the new yellow mounting the new motors
today or tommorrow,

all of the older bill hog and camaster owners we met at the show please contact me with your email so we can put you on the owners (CAMheads) list

jim

Jim, email is bclark6716@msn.com I have an older version SR23.

If you double click the pic it will give you grab points click and hold one of them in the corner then pull diagonally untill you get the size you need.

Joey

It sure does, doesn't it... : )


Thanks

http://vectric.com/forum/

her is the answer

bits
http://magnate.net/index.cfm?event=showProductGroup&theID=57

http://www.amanatool.com/cncroutingdetails/rc-2257.html

http://www.precisebits.com/tutorials/coletcareprocedure.htm

http://beckwithdecor.com/index_files/Cutters.htm

on sale till sept 20 at 70%off

http://rbtoolsupply.com/6000_detail.html#down

collets for porter cable router

http://www.precisebits.com/products/equipment/pc_collets_nuts.asp

amazon sells whiteside

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_gw/104-5280819-1994353?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=whiteside+cnc&x=12&y=14

free dxf files

http://mydxf.blogspot.com/

the techno book still good reading

http://www.techno-isel.com/Education1/H850/H850Cat.htm#_technical%20section

a good pdf on vacuum

http://www.axyz.com/option%20pdfs/VacuumHoldDownDevices.pdf

amana bits

http://www.toolstoday.com/c-206-router-bits.aspx?utm_source=msn&utm_medium=cpc&utm_term=routerbits&utm_content=router_bits_by_amana_tool&utm_campaign=CtoolsusGrouterbits888originalmsnad71209

good old router bits .com

http://www.routerbits.com/

onsrud, best bit's i have used

https://www.onsrud.com/xdoc/wood

dover clip art, #1500 and 660 are good for vcarve, you can get these at barnes and noble

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_gw/104-5280819-1994353?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=dover+clip+art

how's that for a good start!!

jim

http://www.ballewsaw.com/

here is CAMasters supplier

http://www.southeasttool.com/

http://www.ballewsaw.com/

here is CAMasters supplier

http://www.southeasttool.com/

Thanks for the links Cabnet, Jim And anyone I may have missed.
This will help out a lot.

JRJ.

Anthony,

You about ready to start cutting? Give me a call when you can. There is one minor configuration adjustment that has been brought to my attention. It is a setting that needs to be changed before you use the machine much.

Josh Glenn
www.camaster.com (http://www.camaster.com/)

I tell you what... I am up now and would call but I know it is late there... I can't get it to turn on. I hooked 220 to it, have the ground wire set on a rod 5 feet down in the ground, have the parallel cable hooked up, button pulled out and get nothing... Did you guys forget to give me the secret tap dance routine that needs to be done first?

Any hidden on off buttons other then the big red button?

Ok, now I have come back and edited this msg... Still having problems after working with the Stinger (still have not replaced the G with a K but getting close) for the last 3 hours. It is almost like it is not getting power to the routers box. I checked the fuse, still good. I checked all the connections, they all look good, I put a volt meter to the outlet.. and it's good. I have no clue what else to do!!!! Can you see me getting more tired of this as I write : ) Now it's 1215 here : (

Anthony

please call Josh or me (Joey). We can get you running. what all the CAMheads need to keep in mind is you are not alone. We can help thats why where here. the toll free number is on our web site.

Thanks,

Joey

Ok, found out the problem... there was a broken wire on the 220 plug coming from the router to the plug. Guess you can't get it to work if it aint getting any power.

So now having problems setting up where zero is (my board) Seems like the software that was on the machine when I was taught looks different then the software that I am using. Just trying to get zero on the board now...

Anthony

JOSH!!! that calculator is the deal dude!! i thought setting the new motors was going to be an ordeal but no! only a few minutes i checked it several times and the accuracy is perfect

i am carving a sail boat for the yacht club i was supposed to do about two months ago!!

jim

anthony call anytime we are all here for you joey will send me the software so i can learn it

jim

the new motors are so quiet

csc sail boat at 300 ipm,

rough out and 21 x 14 file in 1hour and 50 min

8 year old camaster


YouTube - columbia sailing club sail boat

next item


http://www.david-laserscanner.com/

Ok, so after getting everything together, I thought I loaded in the file that Josh sent me, I said load it and picked the file, but then when I zeroed out the router and then started it... that was when all hell broke loose.

The project that was still loaded was the stinger one and not the one I had them make me. When the spindle hit the wood, or the bit, it went way deap in the wood, and stoped. Well kinda, the bit stopped but the program did not... I ran over and told the software to stop and of course it didn't. By the time I got back over to the router to hit the red button the damge was done. A bent drill bit... hardly enough to tell but I know it is bent. So looks like I will wait for the new bits to arive before I can do anything. Well I do have a cutting bit that I purchased, but until I can get my software to save the files, I am going to wait.

Anthony

anthony, tomorrow i will show you my reminder bits, next thing, (and it will be hard to anticipate what that is) is to "air cut" before actually cutting, i still do this, i have too!!!!!!!!!

will call in am,

jiom

You mean I am not the first :)

Well since I am down until I can get another bit, I will start some questions. If I am going to cut a design in a piece of wood, round some edges and have it cut out, which do I do first? I would think the cutting out would be last, and it wouldn't matter which I did first.

What sucked was I had the family out in the shop to show them how it worked... I should have stuck to the same one I did earlier in the day.

Anthony

yes cut out is last, and to prevent mistakes untill you get used to it we need to discuss "tab" located in the profile path for leaving a little material atached so as to not muck up piece from carving

go to lowes and get a 1/4" straight or down spiral bit a 60 or 90 degree v bit

a 1/8,1/4 ballnose bit, look for woodworking tool supply store other than hd or lowes

Anthony,

Let me pass on some useful advice. I am currently waiting for my new Camaster but it is not my first CNC. When I got my first CNC, the owner of the company told me "don't try to short cut the learning process by taking on timely work or showing others your skills until you have spent at least 40 hours of play time". It was the best advice I could have gotten. My expectations were very high and being of sound mind, I felt running a machine via computer would be a breeze. I was wrong but better for it. I bought a box of various bits, a bunch of soon to be scrap lumber and spent the required time to figure out exactly what CNC meant. I broke a few bits, smoked a few board feet of lumber but at the end of the 40 hours, I felt confident enough to do anything basic with my machine. From then on, the learning curve got way easier. Shortly I was spending endless nights and weekends laughing as the machine was doing exactly as I had asked it to do. When my new machine arrives, I will once again take the required time to figure out the "personality' of this CNC and how to overcome it's "attitudes" toward me. I believe once again I will win. More good advice is "talk to people". First time around, anyone with a CNC was my best resource. There were no stupid questions and I never had one person cop an attitude when I asked the same thing a couple of times. Remember, they went through it to. Hope things work out for you, welcome to the "Camhead" club and if there is anything I can do to help just let me know.

Paul

well today actually i decided to learn to machine aluminum as i am making safety bars for my gantry &%$%^uck

anthony no you were not the first and will not be the last!! but look ar the results of what i am learning!

jim

Very nice results on the sail boat Jim.

