New HURCO SM-1

[Phil_arch]

I recently purchased a new (used) Hurco SM1. This is my first CNC machine of any kind although I have a fair amount of time on a manual Bridgeport. The machine appears to me in good condition and was running when the previous owner unhooked it less than a year ago. I have already transported the machine to my shop and run electrical and air lines to it. The machine and computer start up and I'm able to jog around manually in X,Y, and Z. I'm also able to load a program from a PC to the machine using the RS232 port and a free DNC program. After looking through the manuals and documentation, this machine appears to have been upgraded in 2005 with new servo amps. I'm not sure if the servo motors themselves were also replaced...

Now for the bad:
When I started the spindle, it ran for a few minutes and sounded a little noisy but not too bad. Then I loaded a program and ran it just "cutting air" and the spindle motor started to smoke... I immediately shut it down but I'm pretty sure the motor is toasted.

1) Any thoughts on this? I'm planning to just have the motor rebuilt although I'd like to verify that I didn't cause it to avoid it happening again. I am using a rotart phase converter but I use it for several other machines and have never had a problem with it...
2) The servos also seem "jumpy" and they move on their own - not too much, but I'm guessing .050-.060. It seems like maybe they need tuned?
3) When I did have the spindle running, I was unable to reverse the direction (for use in back gear). In the manual, it said I can use Data Block 0 but I'm unable to access it.

I'm sure I'll have many more questions but I appreciate any help I can get. I should also mention that the upgrades in 2005 were done by Midwest CNC - they are local to me in Indianapolis so I'm able to hire them if necessary. I'd just like to make sure I'm not missing something obvious in the meantime.
I should also mention that I'm planning to use this mill for prototyping / hobby work. I already use Fusion 360 for my CAD work and I'm learning how to use the CAM now. Is anyone else using Fusion 360 for this era of Hurco? I'm assuming it doesn't have DNC capability so I'm planning to use another program to transfer to the Hurco...

Thanks
- Phil

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[scrambled]

Phil-

Are you sure the voltage is correct?

Mine are 230 or 480 machines.

I use Dave at Midwest cnc to fix my hurco's when I can't .

If you want to drip feed to the hurco, then contact Jerry at highland dnc in Florida. He sells a USB gizmo that connects to the round rs-232 port. Be careful about connecting a computer to the rs-232 port. I burned both of mine out.

If you have any questions just ask .


Steve


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[Phil_arch]

Yes - I verified that the voltage was correct after the motor started smoking! I looked at the wiring diagram inside the motor connection and it is wired for 230. I also spoke with Dave on Thursday when I was hooking up the wiring and he advised me to make sure that my "wild" leg from the RPC was only going to the spindle motor. The previous owner said he'd been using this PC on the rs-232 ports without any issue; I suppose if I burn them out, I'll call Jerry in Florida. Thanks for that tip!

[scrambled]

I was told that the reason they burn out is the differential between the mill on 3 phase and the computer on single phase.

Steve


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[Thecaptain]

When you switch those legs around to get the wild leg on the spindle. Remember the other 2 legs may be out of phase and your spindle will spin backwards. A simple fix by switching the 2 non wild leg wires. Just be aware of it.

[Phil_arch]

Thanks for the comments. We've been making progress... We had the Tech out here from Midwest CNC - Mike. He really helped us out and led us in the right direction. Our spindle motor needs rebuilt / replaced so it's now at a local repair shop. If they aren't able to repair it, Midwest CNC has used motors available. The random moves from the servo seemed to be caused by a bad connection the servo control board. Mike also brought another board along and swapped it out (which fixed the random jumps). Instead of charging me for a new board, he put my old board back in to test if it was just a bad connection and it was. I'm incredibly grateful for this because he could've easily told me that I needed the new board. The Y axis servo is also in need of cleaning from oil contamination and I was instructed how to do this. Hopefully that will fix our "rough" movement on the Y axis. If not, then we will have to replace the Y servo motor. I'll report back when we find out details on the spindle motor.

[Thecaptain]

That's great to hear. Mike and Dave at Midwest Cnc also helped me fix my machine.

[Phil_arch]

Ok - more progress made. We were able to have the spindle motor rebuilt by a local company and they did a nice job - at least I think so. We re-installed it and it runs MUCH quieter and no more smoking! I was able to able to jog the machine around and put an indicator on to verify tram, etc. I also installed a vise and indicated that in. I thought we were about ready to make some chips and then the Y axis started feeling rough again... So we've taken all 4 brushes out of the Y axis servo motor and cleaned them. They were SO oily. I'm hoping this is the problem. Any advice on cleaning out that servo motor? Should I take it apart further than the brushes? Should I clean it out with acetone or brake cleaner? If I do take it apart, I don't want it to lose its position - can that happen?

The other concern is the spindle RPM. We have a little laser tachometer than we checked the spindle speed with and it's telling us that we're spinnging about 250rpm faster in high gear than our dial on the machine says. Any thoughts on this? Is there a way to adjust / calibrate that? I'm putting the servo brushes back in now and hopefully that will fix the problem (atleast temporarily). Then I'm really wanting to make some chips. I have a few small jobs will be great to run manually.

[scrambled]

On most VFDs there is a way to adjust the rpm speed. Try and find a user manual for your VFD.


Steve


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