Small mill, first run with Gecko 251 drives

[Chris D]

This link should take you to the video of my most recent machine which is nearing completion.

http://www.youtube.com/profile_videos?user=RIAMCNC

I posted this in another thread in the GECKO drive sub-forum but thought others might like to see the video.

Chris

[RichE]

Just had to say.. am really impressed!
I am only just starting out on my first machine.. probably another month away before I can run it but your vid is an inspiration!

Keep up the good work!

Rich

[Chris D]

Thanks Rich!

I work on it when my job doesn't get in the way of fun ;-)

Chris

[Jay C]

Chris, safe to assume you are using ballscrews. Are you using the 45K kernel speed in Mach3?

Any chance you might post the Gcode in the video.

Jay

[Mariss Freimanis]

Chris,

Any chance you can move the motors faster? They seem so slow.:-)

Mariss

[Mr.Chips]

Originally Posted by Chris D This link should take you to the video of my most recent machine which is nearing completion. http://www.youtube.com/profile_videos?user=RIAMCNC I posted this in another thread in the GECKO drive sub-forum but thought others might like to see the video. Chris

Real nice Chris!!!

What size steppers, PS Volts and screw type/specs are you running?

Thanks

Hager

[Chris D]

Hi Jay,

Only Z axis has a ballscrew, X and Y are belt driven. Belt drive provides the most efficient means of converting rotary motion into linear motion for this application.

I am running this on a laptop of very marginal quality. I have tried a few of the different Kernal speeds but not sure what it is currently set at (one of the slowest settings).

If I get some time, I will copy and paste the G-Code here - sure isn't anything special, just basic moves.

Chris

Originally Posted by Jay C Chris, safe to assume you are using ballscrews. Are you using the 45K kernel speed in Mach3? Any chance you might post the Gcode in the video. Jay

[Chris D]

Mariss,

Two things prevent my motors from spinning faster....

1) Laptop/software, I can only get the steps out of that laptop so fast then it gets ugly. The brand name of the laptop is "Great Quality", that should be a clue as to its capabilities ;-)

2) The space available for my power supply was dictated by the size of your drives. I needed to downsize the power supply from 50V to 35V so that I could squeeze it in the same cabinet along with the G251s. Those drives are just too darn big :----------)

In reality though, the performance at the moment is limitted to the computer and the software. By spring time I hope to have something in place that will increase the performance by about 30%. A bit more voltage is also planned, which will help too.

My goal is 1000 IPM at the current step resolution.

Chris

Originally Posted by Mariss Freimanis Chris, Any chance you can move the motors faster? They seem so slow.:-) Mariss

[Chris D]

400 oz in motors (I think, I ordered them a long while back and cant remember off the top of my head) - Keling.net

35 volts - 50 would be better though

Belt drives, screws are not needed in this application. The Z axis has a ball screw though.

Chris

Originally Posted by Mr.Chips Real nice Chris!!! What size steppers, PS Volts and screw type/specs are you running? Thanks Hager

[TOTALLYRC]

It is beautiful when high quality electronics meets a well done design. I wonder what kind of backlash due to the use of belts there is. Nicely done and Ican't wait to see it in action cutting something.

Mike.
P.S. It makes me want to go build another machine

[Chris D]

Originally Posted by TOTALLYRC It is beautiful when high quality electronics meets a well done design. I wonder what kind of backlash due to the use of belts there is. Nicely done and Ican't wait to see it in action cutting something. Mike. P.S. It makes me want to go build another machine

Thanks Mike!

Backlash isn't too much of a problem when using timing belts and proper tensioning. I have not measured it yet and probably won't measure it till I get the tuning done on the axes. I don't suspect I will be doing any PCB drilling until spring time with it. At that time the other electronics I am designing for it should be done. At that time I will be posting more videos and other neat stuff about it - I hope! :-)

Chris

[cmacclel]

Any updates??

Mac