What type of wood did you use, I really like the way it came out.

tks
george

Jim, give the details on the finished product (sailboat).. did you do any hand work when the job was done? How long was the total engraving time? One unrelated question. A while ago you said something about a laser crosshair that would fit on a CNC for lining up a workpeice. Do you remember where that came from? I think the cost was relatively cheap (under $20). By the way, nice looking bits. I have a box full of my own!

Thanks
Paul

Nice work yet again Jim... We need to talk about that one. I want to do something like that with my office logo. I know... slow down boy... learn to crawel first.

Paul thanks for the advice... I will take all of it (probably won't use it all because I am such a know it all but I will try)

Anthony

Jim, give the details on the finished product (sailboat).. did you do any hand work when the job was done? How long was the total engraving time? One unrelated question. A while ago you said something about a laser crosshair that would fit on a CNC for lining up a workpeice. Do you remember where that came from? I think the cost was relatively cheap (under $20). By the way, nice looking bits. I have a box full of my own!

Thanks
Paul




http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.5942


Another Aussie Adventure in Laser Zero Finding
http://www.cnczone.com/forums/showthread.php?t=48752



.

Thanks for the info. I just ordered one and will try as soon as the CNC arrives.

all' went to ashville nc apple festival, lots of inspiration for carving there, wife would not allow me on net!!

i got my lasers from the same place just have not hooked them up yet!

wood is yellow wood, 300ipm about two hours including rough with 1/4" bit

jim

found this in my daily mail, it is a router built by bill before all became camaster, dual drive work horse in az.

i tried to call but sales staff is out till tuesday, somebodys gonna steal this router!!

http://www.woodweb.com/exchanges/machinery/posts/422924.html

It looks like a RED Shopbot! I couldn't get on the forum last night so I gave up on the picture. I think I'm going to take a new picture and import it straight into the program. Maybe the file will be better and it will trace it better.?? It won't take long to find out. Thanks for trying to help.
Keith:)

the dual drives wer package machines that could be shipped easy, i have spoken to a couple of guys who have them out west and they are real happy with them some are 8-10 years old!! bill and the guys also make this table for the plasmas steel cutting world.

kieth call any time, was on phone with anthony tonight he is going to be a great file writer!!

jim

kieth send me the jpg photo i might be abl to do it from black and white

jim

whats up CAMheads, check this out www.camheads.org our new home.(wrong)

here is cl calculator
www.camheads.org

jim

bill glenn wrote this for some of us who were learning vacuum.




There is much confusion about what kind of vacuum pumps are needed for different applications regarding hold-down on CNC Routers. Many of us think that more horsepower automatically results in better hold-down and opt for more HP and of course more electric bills. I will try to give an unbiased view on how it works and what works best from a (kuntryboys) way of saying it. I have used everything from reverse blowers from Grainger that will work on 220 single phase to 25 HP regenerative blowers to Positive displacement pumps such as Becker, Busch, or others. I have built CNC routers for 13 years and just lately feel like I understand it enough to really help someone else understand it. For most people including myself, we may think that a pump holds down parts because it "sucks the part down with air". When we understand what really holds the part it will help us understand more about holding down parts. Piab is a company that makes small vacuum cups, small pumps, etc. Several years ago I read a book they had and it explains very well how it works and it was very interesting. Basically without getting too deep into science this is it:

On what is called a standard day which is 59 degrees F at sea level air weighs about 15 lbs per square inch. Think of it as a column of air 1 inch square that goes all the way toward outer space until there is no air molecules. If you live in the mountains say at 2000 ft in elevation then your column of air is going to weigh less because there is not as much of it to weigh. If any of you are airplane pilots then you already know that the hotter the temperature the farther apart the air molecules are and the longer it takes to get off the ground and the slower you will fly. The same is true with vacuum. It will not hold down with as much force the hotter it is and the higher in elevation you are. But remember this column of air is fluid so it will try to replace any vacuumed areas. THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT. Air only weighs 15 lbs per square inch maximum. It cannot be made to weigh more with any size vacuum pump because the most you can vacuum out of anything is whats there. (15 LBS. MAX) if you have a 10" square you are trying to hold down the maximum you can hold down with is (10" x 10"=100 square inches) = 150 lbs of force. This is only with a pump that will pull 28-29 inches of vacuum. This can be accomplished with a positive displacement pump such as Busch, Becker, or others that can pull this kind of vacuum. Regenerative blowers on the other hand cannot pull this kind of vacuum but are more on the order of 10-12 inches which would make its hold down force per square inch be more around 6 or 7 lbs per inch. If you were holding the same 10 inch sq piece of material it would be held down with more like 60 or 70 lbs.

Positive displacement pumps would probably be the ultimate but we have to remember that they do not put out the same volume as a regen blower. They put out much less per given HP because they are doing more work so you must find a balance. They also require more HP to get the job done. So if you use residential electricity you may find that you want to go with a 5-7.5 HP positive displacement pump such as Busch, Becker, etc and make sure you don't have leakages etc. I will mention some tips there later. If these pumps are too high new there are several companies that sell rebuilt ones with a guarantee. If you have plenty of electricity you may want a high volume regen blower such as Fuji, FPZ, etc of 20 or 25HP and when you have that kind of volume you don't have to be as bothered by leakage. On a 4 x 8 table I feel that 10 HP regen and below is a little bit marginal. Of course there are huge vacuums that will pull huge volume and high vacuum but most of us are trying to do CNC on a budget and could live off some peoples electric bills. Positive displacement pumps generally cost nearly 2-3 times the price of a regen blower.

I have a customer who has 2 of our machines. I was surprised to learn that he is running both tables with 7 1/2 HP rebuilt Busch pump that pulls 28-29 inches and has decent volume. He paid about 3300.00 for the pump. He is careful with his leakage. Heres how he does it:
Our low-cost vac tables are MDF 1 1/2" thick with a grid sytem cut into the table with 4 zones on a 4 x 8. Each zone is 24" x 49" with a 2" PVC pipe running to each zone that has a PVC cut off/on for each zone. He mills a sheet of 3/4 LDF or MDF on one side. He then adhere this to his grid table being careful to only put the wood glue on the grid itself so as to not seal up the bottom of the sacrifice board. This keeps the sacrifice board from becoming sealed. Then he mills the top of the sacrifice board. He also then seals up the edge of the sacrifice board to not let air escape through the edges. When you cut your parts be careful to set your z so that it doesn't go unnecisarily deep into the sacrifice board. When the sacrifice board gets uneven and is affecting the vacuum you can then remill the board just enough to clean it up. When you get down to the grid again simply do the same with another board and start over. This works very well. (Thanks to Greg Westberry for the enlightenment on how he does his vacuum system and some help on the above info as well)

I have also found that if you have limited electricity available such as only 220 single phase and don't want a phase converted setup that a Dayton 10 HP blower working in reverse works fairly well because it has such a huge volume but uses a lot of electricity to start and you have to build a different vacuum box to handle the volume.

Hope this helps a little in making your decisions. I will try later to give some tips on how to cut parts with low volume or no vacuum at all.

