SMTC Stuck. Please help!

[Matt@RFR]

I really wish I didn't, and I won't do it again, but I pressed feed hold right in the middle of a tool change and now I can't get the tool changer to move. There is a tool in the spindle as well as the tool changer pocket, and the arm has a hold of both.

When I go into the recover area, I tell it that there's tools loaded and that the arm will not allow them to be removed, then get to a screen telling me to use certain commands to manually index the arm so I can get the tools out. Problem is, when I push any of those buttons it sais, "Running" but isn't actually doing anything. Please help!

[Geof]

Originally Posted by Matt@RFR ...Problem is, when I push any of those buttons it sais, "Running" but isn't actually doing anything. Please help!

Is it the cursor keys you push when you are on the recovery screen; something like that I think. I watched a tech doing it on mine and the arm only moved a very tiny bit with each push. Are you sure it is not moving? Have you pushed many many times watching it closely.

[Matt@RFR]

Yes, to move the arm itself it tells you to use "ATC FWD" or "ATC REV" buttons, and the readout they provide does move 1º, but each successive push of either button does nothing. After pushing the button, I get the 'running' message and that seems to be it.

[serviceman]

turn the machine off back on take the tool out of the spindle if the arm is wrapped around the tool in the spindle then on the first page of the recover routine you need to hit the tool release button and then press and hold the z + jog button til the spindle moves high enough to unclamp the tool about .100 once the tool is unclamped try repeatedly pressing atc fwd or rev to start to move the arm then remove the tool from the spindle and continue with the recovery process.

[Matt@RFR]

With the help of a Selway tech over the phone, we finally got the tool changer all fixed up. It turned out that the arm wouldn't move because the spindle was sitting on it, so he finally had me change a parameter for the toolchanger arm that made it either move faster or slower (can't remember), and the arm popped out from under the spindle while using the ATC REV key in the recover area. Then, to my surprise, the spindle kind of ratched down until it hit the tool change arm again!! So I blocked the spindle up with a 4x4 and did the whole arm recover thing again. Now all three axes refuse to move. Yay. They won't move with setting 53 on or off, they won't jog at all, and the power up/restart key does nothing but turn the spindle air on. Tech should be here on Friday.

[serviceman]

call me 845-521-6052

[Matt@RFR]

The tech was here and found that the Z axis amp is fried, but apparently the newer machines (this is a VF-2SS) uses a 45 amp amplifier, whereas the older machines were 30 amp, so he didn't have one to replace the bad one. The new amp should be here Monday or Tuesday.

I'm not sure how I go from a stuck tool changer to a fried amplifier, but the tech said it was probably a coincidence and, hey, it's under warranty so I'm not complaining.

[Geof]

When the amp fried the servo lost power and the head dropped until it was resting on the toolchanger arm. You found that when you were able to move the arm, the head just dropped down onto it again.

Are you sure the arm is not bent? I don't think they are designed to support a few hundred or a thousand or two pounds of head assembly.

[Matt@RFR]

I made sure to have the tech do about 10 tool changes (with tools, not just cycling the changer) to make sure. Also, I can only get a .010" feeler gauge between the arm and a straight edge, so hopefully it'll be ok.