is there a way to move the z axis down and have it stay in that position so that i can access the bearings to clean/ lube them up?
I tried G1 Z-10 and nothing happens.
How do i get the rails and bearings clean?
Why do you think the rods and bearings need to be cleaned and lubed… What’s the issue you’re having?
You’ll have to disassemble the xz carriage to do real maintenance on that part of the machine.
Where was the Z when you sent that command?
The Z was at the x.y home position after a " home machine" button press.
the reasons for the maintenance is when the machine homes before a carve as its going down to touch off on the clamp theres is a slight noise and hesitation/ resistance. the sound is almost like a soft grinding, like when you step out in fresh snow and pack it down.
Same thing on the X axis as it was moving from right to left there was a stutter. for that one i unplugged the machine and slowly moved the xz carriage and it was not smooth. cleaned up the rails and bearings on the x its smooth as hot butter.
Ran a job and still got lost steps and the fresh snow crunching noise on the Z so I’m assuming that theres something on the rails or in the bearings on the z thats throwing it off, but could not find a way to manually jog the carriage down enough to inspect it. hit the blue button and it moves the z to the top. open the lid and back up to the top.
a manual jog would be really handy and I’m not sure why the carvey doesn’t have that feature in easel.
Truth told I’m considering getting a new controller for the thing so I can do away with the smart clamp and easel and be able to use the entire build volume and touch off where ever i want.
I’ve got ebony knife scales that I have to build a jig for or the clamp takes up WAY too much room.
You didn’t need a new controller. I never used Easel with Carvey.
gSender is probably the best out there right now.
I’d disassemble the entire XZ assembly and check the the delrin leadnut as well.
Your G1 command should work. You just need to home or unlock ($X) the machine first. Make sure you know where it is and where you’re going. By default, moves are absolute. G1Z-10 will move to 10mm below your work zero. Maybe sure you don’t crash.
Interesting… thanks for the tip! ill check gSender out. Does it support surface probing for PCB’s?
I got the Xz broken down, but man what a struggle! they sure went heavy with the thread locker on the screws.
As I suspected lots of grimy sawdust mucking around in there. used the white out on the leadscrew-leadnut and at least during the homing travel of the Z it seems to be ok.
Thank you for your help, its much appreciated!
Gets easier the more you do it, but I suspect this in an issue with most Carvey machines at this point.
Not yet. They say they have plans, but I didn’t think it’s high on the priority list.
bCNC will do that if you’re ok with a UI that has a late 90s feel. It’s actually a really powerful sender.
I haven’t looked at it in almost a decade, but I used to use chilipeppr for PCB surface mapping. I found that it was just as reliable to mill a pocket for the PCB on the machine. Then I found that for anything but the simplest one offs, it’s just easier to have them made. Just got a box from jlcpcb today, actually.
Cant beat Osh Park for quick proto type sort of things thats for sure. my thought was I could spin a board to verify the layout before getting them made, but like you said at this point just its just easier get them fab’d. (still going to try and see how good i can get it… seems like a good skill set to have dialed in lol
Have you use carvey for aluminum? I’ve done some easy very shallow engravings, but Id love to be able to mill out a cut on a path style pot and switch holes or maybe a simple window in hammond enclosures.
Check this post.