Bill Glenn
Camaster CNC

this is my new machine and i will get it in three to four weeks!!!!

bill has hit the mark with this one!!

http://www.camaster.com/cnc-routers/cobra-x3/

thomas here is new dust foot i have been working on,
and one showing the old one using the home depot brushes

jim

www.camheads.org

new x-3 cutting aluminum



YouTube - CAMaster CNC Router Aluminum Plate Cutting



still at
www.camheads.org

feel free to call again


better photo of the x3 i am getting!!

an up date tp any one who needs support with your camaster router, even if you have an older one we are here to help!!

www.camheads.org

Hey Jim I just ordered a Vortex Tube getting ready to machine some aluminum. thse tubes blow cold air for bit cooling in plastics and aluminums


http://www.exair.com/en-US/Primary%20Navigation/Products/Cold%20Gun%20Aircoolant%20Systems/Pages/Cold%20Gun%20Aircoolant%20Systems.aspx

i guess COOL would be a good word!!! i have machined aluminum for my guard rails and i am no fan of metal but it was cool!!

good to see ya!! adit

jim

Let us know how it works for you! Which model? what's the price on those?


Hey Jim I just ordered a Vortex Tube getting ready to machine some aluminum. thse tubes blow cold air for bit cooling in plastics and aluminums


http://www.exair.com/en-US/Primary%20Navigation/Products/Cold%20Gun%20Aircoolant%20Systems/Pages/Cold%20Gun%20Aircoolant%20Systems.aspx

A tip for all cutting CAST acrylic clear plastic. I did a job last week drilling 1,920, 1.25" ID holes with .5" spacing on (2) 1/4" clear cast acrylic plexiglass. I was using a Mirror Finish single spiril UP CUT bit from Amana Tools made for plastic. but I used a upcut bit and I could hear a pop every time it plunged no matter how fast or slow I would run it (RPM and Plunge rate).paid no attention to it and it was a wholesale cutting job so I cut and pullparts and don't pull off the paper covers just give the stuff back. So I gave the job back and he called saying there was a small chip on every hole on the bottom side where it was plunging in. ****

so I had to re-cut it all 4hr CNC time each time.

what I found and learned from this F up was use a Amana Mirror finish bit but use the downcut bit with 18,000 RPM, Feed 120 IPM Plunge 50 IPM CLIMB cut.

if you look at these bits side by side you can see why the up will always chip on plunges in hard plastics, it reaches forward to a sharp tip in the direction of bit rotation and the down cut lays the angle back, it cut great and no melting.

He paid me The $120.00 for cutting we agreed on and sent me a bill for $360.00 for 2 sheets of material I wrecked.


Do as I say not as I do. learn from your mistakes.

Let us know how it works for you! Which model? what's the price on those?

it will be here monday

Standard or High Power Cold Gun System (Two Cold Outlets), Model #5315: 1.0000 at $281.00 each -- $281.00


SubTotal: $281.00
Shipping Total: $5.55
Grand Total: $286.55

http://www.exair.com/en-US/Products/Pages/Product%20Detail.aspx?catalog=Cold+Gun+Aircoolant+Systems&category=Cold+Gun&pid=P5315&bc=Cold+Gun+Aircoolant+Systems%3bCold+Gun

A tip for all cutting CAST acrylic clear plastic...............

Here's a better tip. Never plunge, always ramp into the material, and you won't have to worry about blowing out the bottom side. :) It's also easier on the spindle, and you'll get longer tool life when cutting wood.

fotos of tom m's machine in fla
love an epoxy floor!!

jim

Jim is that table surface exactly 48" wide? That looks like a 4x8 sheet on there. I only ask bacause on My machine table top surface is actually 60" x 110". it is nice beacuse I route 2 3/4" channels on the x and y sides in the spoilboard and push a 1" high peice of 3/4 board in there to make 2 fences to pull the board square into the corner.

yes the newer tables are closer as the gantry allows the head to extend over the full x axis you still have enough space for a squaring fence like my first table and yours, wait till you see my new one with the three heads virtually no change over time between bits heres a video of the new machine cutting aluminum

YouTube - CAMaster CNC Router Aluminum Plate Cutting

a commercial job we did using cut3d, vectric vcarve, vectorart by james booth and cabinetparts pro. obviusly the nail settings have not been touched up yet!!

Good work;).. If u increase the pics brightness a little , it will be look more beautiful

Nice job... Now I know what I want to do when I grow up

thanks fellows, kahlid good to hear from you! i have a bathroom we are finishing now that is pretty cool, will post soon jim

Thanks JIM.. I would love to see your work.. Keep up posting man:)

eric, if you noticed your router moved whern you got back from dinner, joey left me online with it so i had some fun!!

jim

hey, while you're at it, see if you can rearrange my plywood over the internet... and maybe some vacuuming.

this was fun!!

it is being reported that "Aspire" has been shown and is soon ready for us to own!!! 3d tool pathing from vectric!!!!!


remember "this little fish"

http://vectric.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=3875

Shop Sabre doing 10" x 5" by 1/2" thick 6061 Aluminum

3D relief bevel relief cutting and cut out

why kustom, i do believe you are begginning to have some fun!!

jim

this answers questions about cost and previous vectric ownership

jim

"Brian Moran and James Booth introduced amazing new 3D sculpting and modeling software from Vectric called Aspire. Aspire is a CAD/CAM program for those wanting to create relief carvings. It combines incredible features, a new ease or use for 3D software, and a remarkable low price. It comes with 50 pieces of 3D clip art from James' VectorArt-3D collection. Aspire will be priced at $2,000. But will have an introductory price of $1,750 until the end of the year. For owners or PartWorks or V-CarvePro the introductory price will be $900. (Available today from ShopBot for PartWorks owners.)"

quote from shopbots jamboree purchaser

While James Booth was making his closing remarks about the Aspire Software I was writing the check. From what I can see from it so far, and I have not really had a good chance to play with it yet, it is the equal of ArtCam, and alot more affordable. It actually has some features already in it that will not be in AC until it's next release. My hat is off to all the people at Vectric for creating this software, Way to go Guys!!!!!

Erics X3 Test

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

here is some viedo of erics CAMaster CNC running in the air to test after upgrade.

YouTube - Part 1 CAMaster Cobra X3 Cabinet Machine (part 1)
YouTube - Part 2 www.camaster.com Cobra X3 Cabinet Machine (part 2)

aspire

tony asked we refrain from posting the site temporarily

moderators, i removed the link until later

Looks Like another great piece of software from Vectric.

Shannon.

