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  1. #161
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    Default Re: Precision Plasma 5x10 Speed Demon Build Log

    We will configure you up a different 755 PC, load the latest version of hardware and copy your configuration and pay the return shipping. It will include a set of recovery memory sticks that can be used to configure up another computer.

    Your other option, since you seem to think its LINUX: Return the Linux controller box and we will down grade it to a Windows 7 and MACH3 system We will reconfigure the PC for Windows and MACH. You will need to provide us with a valid MACH license to load


    TOMcaudle
    www.Candcnc.com



  2. #162
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    Default Re: Precision Plasma 5x10 Speed Demon Build Log

    I do not think it's Linux, and I have never said that. I did say it was the linux box, by which I was referring to the PC itself. Not Linux, Not Bladerunner, I was talking about the PC. This has caused a great deal of misinterpretation for several people.

    These memory sticks, will they allow me to load up a backup computer that I sourced elsewhere? This is why I was interested in Mach 3, so I wouldn't have to wait and be out of business for an extended period of time. To be more specific, there are multiple Dell Optilplex 755 PCs on ebay right now that appear to be identical except for processor speed. What do I need to find in a spare(s)?

    Better yet, could I ditch the used stuff and get a mini PC and just install the memory sticks on that? rodw has stated he's running LinuxCNC (Not CommandCNC) on a
    Quote Originally Posted by rodw View Post
    current model Gigabyte Brix Ultra Small form factor PC that fits in the palm of your hand. And yes its a Celeron J1900 CPU purchased in 2017.
    But I would not think there would be any hardware requirement differences between the two (CommandCNC vs LinuxCNC).

    Last edited by INTJGuy; 02-25-2017 at 03:06 PM.


  3. #163
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    Default Re: Precision Plasma 5x10 Speed Demon Build Log

    INTJguy, I read this thread in its entirety last night. It is a shame that such a great build thread has been marred by your inability or unwillingness to do even the most basic of IT troubleshooting. It seems from Tom's comments that you have further compounded this by refusing to engage with their formal support channels.

    This is a CNC zone, not an IT support forum. You went the DIY path and I'm afraid that journey is not over and probably never will be.

    From reading last night, your PC has gone back 3 times.
    The first time it tested OK and maybe had an intermittent fault so they replaced it and doubled your warranty. Talk about going above and beyond!
    The second time it was becasue of an incorrect BIOS setting that I was able to diagnose from your video before I read the diagnosis later in the thread. It could have been fixed in 30 seconds.
    Somewhere in there you had incorrectly wired the machine which caused more dramas for you that were 100% of your doing
    Now you are without a PC for a third time. Once again you failed to read the error log and attempt to resolve the reported network fault. I would hazard a guess it will test out OK. My best guess is that you either have a faulty network cable or more likely forgot to power the hardware up before the PC after a period of time without using your plasma table.

    So it would seem to me that 2, maybe all 3 times your PC has gone back to support have been unnecessary and with some basic trouble shooting and careful attention to wiring the system in the first place, you could have been happily cutting parts for months.

    Once again, Tom has again come to the party with an excellent support offer.

    Network cards in my experience are very reliable pieces of hardware. I can only ever recall seeing 1 fail and that was on the motherboard of a SUN box controlling a 180 page per minute Xerox Docutech printer.

    The Dell 755 is a high quality and very reliable piece of hardware. I used to work in an environment where there were 7,000 users on the network that used DELL hardware exclusively. We had hundreds of 755's deployed including one on my desk. I can't ever remember one failing but Windows was reimaged on a fairly regular basis due to some software fault or other. I doubt that the PC hardware has ever been the cause of any of your problems. The BIOS does not just forget a single setting on its own. Sometimes a battery on the motherboard fails and everything resets to factory defaults. In that case the giveaway is the clock shows the wrong time.

    Using the hardware I use is not an option for you as CandCNC have their own flavour of Unix they support on a common hardware platform. I'd hazard a guess you would need to spring for their prebuilt box. I'm sorry, but getting my hardware to work with Linux was not a trivial exercise that I think is way beyond your skill level given your limited IT problem solving skills. Having said that if you duck over to the LCNC forum and find cncnoobs excellent recent tutorial on how to install Linux Mint, you might be able to get it done. You have always had that option. However, by proposing that course of action, you are going down the same path as suggested by Peter from Mesa earlier in this thread that you debunked becasue of concerns about loosing your warranty.

    Whilst the J1900 is still a Celeron, there is an enormous difference in terms of hardware drivers due to advances in power management.

    So until you are prepared to take responsibility for your own IT environment and acknowledge that you are the most significant factor causing your problems, I predict you'll probably never get your machine that you have worked so hard on up and running in a reliable manner regardless of the operating system or hardware platform. I for one, would really like to see you get a result.

    Rod Webster
    www.vmn.com.au


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    Default Re: Precision Plasma 5x10 Speed Demon Build Log

    The crux of the IT problem here is guruship. I do not have, nor do I intend to acquire skills in deciphering Linux. Obviously you have such skills, kudos to you. I would imagine that from your perspective it seems really silly that I won't dive into the problem and fix it myself. I can't read that error log and make sense of it. Most people can't. This is the whole concept behind warranty, when it breaks, it gets fixed by people who are trained to do so. I (and I have) asked the people at CandCNC for help. The answer always comes down to it's either a software or hardware problem. Neither of which I am equipped to fix. Additionally, I would be a fool to try. The moment I go poking around inside the PC, I put my warranty at severe risk by violating it's basic premise. If it breaks, return it, and it'll be fixed.

