How do I match carve zero & laser zero

21

couple hours

22

Ok, Iā€™ll get back to you shortly.

@DavidSpencer - do you have a variable speed spindle, or a router like the DeWalt?

23

dewalt 611

24

@DavidSpencer

Ok, thereā€™s a lot of stuff here. Hope you are running a PC.

If you have PicSender running, shut it down.

If you installed PicSender with the defaults, place these two files in directory C:\ProgramData\PicGRBL
There should be files by these names there, just over write them with these:
Laser.txt (1.1 KB)Spindle.txt (1.1 KB)
These files have been edited to match your machine (changed reporting to inches instead of mm since you said you are using the (INCH) post processor).

Here are the edited post processor files for Vcarve for you to try:
Xcarve_JTech_grbl_inch.pp (4.6 KB)Xcarve_JTech_grbl_mm.pp (4.5 KB)

Change your laser tool to match these settings if you have the 3.8 watt laser. If you have a different laser then adjust the dimensions to match the laser spot size that you have.

Create a new G-code file using the settings and post processor using the information in this post.

Run PicSender, if Laser is not selected then select Laser, click on settings and verify that $32=1.

Post the first 20 lines of the new G-code file here and let me look at them before you run a test.

NOTE the change in units in Feeds and Speeds to inches/min.

2 Likes
25

Yes $32=1

G90
G17
G20
F200
S0
G0Z1.3510
G0X0.0000Y0.0000
M03
G0X1.9400Y7.7311Z0.0010
G1Z-0.0500F30.0 S255
G1X1.9329F200.0 S255
G1X1.9282Y7.7328 S255
G1X1.9242Y7.7351 S255
G1X1.9229Y7.7374 S255
G1X1.9233Y7.7394 S255
G1X1.9464 S255
G1X1.9475Y7.7423 S255
G1X1.9486Y7.7475 S255
G1X1.9486Y7.7477 S255
G1X1.9253 S255
G1X1.9275Y7.7554 S255
G1X1.9276Y7.7560 S255
G1X1.9492 S255
G1X1.9496Y7.7604 S255
G1X1.9494Y7.7643 S255
G1X1.9286 S255
G1X1.9289Y7.7683 S255
G1X1.9286Y7.7726 S255
G1X1.9487 S255
G1X1.9477Y7.7801 S255
G1X1.9475Y7.7809 S255
G1X1.9279 S255
G1X1.9262Y7.7892 S255
G1X1.9457 S255
G1X1.9452Y7.7913 S255
G1X1.9435Y7.7975 S255
G1X1.9238 S255
G1X1.9215Y7.8045 S255
G1X1.9209Y7.8058 S255
G1X1.9410 S255
G1X1.9380Y7.8141 S255
G1X1.9171 S255
G1X1.9157Y7.8173 S255
G1X1.9127Y7.8224 S255
G1X1.9342 S255
G1X1.9320Y7.8271 S255
G1X1.9298Y7.8307 S255
G1X1.9075 S255
G1X1.9028Y7.8368 S255
G1X1.9003Y7.8390 S255
G1X1.9246 S255
G1X1.9186Y7.8470 S255
G1X1.9182Y7.8473 S255
G1X1.8642 S255
G1X1.8673Y7.8524 S255
G1X1.8702Y7.8556 S255
G1X1.9100 S255
G1X1.9037Y7.8605 S255
G1X1.8967Y7.8639 S255
G1X1.8826 S255
G1X1.8836Y7.8643 S255

26

@DavidSpencer

There is one suspicious line in there, but Vcarve is putting it there. Give it a try and see what it does.

27

@LarryM

well thats better. if I run it as laser it goes all crazy the z drops and the x & y is crazy fast. I then ran it on spindle and it seem to run fine.

28

Yeah, laser is fast. Youā€™ll need that when you start doing gray scale images. You can slow it down with the feed rate in the mill/bit definition.

When you say it all goes crazy and Z drops - can you give me a better idea of what itā€™s doing then?

If you donā€™t mind would you either post the .crv file or send it to me in a PM?

29

@LarryM

well the z axis went down about 1 1/2 inches and the x y axis was very fast almost shook everything of the table. I hit the kill button when I realized the z had dropped and was hitting clamp. the video shows the z drop and the rapid x & y is because the small lettering.

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New.crv (1.3 MB)<a class=ā€œattachmentā€

31

There is a setup issue in Vcarve that is causing the Z movement. No way to tell without looking at the file, unless you can figure out what is causing the Z movement in your design/toolpath.

Itā€™s 1:30 am here and I have to start early in the morning so Iā€™m finished for tonight.

I think you made significant progress.

Laterā€¦
Larry

32

thanks Larry for all the help. good night.

33

@DavidSpencer

I took a look at this, this morning and itā€™s definitely a setup issue in Vcarve. Iā€™m not very familiar with the program, but I was able to change a few parameters and examine the resulting G-code. It did change the Z movements.

What you would like to do is to eliminate Z movements for the laser work. You would still want to have the safety height for moving around without hitting your clamps etc. and you would also like it to move to the Z focal distance for your laser, but other than that you shouldnā€™t have any other Z moves.

At this point I donā€™t know enough about how Vcarve works to assist with the setup issues you are seeing. I think that Vcarve is flexible enough to get where you want to go. It just might take some experimenting to find the right combination.

Also, for the speed issue, change your laser tool parameters for a 150 inch/min feed rate and see if that works better for you.

34

thanks Larry I will give those settings a shot