Some more Relif cutting in 3/4" pine board. I took a picture of my Fake wood walk in shop door and made a relif cut out of the picture and added raised text 10" x 36" sign

I was going for a rustic look and it looks a little rough I used a 1/4" ball nose with 50% setpover at 500 IPM

and a 1/8" ball nose to finish also with 50% step over took 85 Mins to machine.

good! from the look of that spoil board you are geeting some use out of that machine!!

jim

I am getting more and more work though the margins are still small. I get a lot of Acrylic cutting where the guy wants various holes cut into a full sheet. on time there was over 900 holes in a sheet of material (2 Sheets) I am excited to see the aspire software though I am already out $7,500 with this artcam if I had only knew vectric was coming out with a comparable product I would have got it instead. I think that I can improve this sign if I use the free form modeling tools that would have smoothed it out and the exagerated wood grain would have looked more real and smoother. (it is for my parents so they will be thrilled anyways) I will see what it looks like after a dark stain and painted letters.

i have some flogging sanders, kinda like an air grinder with flap sandpaper that we use on the intricate stuff to smooth it out for more realism.

charge more and don't work for those who don't pay, takes a little while to get the message out but it worked for me

"people are happiest when they are paying" walter phillips


jim

yeah I know but making some money to get the payment every month is better than nothing. I know that where I live people are Poor and cheap and always looking for a bargin I am used to that now. I would love to move south once all my equipment is paid for. Also they always act like they can get it done somewhere else for the same or cheaper. I try to get $100 Hr but usually is $30 to $50 with actual CNC running time. THis is true with everything I do here from Signs, Wraps, Banners, CNC, Painting ect. it is the way it is and I am working through it.

so Jim or anyone what should this cost a customer for me to make?

10" x 36" 3/4" pine board $10.00 cost.

Design Time hour (I'm still learning the program)

CNC time 1/4" rough pass 28 Mins 50% step over

CNC time 1/8" finish Pass 56 Mins 50% step over

Stained Red look.

sanded away the letters and I kinda like the look as is I may not paint the letters of I will with a washed out black and sand again by hand to give it a aged look.

total time about 3 hrs

Material $12.00

whats the price???

Total time 3hrs. $180. Which is higher than most people would pay.
Once you get ArtCAM down you'll cut your design time alot.
Machine time is too long. Try skipping the 1/4 tool and cut 28min off your cycle time right off the bat. Another thing to consider just machining the
parts that need machining. If you went over the tops of the letters while machining you wasted time there. May not seem like a big deal but it adds up. For most the things I've cut the "rest machining" in ArtCAM waste more time than if you just "raster" the whole thing with your smallest tool. Around here a sign like that would go for $80-$100. Looks great though. Just need to refine the process. Glad to see the SS is finally paying for itself.

Good luck,
Todd

Yeah I thought $80 also but this is my parents so it was free. but I had it sitting here and a customer said he wanted one just like it. when i said $80 he walked out Oh well but if I can't get $80 for something like this I don't know what else to do. I did use some wased out black on the letters and resanded it for more of a rustic look.

Todd you using Art Cam? I just got it and it is kinda hard to grasp. I tried to find tutoials but no luck just video demos that go to fast to fallow along.

like todd i would use the 1/8 or 3/16 and machined it one time!

the texture of pine and oak can age by using ammonia or muratic acid with a wire brush it will darken and age quick if they want to pay 40.00 so be it, go get pallet's made of southeast asian woods from a steel supplier, you cam find them, wood for this is free, do another in maple or mohogany and set it next to the other then they have an up grade choice, more money in commercial,

jim

Yeah I thought $80 also but this is my parents so it was free. but I had it sitting here and a customer said he wanted one just like it. when i said $80 he walked out Oh well but if I can't get $80 for something like this I don't know what else to do. I did use some wased out black on the letters and resanded it for more of a rustic look.

Todd you using Art Cam? I just got it and it is kinda hard to grasp. I tried to find tutoials but no luck just video demos that go to fast to fallow along.

To get the big $ you gotta make it POP. Some wood grian 3D'd on wood
isn't going to cut it. If there were vines or flowers or other trippy sh!t people find interesting you can name your price. And it doesn't take any longer to machine something kick ass. Just more design time. Which gets faster as you become more familiar with the software. I do everything in ArtCAM 9.0. I know what you mean about the tutorials and videos. When I purchased ArtCAM I got the "Advantage program" free for 3 months. During that time I downloading every tutorial I could find. If you want to take a look e-mail me. Other than that I just learned by doing. I did have 6 months to play with it before I got the machine. Which helped me achieve my goal of being ready to go as soon as the machine arrived.
No matter how you look at it there's alot to learn.

vectric aspire site is up

http://www.vectric.com/WebSite/Vectric/aspire/aspire_features.html

vectric aspire site is up

http://www.vectric.com/WebSite/Vectric/aspire/aspire_features.html

Pretty cool. Has the look and functionality of ArtCAM at a lower price.
I would be kinda pissed if I hadn't already made as much money as I have with ArtCAM. $7500 is pretty much outrageous in this day and age. Once
this gets out ArtCAM's going lose market share, big time.

i fell in love with the software that is a part of the carvewright, when i came to adult cnc i could not find any thing like it, tony mac and i had breakfast in atlanta and he told me just enough for me to wait!! i was offered a free seat of the other software and chose not to do it, i also have a new seat of bob cad cam with lathe and videos i may just raffle off!! man am i glad i waited

jim

Jim.. U have a good friendship with Tony Mac;)... Can you please tell me Are they planning for 4-axis program... Brian has a big brain;).. He must know and give us a way to do 4th axis work using ASPIRE itself...

Regards
Khalid

kahlid, i do consider tony a friend! as for 4rth axis well "hope is a good thing"

jim

happy camaster owner,

new 5x10 tool changer with 4rth axis lathe.

how do you get a 5x10 camaster thru a 36" x 80" door?

ask paul

Chainsaw? :devious::rolleyes:

like you shannon he took it apart and rolled it in sideways!!

That's what I was thinking the best option would be, but the chainsaw sounds more macho :D

Any pics of the router in bits :D:D

Shannon.

he's wiring it up today, we'll see!
jim

Vaseline?

is that from the guy who thought he could chase his router head with a vacuum cleaner while it was surfacing his spoilboard!!!:banana::banana:

tischler and i had quite a laugh over thaat one last night!!!

jim

now, in my defense, it's a decent dust collector and it actually worked until it got to a more raised part of the board and really started making a mess! I need that dust foot!

joey, get eric a dust foot!!!!!!!!

jim

contact me at the phone number on website we'll find out why you are not getting thru!!

jim mcgrew
www.mcgrewwoodwork.com

www.camheads.org

new shop where my new camasters will go!! electricians should finish next week (if they start next week, conractors, gee!!)

have moved som over and the guys are building new work stations etc

jim

sure

test

here

http://www.vectric.com/support/Aspire/V1/tutorials_index.htm

Off the subject but has anyone ever seen this type of Raised Allen Head screw before? Where can I get them? Thanks

Jim what program are you going to use for your 4Th axis? I think I am about ready to add the 4th axis to my machine.

MAybe I should add the picture that would help>>>

Any one seen these dust collectors before? What is a good cfm for a cnc only colector?


http://www.oneida-air.com/

Mine is 45cu.m/min (405ish cfm)

http://www.topmaq.co.nz/product_detail.aspx?id=WWDU1400

It keeps the dust down really well although I wouldn't want anything smaller, a cyclone one would be better.