    From my perspective, and yours apparently as well, there is no good reason for the repeated failures of this PC. The very fact that I refuse to open it up and work on it myself should be a pretty big clue that it is being run in an out-of-box configuration. In fact, I have literally pulled it out of the box once and plugged it in, just to have it not work. That is not an IT environment issue, that is faulty product. And faulty product is a warranty issue. I do not open it up, I do not even know how to access / modify the linux software, I do not fool with the BIOS. The only thing I have ever done to modify ANYTHING on the PC was to install the factory patch/update (once, and only per the instructions) and to setup the plasma table via the configurator. Nothing else. There is no reason that I can imagine for this machine to not only fail but fail repeatedly.

    And to address a very specific issue. No this is not an IT support forum, it is a build thread. A place for me to document the process and history of the machine's build. The ongoing struggle to get the candcnc system to work and all of it's accompanying heartache are a central part of this record. That's why I'm here, that's why I write this. When things go well, I write that, when they suck, I write that, when I screw something up, I write that as well, when I have to return defective equipment yet again, you bet, I write that. This is the process that I've followed to get here, these are the issues that I have faced and those that remain unresolved.



  5. #165
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    Default Re: Precision Plasma 5x10 Speed Demon Build Log

    Quote Originally Posted by INTJGuy View Post
    The crux of the IT problem here is guruship. I do not have, nor do I intend to acquire skills in deciphering Linux. Obviously you have such skills, kudos to you.
    But I did not have these skills before I started building my plasma cutter. When I do get stuck with the software or operating system, I ask for help in the right IT support environment. Try it, it might just work for you.

    Yes I have a build log too, yes I report my stuff ups but I branch out elsewhere to solve particular problems then report the progress in my build log. That way, I get the right people helping me.

    Rod Webster
    www.vmn.com.au


  6. #166
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    Default Re: Precision Plasma 5x10 Speed Demon Build Log

    My intent has never been to learn the inner workings of LinuxCNC (or Linux, or CommandCNC), but rather to own and operate the machine. If I wanted these skills, I would have developed them, and dealt with the problems of my own creation. I paid a lot of money for a professionally built system exactly so I wouldn't be dealing with these issues. If I were to develop these skills now, just to diagnose my own system, I would still be returning it for warranty work. Therefore my efforts would be wasted as they would need to be duplicated upon RMA.

    If I had, or desired, these skills, I would be running a system of my own design. I imagine this is where you are at in your own journey, but this is where you and I diverge. I just want to turn it on and have it work. Not that I'm not curious, but my goals are stable (and profitable) operation.

    No matter how awesome any produced system is, there will be the occasional lemon. I'm fine with that. What I'm not fine with is that it just keeps happening. I currently have one large job for an automotive business sign, where the owner keeps prodding me to get that machine running, a product that I designed and have an agreement to sell in a retail establishment that's in 4 locations in 2 different states, a decorative cake topper for a friend who just mentioned it to her wedding coordinator, who now wants to ship me a bunch of business, and an open offer to make customized firepits for a local offroading club, and god only know how much one off work that people really want. I'm shutting people down and turning work away. The problem is, I'm terrified to accept any job because I never know if the machine will work when I go to use it. The track record is not good here.



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    Default Re: Precision Plasma 5x10 Speed Demon Build Log

    So I got a FEDEX tracking number and a message from Luke (candcnc repair tech) today. I was typing out a reply to Luke's query for info on the problem, as he couldn't find anything wrong with it, when I realized we had had this exact same conversation before. Several times, I think. It didn't really hit me till I pulled up a video that I had taken before for him to see the problem, and realized it was 7 months old.

    I had to check to see how long I've had this, and it's been exactly 10 months now. Feels like groundhog day. I even knew what he'd suggest next, and it's been tried before.


    Spent most of my day at work thinking about it, and realized that I'm done with it. Just done. I don't want to walk away from the investment I've made here, but to keep hanging on would be penny wise and dollar foolish. The machine will make more than enough money to cover the loss, IF I can just get it to be dependable.

    So..... Plan "C"
    I'm going to scrap out the Bladerunner kit, and replace it. I'll salvage what I can, but I think that's just going to be reusing the motors. I could re-use the PC, but I've got others, and I might still be able to recoup some cash if I sell off some of the parts. Ebay, maybe. But not just right now.

    Right now I've got to find a new system. I had previously (months ago??, last breakdown anyway) contacted Hypertherm about their control system and learned it's really too industrially pricey for me.

    I've sent off an RFQ to Flashcut. Looks to be at least 2x the cost, but comes with a strong CAD/CAM package. Still evaluating it.

    Not finding a whole lot else out there. Some reeaallyyy cheesey kits. (No.) And there's always the whole roll-your-own system. But I really just want something I can install and just use.



  8. #168
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    Default Re: Precision Plasma 5x10 Speed Demon Build Log

    I would suggest you sell the entire controller intact to someone that can deal with the issues. Sell it and have them contact us and we will extend their warranty to the full 24 months and help them get it running and cutting properly. We are currently backordered 3 weeks on that system and demand is not slacking off. The buyer needs to contact us to get the licenses transferred and get the extended warranty. I may look like ground hog day to you but it is REALLY redundant to us. The last time we replaced your whole system, the one you returned worked perfectly, and we really tried to make it malfunction. Tell your buyer if they get it and it fails to function they can send it back for (yet another) full test and calibration. Our warranty and support transfers at no cost to any legal owner of the hardware.

    Flashcut makes a good system. I am sure you will be happy with it.

    If you want further support or responses we are not going to do it on CNCZone. We have an active support forum , we answer our e-mails and phones. We do not use CNCZone to support customers. I come here and have been for many years to help users and not to promote our products. If I was going to do that I would take a display ad.

    TOMcaudle
    www.CandCNC.com



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