New torchmate 1 build questions

[weldthis]

Here is the deal. I bought a tm I kit this week locally on craigslist. THe person i bought it from thought it was a tm 2. I convinced him that it was the tm 1 bc the tm 2 came with the aluminum gantry. But after further investigation this kit had the 3 axis controller and 264 oz motors, which i thought came with the tm2. But other than that bare bones kit. btw only came with 2 steppers

Looking at the dwgs and after doing little research im wondering if i shall build the table according to torchmates instructions or do my own thing. Should i stay with the cam follower setup or go a different route? I am on a very tight budget but do have a little spare time at the moment. Any help is appreciated

[weldthis]

Im also considering using 3 x 3 .125 or .25 wall square tubing for the main body and cutting table rather than 2 x 2 .125 wall that the plans call for.

I watched a youtube video of a torchmate 1 plasma setup and the undriven end of the gantry seemed to be lagging behind the driven side. Is this a common problem with the tm 1 setup? I just want to try and stay a step ahead and adress all of the issues that i see before I start building and have to build it twice. Sorry about the laimens terms im new to the cnc world.

[PlasmaGuy]

weldthis,

I'm very certain you are doing this but please take the time to read up on several folks who've preceded you in the very same project.

You will be well served to build a gantry that DOES NOT use cam followers.

I have mentioned this multiple times on this forum. Torchmate doesn't build their gantries this way anymore... They are doing this for a good reason!

Search blackhollow mfg. This gentlemen built a fine table using the TM1 kit and made improvements that have served him very well.

Good luck and take your time... cnczone is full of very helpful people who share their war stories and the same will hold true for you! You'll have a hard time finding more information about CNC cutting tables on the web than this forum!!!

Tom

[Mike@Torchmate]

weldthis,

I'm very certain you are doing this but please take the time to read up on several folks who've preceded you in the very same project.

You will be well served to build a gantry that DOES NOT use cam followers.

I have mentioned this multiple times on this forum. Torchmate doesn't build their gantries this way anymore... They are doing this for a good reason!

Search blackhollow mfg. This gentlemen built a fine table using the TM1 kit and made improvements that have served him very well.

Good luck and take your time... cnczone is full of very helpful people who share their war stories and the same will hold true for you! You'll have a hard time finding more information about CNC cutting tables on the web than this forum!!!

Tom

The Torchmate 1 kit as per the instructions will work just fine, however i would agree with Tom and read blackhollow's build thread, as it shows him retrofitting the gantry with a linear slide and cassette setup. All of our Torchmate 2, 3, and XS2 system use a heavy duty linear slide and cassette.

I would also recommend either adding a driveshaft to the long axis as all of our Torchmate 1 kits do, or adding an additional stepper motor and drive system to the opposite side of the table.

If you would like the Torchmate 1 instructions, please let me know and we can email them to you.

[bluewater_fiji]

have a look at my comment here

Well, I've finally started my TM 1 Build.

a cheap alternative!


chris

[weldthis]

Well I finally ordered a linear rail and two 4 bolt flange type bearing blocks for my y axis. I ordered Hiwin 20mm rails part# AGW20CB1TxxxxZ1H and an extra bearing block part# AGW20CBZ1H. after reading I believe Black Hollows blog I noticed he mounted the rail to the top of the 3/4" x 2" cold roll bar. He said something about breaking taps and it being a pain in the a#% tap holes into the top of the gantry. The rails I ordered are drilled and tapped on the bottom side. Im planning on mounting the rail to the face of the 3/4 x 2" cold roll bar opposite of the gear rack that way I just drill holes and go does anybody see a problem with this setup.....

I am also trying to figure out how to setup a Z axis. My tm1 kit came with the 3 axis controller but i need a motor and possible ball screw setup. Id like to buy the athc from torchmate but thats not feasable at this point. Im thinking about ordering a cheap motor and ball screw and setting it up on a manual switch. Probably sounds cheesy but our old panagraph at my last job seemed to do just fine during cuts with only a very rare adjustment nessecary to the z axis. It had a similar setup, difference is we rarely cut anything less than 1/4" plate and it was a propelyne setup.

My plasma is an esab pcm-875 with the hand torch im looking for a machine torch but have been un succesful at finding one in my price range. Im hoping to use both plasma and oxy fuel on my rig... Thanks for any suggestions this website is just awesome.

[weldthis]

The torchmate instructions have been pretty good but have a few flaws. I followed them to a Tee other than a few upgrades that I have added, i found 2 errors. first off the piece of 1" cold roll bar that gets welded on top of the 2 pieces of 2x2 square for the x axis is offset to one side. The directions do not specify if the bar is meant to be closer to the inside or outside of the table. In the pictures it seems that the bar sits more to the outside which is how i built my table. That is wrong it doesnt leave enough room for the cam followers.

Second problem is the two tabs that get welded to the gantry for motor mount and pinion mount are shown welded on the wrong side. This wasnt really that big of a deal i just cut them off and rewelded them. The first issue though really sux. Now my cam rollers will have to ride inside of the 1" bar next to the rack where it may or may not be easier for slag, shavings etc.. to build up.......

I did get my linear rail mounted to the 2" cold roll bar for the gantry and am very impressed with the outcome. I did mount it on the face of the 2" bar and mounted it from the back side. Imo it was easier to drill near 30 thru holes than try to drill and tap them and try to get perfect alignment. I was close with my spacing and alignment using my caveman methods but did have to open up 3 holes a 32nd and 1 hole a 16th to make things work..

[ben88ner]

Hey , if you gotta second... check out Benfab new tm1 build, I think it"ll give you some ideas. And ther are some finished pics on their FB page......

[weldthis]

I am soon going to purchase an athc and am having trouble deciding which way to go. I know torchmate would be best but I dont have that kind of money right now. I have found units for around $500.00 some less some more. Would I be ok running one of these guys or better off waiting till i could afford the torchmate setup..

Thanks again

[Mike@Torchmate]

As long as the system will accept a contact closure for it's start/end routine, and you can mount it on the gantry, it should work.

I'm not sure if any of the systems you mentioned have the ability to signal our system for a Feed Hold or OK to Move signal. If they can provide a contact closure signal for either or both of these signals our system can accept them.

[Torchhead]

All the lower cost THC units have one thing in common: They need MACH3 with it's internal THC logic to run and handle the IHS. piercing moves, etc. TM does not support MACH or EMC2 as controller options. You also need an active third axis (Full Z) under control of the toolpath to use those systems. Feedhold comes from ARC OK sensing and that is a general input to the MACH system.

TOM caudle
www.CandCNC.com

[Burn]

I'm looking at a new Torchmate 1 system- would it be advisable to order linear slides for both axes? (Does the end-user provide a linear rail system or is one included in the TM1 package?) I'm looking to build a 4'x4' table at this point.

Thanks,
Corey