Shannon.

looks like a socket head sheet metal screw... I have never seen one before now, but I found a hit really fast by searching those terms.. http://www.microfasteners.com/catalog/products/TWSSTS.cfm

Off the subject but has anyone ever seen this type of Raised Allen Head screw before? Where can I get them? Thanks

I couldn't resist the challenge, I had to use google images and search for 'hex socket wood screw' these came up in the UK so they are around somewhere. I have never seen them before but they look like an engineer met a woodworker :D:D
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Speaker-fixing-screws-4-x-16-mm-black-hex-cap-16pk_W0QQitemZ180238495544QQcmdZViewItem?hash=item180238495544&_trkparms=72%3A1300|39%3A1|66%3A2|65%3A12|240%3A1318&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14#ebayphotohosting

EDIT, beaten to it and by a better link :D:D

Shannon.

Man I knew someone on here would know where to get them or what to call them. I was searching "Hex Head Wood Screw" and kept getting the comon 5/16" head screws used for steel siding this the rubber washers. thanks guys

my first "aspire" file!!!!

Very nice, I'm not to keen to show my first file, I was trying to make a F4U corsair from cross sections, It came out recognizable but that's about it :D

Shannon.

Not "aspire" but close. wish I had got aspire Art Cam is not that easy to understand how it builds things.

you will master it!!

jim

masons done!! electricians this week and we will move in!!

jim

i will be heading over to camaster in georgia to finalize what we are doing to my machine tommorrow, if anyone needs any info photos or such speak up!

jim

man jim soon 3 cnc's, new shop, You Hiring?? JK Gas was at $2.12 this morning up here. I should stock up but that is what they want us to do buy a lot of gass and push up demand so they can run the price up to $4.29 again also snowing today. wish I was south.

get pics or info on the dust shoe that they are making for our machines.

funny you should mention buying grass!! it's what i did about an hour ago!!

colors are changing, really looks cool untill there are no leaves on the tree's.

kustom if i send you mt crx 450 panel can you decal em for me, i bought the black ones andthe honda dealers will not sell them as black panels are special order, my sign gut is not creative enough

here is a pic of the honda panel, i want silver etc.

eric, will do!!

jim

Yep I can do that. I have a material called CONVEX it is a 3 mil High Tack Vinyl that I print on and then uses a 12MIL laminate. it is the material I use on Sno-Cross and Dirt Bike and Quad Racers panels. the Low energy plastic of those items (dirt bikes, snow mobiles and quads) make using regular vinyl not stick and not thick enugh for the beating they take. is it the 2 side covers? or also front fender and tail piece?

i'll get them off the bike in the next couple of day's, headed to camaster in am

jim

oh yea the decals on my red panels are shot!

jim

what is the Year, Make And Model, size and (color is red) of your Bike exactly? I might have the template in my MX template program for that and you should not have to send them here. I will make the decals and send them to you they will fit right on there.

mine was the first year they came out with the 450 crf

jim

2oo2 honda crf kickstart 450cc one mean motorcycle,

gotta go downtown back in a few

i purchased the panels aftermarket, i am mostly interested in the sides but i have the full set.


jim

it was originally red but i purchased the black ones

don't need your panels save on packing and shipping them. I have the template Kit from the MX outline in The Bad Wrap Program. I will work on the design and get back to you. This template program is pretty cool it even gives you the relief cuts and contour cut lines needed to get over the curves.

call me with amount i'll give you cc on phone!!

it's nice out today so i am gonna go ride!!

jim

camaster

went t camaster shop to check on my machine and got to watch another being picked up!!

from paul,

http://www.camheads.org/showthread.php?p=239#post239

pjs shop

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Just worked on cutting out part of a project. The machine does exactly what I tell it to do! Unfortunately, I'm not always on the top of my game so I will have to recut out the first set of parts. They are a little tricky because I have to make cuts on both sides of the parts and they have to line up when I'm done. Reference points are key when flipping parts. Anyway, I'm sending some pics of y screen (very cool buttons), pics of my laser lining system (also very cool) and some pics of the parts I am cutting. The laser tucks up in front of the spindle. I turn it on, line it up with the edge on my workpeice and set home. Then I reset home to the offset of the laser (predetermined) and rehome the machine. It's been right-on each time so far. It's a lot easier than using a pointed bit and eyeballing the edge. The laser setup cost less than $10.00 so I feel pretty good about that. Gotta go!

jj made it home !!!

Cabnet,

Very innovative with the laser. I especially like the alligator clip wiring solution. Thanks for sharing.

Mitch

what kind of laser is that and how is it shooting a line at the center of the CNC bit??? IE Where is it actually mounted to?

I got the laser from here (www.dealextreme.com). It cost less than $4.00 and runs on 2 AA batteries I put it in a small box from Radio Shack. The whole setup was less than $10. The laser is inside a small plastic holder mounted to the front of the spindle. It's offset of my project home X&Y but I just measured how far off it was and once I line the laser crosshairs with my starting point, I just program in the difference and the CNC moves the tool to the same point the laser was at. Sounds complicated but is actually quite simple. Beats the hell out of anything else I've used for the price. You could buy a spindle laser for over $100, chuck it up in the collet but then remove it every time you find your home.

Paul

so the laser is pointing perfectly straight down, am I understanding that correctly? I guess you could make a new button on WinCNC to "Zero XY with Laser" and have the macro automatically compensate for the offset..

You are correct, the laser points straight down and in my case is x-.064 y-3.424 from spindle zero. So I just move the spindle to those coordinates and rezero the machine. Like I say, there may be (and I'm sure there is) a better way but for the money, this works great. One thing I was happy about is how fast you can find any point on the table. It also works great for referencing the center of a circle or in some cases a point not so easily defined as the corner of a part.

Paul

paul can you post a pic of the mount?

jim

For anyone using Cabinet Pro software the new forum is up and running. Go to Cab Pro's web site and click on the link in the left hand column to sign up.
Keith :rainfro:

paul has sent photos of laser

what would happen if a guy was able to mount that laser into a separate Colet? what is the diamatater of it? there would be som modifying but it would be cool if I could just have a separate collet with the ATC function one easy push of the button and pop in a laser sighted collet maybe even a Laser Pointer pen could work if it was chucked up into it it would point the laser at exact XY zero. then grab the next tool and set Z Zero would that work?? I am going to try and find a laser pointer!!!

http://www.blueskymarketing.co.uk/images/blue-phire-laser-pointer.jpg

Like this if it would fit in say a 1/4" collet tight and the on off button was not at the top it would give you a dead on XY zero

This would not be as easy if you did not have the easy air release of a ATC CNC but I think if the size was right it would go right in there. I am taking my Caliper to Office Max and see what these things are for thickness.

Hey Kustom,
Here is a site I found that has laser pointers made for collets.
www.lasercenteredgefinder.com/buynow.html I thought about doing this because I have a quick release tool changer but I wanted to try the cheap route first. They cost about $84.00 and I think your idea of having the ability to quickly chuck and unchuck would work well. If you decide to go this route, let us know how well it works. I actually found this site by reading the Shopbot website. (ton of information there.)

