Cutting speed test program

[isubsmith]

I was watching Trucks! a few weeks ago and they just got a torchmate in their shop. Anyway, they were running it through its paces and mentioned a cut speed test program that you could run that would fine tune the cutting speed on a given material. They said it was downloadable from the torchmate site but I couldn't find it.

Has anyone seen this software?

I emailed sales@torchmate and never got a response, so maybe Mike or one of the other people here will know about it.

Thanks.

[Mike@Torchmate]

You can download the FGC file for the line speed test at the link below. If you have any questions about it feel free to email us or call us. It would be better to email the support inbox for any questions regarding something non-sales related. support@torchmate.com

http://fab-solutions.com/download_sites/downloads/

[isubsmith]

Originally Posted by Mike@Torchmate You can download the FGC file for the line speed test at the link below. If you have any questions about it feel free to email us or call us. It would be better to email the support inbox for any questions regarding something non-sales related. support@torchmate.com http://fab-solutions.com/download_sites/downloads/

Yeah, I could only find the sales address on the website or I would have mailed support.

Thanks for the info.

Unrelated, and maybe I should post a new thread for this, but is there any FAQ for "tuning up" or post-assembly of a torchmate 3? I helped set up an 8x4 torchmate 3 and we have some places where we get backlash on the long dimension. I've tried to make the table as square as possible and as level as possible, but I still get some backlash.

[Mike@Torchmate]

Originally Posted by isubsmith Yeah, I could only find the sales address on the website or I would have mailed support. Thanks for the info. Unrelated, and maybe I should post a new thread for this, but is there any FAQ for "tuning up" or post-assembly of a torchmate 3? I helped set up an 8x4 torchmate 3 and we have some places where we get backlash on the long dimension. I've tried to make the table as square as possible and as level as possible, but I still get some backlash.

If the backlash is not consistent along the length of the table, the gear rack may not be aligned correctly along the side of the table. Was this a TM3 kit or a finished table?

[isubsmith]

Originally Posted by Mike@Torchmate If the backlash is not consistent along the length of the table, the gear rack may not be aligned correctly along the side of the table. Was this a TM3 kit or a finished table?

This was a finished table (ie, it came with the aluminum frame and everything, we just screwed it together basically).

What do you mean by misaligned? The left side gear rack (when looking down the long axis) is not lined up properly with the right side gear rack?

Thanks.

[Mike@Torchmate]

By aligned I would mean the gear being parallel with the Rail that the gantry rides on, in a vertical alignment. If the rail to gear rack distance vary's over the length of the table, then the gear will ride in and out of the gear depending on location. If you bought your own rails, you might want to check and see if there is any bow to the rails.

[isubsmith]

Originally Posted by Mike@Torchmate By aligned I would mean the gear being parallel with the Rail that the gantry rides on, in a vertical alignment. If the rail to gear rack distance vary's over the length of the table, then the gear will ride in and out of the gear depending on location. If you bought your own rails, you might want to check and see if there is any bow to the rails.

Yeah, I've noticed sometimes that the rollers on the gantry don't spin either because they aren't in contact with the ground steel top plate, or they are too tight and get drug along and don't spin.

I've measured the difference between the gear rails at both ends and they differ by maybe 1/16". I suppose we should make another attempt at seeing if we can get it closer to zero difference?

Thanks.

[Mike@Torchmate]

1/16" may not seem like much, but that is 1/16" of backlash that would reflect in your cut. Ideally you want the backlash to be consistently none across the table, some people develop spring loaded motor mounts to compensate for the gear rack being straight, but that is really just a band-aid for the problem. If you have the bolt in gear rack there is more then enough play to adjust the gear properly and get it to mesh all the way across the entire length of the table, on both sides.