Paul

I am going to order one of those with the 3/8 shaft. I have a ATC and a 3/8 collet that I don't use (NO 3/8" Tools) and with the ease of one button release of the Tool changer it will be pretty easy to do. I will tell you how I like it once it gets here.

gerry, i need to purchase a ballscrew coupling 1/2 to 3/8 2" long

any ideas where

jim

Jim What do you think about that Kern Laser? www.kernlasers.com got a sample pack amazing small detail and 3D Laser Engraving capability

laser is a world i know little about, bill has built some but the kern looks like it would do the trick, there is a lot of laser disscussion on sawmill creek.

jim

let's talk today ablout the crf panels

jim

I tried to get on sawmill and my application was rejected. I have been there reading I also was on another Laser fourum but CNC zone is enugh for me people are actually helpful and respond here.

I will be ordering my Onida Air system though that I saw the advertisement on Saw Mill Creek( I see they Advertise Here to). I got the 3HP High Vac 55 GallonDrum colector with Bag liners, that was designed for CNC machines. its about $2500 and I got $700 in ductwork. I think it will be a good thing I hated the dust Boot but the absolute mess in the CNC room all the time is worse, I got to get used to the Dust Boot.

sawmill creek requires use of first and last names, i have seen rejections based on that, there are some good disscussions there

onieda is a good dc so is jds they are built here in cola sc

http://www.jdstools.com/

jim

Does anybody else notice that this is a knock off of a warthog machine, even posting pics of warthog machines in this forum!!!

i am sure you mean well, the warthog was developed before it moved to tenn by it's new owners, i have one of the older ones which i have retrofitted with the help of the original builders, i have a new camaster x3 508 to pick up next week.


today i finished the new dust foor and will attach tommorrow, new drivers are working well and have found another built before the move with servos i may purchase it tommorrow. got the camaster yellow to complete the retrofit and will move the machines to the new shop next week..

kustom thanks for the panels i am sure they are going to look great,

jim

ok so it was developed before it moved to tenn, wonder why the company was sold in the first place? what were you told?

the old owners have always spoken well of the warthog owners, i guess it really isn't any of my business, nor something i need to know. the fellows at camaster have really helped me along and i have really had a good experience with them, it has lead me to over 40 owners of new machines and quite a few of the older ones as well.

jim

Carvin Marvin is that you again?

My hat off to you then. Hope you have better luck then i did....

who is carvin marvin?

"carvin marvin" was a lurker, antagonist who tried to derail threads when some of us were studying new router purchases, he posted inacurate and false info claimed to have had problems he did not have and machines he did not own, lurkers pop up once in a while and make efforts but many of us here have become friends and communicate with good integrity to achieve the good spritted learning curve of CNC!!!

i am sure you are not "carvin marvin"

he was good for a laugh once in a while

jim

Nope, not me, sorry, I assure you i dont talk about people or companies unless i can back it up.

kustom your pm is full!!

jim

kustom we are going to do a wincnc seminar on inifiles and thier relation ship to our various applications in early december at my shop we will broadcast it on net, so get you experience together!! have you got servos or steppers?

jim

close loop Servo's PM box emptied

Kustom you know wincnc? i have worked with it for years would like to get some knowledge?

I can't wait to hear more about how the .ini settings specifically affect the quality of cut, etc for different applications.

I use wincnc but it is to other guys here that are software engioneres or something and know it well and have wrote program add ons and improvements for it. I use it as the driver for the router and the only problem I have is that I can't seem to restart in the middle of a file. I broke a bit on line 40,500 and replace the bit and try to restart and it says ERROR BOUNDRY EXCEEDED. I have to start from scratch and watch it air cut. it is a problem with the tool height because I have a Tool Change and have not ever set up the tool changer or the Tool Height on the tools I manually xy and z zero. it is not a big deal but would like to be able to restart when I have to stop it or get a broke bit.

eric joesph came to the shop today, he and george in wilmington have really figured it out well, him and paul have been toghrether in the shop as well i'll get you on the phone with him in the am, tonight he is studying my aspire!!

jim

what version of wincn you using?

i have a copy of the macro for the tool height and stores it in the software this requires that you have the toolchanger activated on the .dat file...

george told me today there is an up grade on the wincnc site.

jim

nobody want to talk to me, or is it ignore me day?

http://www.wincnc.net/webfiles/CNC%20Windows/

I don't know it is the latest version I got my cnc in march 2008 it came with it. I don't need help it works for what I do right now. If I would get my spoilboard how I want it and do the tool HT set up I am sure it will be just fine. I had the manufacture of my cnc on the phone but they don't know much about Win CNC. it is just what everyone uses to drive cnc's.

kustom and cnchelper, i know just enough to get me into trouble, the fellows at camaster and the other owners have taught me a few tricks of wincnc,

tool changers are not somthing i have any experience with i was purchasing a tool changer on the new machine but went with the three head machine like erics!

jim

i am really good with wincnc i would like to offer my help and knowledge but nobody seems to want help. i thought that the forum was for us to help each other. wincnc had a flaw in it when they did some upgrades on the controller the restart function can't cache that high of a number typically the new updates will fix it, but if you have an older version of wincnc updates wil cause issues recognizing the card, if you have a newer version the update will fix it...

when you say older do you mean when it was dos?

jim

I can start a file and hit the stop at line 20 and it still won't restart even when I did not touch anything else did not change a bit, did not re z-zero or xy zero. just hit go let it mor 4 inches hit the stop sign on the controler and try to do a restart and nothing error boundry excedded I have learned to live with it.

no version 2.2 is the newest version that supports the old 4 axis card, so if you have a 4 axis card from wincnc you will not be able to upgrade, the flaw with the cache was around ver 2.3.? something around that time of the vista craze upgrade to get fixed, if you have the six axis card you can upgrade to 2.4 and have no problem....

you need to upgrade, you can go and upgrade easly open the zip folder and copy all the files in the zip folder over and into the wincnc folder, then restart wincnc its that easy... they had several issues with the restart sounds like you got the first batch of issues.....

I know I had the 4th axis port installed because I want a 4th later on. according to the manual I got I have Manual Revision1 wincnc Controller 2.4


I'm not on vista I still have XP on that computer

dont go by the manual go to wincnc help menu, click and goto about it will tell you what version of software you have... does anybody have servos on there machine

vista or xp dont matter the update was to fix the driver to work with vista

i'm servos

what kind of servos?

Help - About - version 2.4.03

you will want ot upgrade if oyu are having issues, this is the newest release.

http://www.wincnc.net/webfiles/CNC%20Windows/WinCnc%202.4.xx/Release/

click on version 2.4.05 they are workign on ver 6 now.....

mistsubishi AC servo motors HC-KFE23K motors

ok i AM DOWNLOADING THAT 2.4.05 THEN WHAT FOLDER DO i PUT IT IN?

CNChelper... what do you know about best g9 (smoothing) settings in WinCNC ini file? I have microsteppers and it was set to s30 at first, I switched it to s5 and also lowered the 'a' number under axisspec section of .ini to a400. The machine was taking 90 degree corners too fast and one of those seemed to help it, but want to know best settings and if one setting is best overall or should change the setting based on work being cut..

I still want to tweak out my axisspec and axisvel settings as well as that g09 setting.

wow you are running wincnc with those servos, impressive? the reason i asked is do you know that wincnc offers no encoder feedback, so the only thing that you gain by the servos is speed you have no more accuracy then you do with a stepper drive. So in a nutshell if 1" equals 50,000 encoder counts, and if the servo only recognizes it received pulses for 45,000 encoder counts, because of noise or other issues, wincnc will still tell you it went 1" when in fact it truly only went lets say 15/16"...

like I said I use programs they are here, they seem to work I did not set it up and I don't do much program installing or reprograming. where do I put that upgraded zip file that I extracted to the desktop.

ok double click on the zip folder or right click on it and say extract here. then go to start my computer and then go to wincnc folder. after you extract the zip file copy all those files into the wincnc folder that is in the c drive directory, you will be asked to replace existing files... say yes.

I did extract and did the copy to the win cnc folder but it does not ask to replace existing files it just plops it in there

you should of been asked? here is the picture of the zip file you want to make sure you copy these files over to the wincnc folder

i posted a picture with it did you get it

ok try this one

you need to select all those files and right click and say copy then go to that wincnc folder and right click and say paste that will eb easier do not close the window that you copied from....

ok I was trying to drop the whole folder in instead of opening the new 2.4.05 unziped folder and highlight it and then try to drag into the wincnc folder. it then asked me to replase all I said yes. now I started a file with a xy and z zero high so it don't touch the table let it run for 20 lines and tried a restart I got a result but not a good one. it ran over to the tool changer and sat there running and asked to hit return to start I hit return and it just sat there I had to M5 to stop it. I will try again maybe it will work this time.

I was just behind you. I got it but do I have to restart the computer or just wincnc?

now I get a security warning saying publisher not recognized are you sure you want to run this program

that is from double clicking on the win cnc shortcut on the desktop I have used for 9 months never seen that until I did this update

got it to work one then tried again and same thing it goes over to about the 3rd tool holder position and sits there and runns. this is why I just live with stuff now I feel it is worse than if I would have just left it alone

i got to go guys the wife is yelling at me. let me know if i can help you guys i will do anything i can to help, if i cant i have some good contacts so i can get you something soon.

thanks, for letting me in guys.

I think it is actually working here after a restart of the whole computer. I am just doing some fake files setting the z zero high letting it air cut for some lines and stoping it and trying to restart it. seems to work I will lwt you guys know tomorrow.

CNC helper, sometime tomorrow, check back a couple pages, I asked a question about winCNC settings you may have missed with all these messages coming through so fast.. you might know a good answer.

got it to work a few time them now I let it go for a while and stop then try to restart at the line I stoped at and get a ERROR boundry Z-

don't know I'm going home done typing tonight

wow looks like a lot went on here!

fell asleep (cold is bad again) we need a thread on wincnc, there are a bunch of different companys selling routers with it, kustom servos are a mystery to me as i have never used them, i hope todd71 is watching this,


i have seen that with the diversity of the uses of the router's there are no "one size fit's all settings" my friend joeseph uses several inifiles on his desktop for different reasons, he and george are constantly harping on me to understand wincnc better! it is a software you cannot ignore,

jim

eric,paul, james, please send me your inifile's, joey and i have been cataloging them for a while your machines were delivered after the last time we did this.

jim

YouTube - Part 1 CAMaster Cobra X3 Cabinet Machine

by the way we have a bill hog built in 04/05 with servos, enroute, computer,
5hp columbo that an owner has to sell. it is a great deal and will need new drivers and tuning for the servo's this machine could be retrofitted

contact me if interested

jim

i have asked the forum to move camaster and shop sabre to sub forum status as the list of "cnc zone member owners" of camaster, shopsabre, owners is growing, there are quite a few other machines that use wincnc like
(correct me if i am wrong) warthog, cnt. as well

if the forum allows this we will be able to get threads moved into the sub forums

any suggestions are welcome

jim

http://www.cnczone.com/forums/showthread.php?t=67486

postalgbv,
i am sorry i did not see your message i apologize for not answereing.
first off let me start by explaining the g09=s function this is a smoothing factor that takes the points of typically curves and smoothes them out (by illiminating them). so if you want a smoother corner you will need to adjust this value.

The "a" value is the acceleration value. this is pertinant to the R value in the axis vel line the "a" value is the travel speed in inches per minute, so lets say you have it at 800 which is pretty good for steppers it also depends on what kind of steppers ill get to that in a sec. so if your r value is 800 and the a is 400 then you will take 2 sec to reach 800 ipm... if you set the a at 800 you take 1sec to reach 800IPM, if you set it at 1600 it will take you a .5 secs to reach 800ipm. as far as curves this value really isnt going to improve it, that will be the G09=S typically for steppers i have found between s=12 and s=15. that is with a gecko system running a vextra stepper...

let me know if i helped or made it worse.

I own a personal company that supports and repair/diagnose cnc problems

also if anyone wants to email me you can at:

cnchelper@gmail.com

Kustom how is your machine doing?

got it to do some restarts but them was getting some new errors. error boundry exceeded Z- I have not been out there for 2 days to try again. I still think now in still have to do with I have not set up my Tool HT and spoil board. it thinks the Z is low and will drill throught the table

that is really good info!! we are trying to get a subforum here, it is clear to me you know wincnc well!! does your business have a website?

http://www.cnczone.com/forums/showthread.php?t=67525

jim

working on the website ill let you know when its up...

Kustom what machine do you have and has no one showed you how to set up this info...

Shop Sabre
4x8
5HP 5 ATC HSD spindel


No it was set up at the facory with a new computer I had drop shipped to them. I have never tried to do any of thses different settings. I bought it it seems to work I try not to screw with settings or I get where I am now with it worse than when I started.

Hey guys before you go buying machines you need to shop around. There are several company's that sell cnc's. They all have there advantages and disadvanteges, Find one that suits your needs and most importantly there support to you...

Some company's sell the smae thing but one might be cheaper, make sure you get quotes from all, you might find one has something you want, that another adds on or doesn't even offer..

here is a list of ones i have found and know off: List is not complete

www.eagleeyecnc.com

www.warthogcnc.net

www.camaster.com

www.multicam.com

www.shopbottools.com

www.shopsabre.com

www.komo.com

www.cntmotion.com

www.technocnc.com

do your homework there is a lot to choose from:

you care to email me your wincnc folder? if not i understand...

thanks,

kustom' when you get a good ini file save a copy in a seperate file, you may need to remeber it later, i have been making notes in my wincnc book all along and have about 30 different inis from other owners, i keep two on his desktop one for 3d and one for rippin thru nested casework.


you should always save a copy before adjusting the operating file!!

jim

cnc helpe,r a little research showed that the first cnc company you listed is owned by the second company listed, are they about to drop the warthog name? the first one shows no address nor phone numbers,

i will say cnt,komo and multicam are much heavier machines and cost being relative they are higher and better suited for high production applications.

the camaster (i have two),shopsabre and techno machines are great value for thier application and are well disscussed here on the zone.

shopbot is in a world of it's own

When it comes to tool heights you need to write a macro for that. take the guess work out of it. Let the software take care of the needed calculations wincnc is more than capable of handeling it... there is several ways to program this...

I've worked with Fanuc, Mitsu, Fagor, wincnc, mach, camsoft, microkinetics... there is several motion controllers out there....

Even working on one personally that is a high end controller that you can run 4 digital or 4 analog system, also has a million encoder counts...

cnc its obvious you are well versed in cnc and controllers, why not come out on the general forum where it would be of great benefit to many, the excitech guys in australia would love to hear from you!!

jim

the general forum is here, when it comes to helping someone about the use of wincnc there are a lot more friends of ours who want to hear this


http://www.cnczone.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=215

No I just need my tool HT sensor button right?

also I did look and got quotes on almost all of those companies except Warthog and never heard of Eagle or cnt. I also looked at excitech, motion tec, Axyz and Hass. I looked for 6 months this is my first cnc I have never even seen a cnc router in person before or ever ran one before mine got here.

Multicam and komo are way to expensive

Shop Bot seemed to light duty and tinker toyish

Techno and shop sabre and camaster are about the same

and I went with shop sabre because they are 3 hours away. I have no real complaints and I think everyone here will agree there are all kinds of improvements and programs that push these machines along. you will litterally never stop learning new ways to improve and make them faster. I am just trying to make the payments and I did learn a lot about the bits and feed rate. I just have never tried to mess with the setting in wincnc at all.

Well wincnc has several tweeks that can improve production, but along with any software wincnc has issues on certain things they are a good controller. as far as the forum goes i will go wherever i am needed and can be of assistance.

As far as just a button sorry kustom, unless they preprogrammed the software to handle it with the macros and the offsets i seriously doubt it... I could be wrong though they might have given it to you... I will tell you that G37Z macro if its not in your wincnc folder and programmed then its not going to be ready...

if you want a button for it on screen thats simple.. Thats in the cncscrn.ini file Send me you wincnc folder and i can add all that and email back to you...

I have my picks of CNC machine's and know who has flaws and whos works better.
there are way to many things to consider when buying a machine. i can tell you 90% of the salesman will never tell you about certain things. I am not a salesman but i assure you i know what works and what works vary well for the money, if you want to ask me ?'s about certain CNC's just email me and i will gladly give my opionion along with the reason so you could even ask them..

Location Kustom is important especially if you need repairs....

cnchelper@gmail.com

I have the machine and most all here do to so I am not looking at machines this one will have to last me my life time and it will be the design programs and controlers that will change on it.

if win cnc does not give servo encoder feed back you say my $2,500 servo upgrade was a waste? what is a good controler that will utilize my servos?

if you are not a sales man then who are you?

jim

OFF SUBJECT

Jim got your MOTO WRAPS ready they will ship tomorrow..

also got approved for financing on a laser engraver. the 60 watt Universal 18"x32" one not the 4x8 Kern I wanted

excellent dude will flash em when i put them on the bike!!

i can tell by the cut they are perfect!!

jim

Sorry, I'm not trying ot sell you a machine, but you would be surprised what i have learned from repairs/upgrades and such. Given time your machine should make you enough money to upgrade, i have seen this several times.... you might down the road know somebody wanting to buy a machine my experience and yours can help others make great choices... Sorry had to do a little speach there, back to the main point

Wincnc has no encoder feedback, that is right, but, it wasnt a waste. With servos you get more speed and torque but the controller (wincnc) doesnt know if the servo drive made the correct move or not, the drive is the only thing that knows that, except the drive only does what it is told so if it lost pulses from wincnc to the drive then the drive would not know that it lost them.

Camsoft and Mach both have encoder feedback... but require some little programming

cnc how much experience have you had with the teknic sst 1500 alx board, i have an opportunity to get another machine with the z mucking up would i get it retuned or replace the board? it is five years old all wiring has been checked and x&y are fine, z is dropping

jim

Teknic will tell you they are crap, i agree, sorry jim.

also they are very prone to noise issues, very, very sensitive. Also teknic will charge you the same as the eclipse drive for replacement, or at least they do me. Eclipse is a much better system and works with the older motors that run with the 1500 series drives but will have to be rretuned, i would go that route...

What is the Z doing? i have found that the encoders on the top of those old series motors have gotten dust in them and can cause the motor to crap up and do speratic things...

Take off the screws and blow the encoder off and then run again and see what happens...

Let me know...

i will i may go see machine in tommorrow i can get it at way reasonable (steal) and i prefer to replace rather than fix, i canned all of the old anaheims on my older machine (1/2 steppers) and have replaced motors, drives, power supply i am hoping its a quick fix but i would want it right!

thanks that was good info

jim

NP,
i build CNC Gecko boxes for upgrades ,servos systems too, that you can basically plug into your system you would just have to tell me what you have, so i can cross referance... if anybody is interested let me know and i'll help.

I got to go help the wife get kids in bed, email me or just ask ?'s ill be on tomorrow and reply with help.

thanks,

CNChelper
cnchelper@gmail.com

we got our forums!!! check out main page for woodworking

I'm no software engionere here but Like I said I thought I was having a problem with restarts because of never setting up my tool changer.

well I did pay like $10,000 for the 5Hp spindel and tool changer option after 10 months I finally set it up.

it is amazing no big deal to most but I thought it was cool I followed SS manual with the G92 G49 then G37cal then load 5 tools hit T1 and then tool HT button and so on.

then drew 2 holes and a circle in V-Carve. had it do a drill cycle T1 1/4 endmill then it went to the T5 V bit then back to T1 for the vut out.

I let it runn all the way through and I can sit here and restart it from anywhere NO ERRORS so I think I am good now with that. I only ask for one last thing.

OK I break my 1/4" bit. replace it and it will be different than the first calibrated one right. so what do I do then? change it and hit TOOL HT button on just that one? then restart. I am going to try it by faking it take my T1 and change the height on it in the collet and see what happens.

also I have way more than 5 tools and can upgrade to 20Tool locations. but can I put the comon in 1-4 and use 5 as my change out I got ups, down, alum, plastic, ball nose ect. as long as I z zero that bit every time and don't use T5 in the ATC af a program I should be ok right? thanks

I got it figured out. thanks all

thanks gerry and paul!!!

kustom what was it?

all it has been the whole time was my router was set up for a tool changer function and I have never used or set it up until tonight. after I have done that I made a simple file that had 3 tool changes and ran it and I can start and restart from anywhere now the ERROR BOUNDRY EXCEEDED error was all because the machine was thinking it was going to plung too deep and would not let me do a restart. it works fine now never made any changes to ini file.

see OPERATOR ERROR again it was me not my machine or the program 90% of problems are usually operator error even though we don't know it.

I am up and running with my tool change option working and the ability to do restarts when I brake a bit in the middle of a file. Thanks again all who helped out.

we will be learning wincnc!!


very cool!!

jim

CNCHelper,
Is it possible to change the size of the whole WinCNC screen on a person's monitor?
WinCNC only takes up about 1/3rd of my screen. Any way to make use of the whole screen?

it is its in a file named cncscrn when you open it (in note pad) It will look l