Gwizzard is very good. I suggest you request the free trial and see how you like it.
The program will also calculate tool defection based on stick out, feed rate, doc and warn you when deflection becomes a problem.
What do you guess make of these measurements I just took of my spoilboard on the machine?
I am having a problem with circles not coming out perfectly round
I too have a CNCRP PRO (48x48). If I were you I would start with some basic set up⌠have you completely surfaced your workarea? Even a really inexpensive 1.5" bottom cleaning bit like this would be great for it: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B005W18EIW/
With that itâs nearly impossible to get your workareaâs plane identical with your x/y movement unless you do that first, resulting in huge variation from one point to the other - I was breaking end mills left and right at first.
You can surface the whole thing with a .25 or .5 end mill as well if you prefer, keep your step over low to prevent too many ridges if you can stand the extra time it takes.
If the two planes (x/y movement and surface area) arenât made perfectly parallel (by machining a layer off, not adjustment!), you are going to see depth differences and in your case the runout will be even more exaggerated.
All those measurements were takin after I surfaced the spoilboard on a PRO4896 machine
I surfaced the machine when I first built it with idk I think my .75" bottom cleaning bit
Did you do the usual calibration for your various axes in mach3? The machine moves an axis a set distance and you measure it, telling it the actual distance moved so that it can make the fine adjustments? If not, this would also account for holes that arenât perfectly round.
No I didnât do any additional calibration in Mach3 other than the CNCRP XML File that was loaded into it ?
Is there other calibration steps that I need to take?
Yes, mach3 has built in tweaking for possible variation in your system:
http://www.jcopro.net/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/steps-per-unit_marked.jpg
Do that first, use a pointy end mill if possible for precision, and be as precise as possible with your actual measurement start/end points. You can get one of these inexpensively at HD: http://www.homedepot.com/p/Empire-48-in-Aluminum-Straight-Edge-Ruler-4004/100118266 and have it run along it⌠Iâd avoid tape measure just because of itâs tendency to move.
hmmm interesting do you happen to have a link to a write up or youtube video on how to go through this procedure. I am new to cnc machines and really learn as I go lol so I have no idea what to do with this screen in Mach 3
or basically is this just measuring the dro in Mach3 to the ruller that you lay down on the table?
this works for straight lines right but how do you measure a circle with this method?
Thatâs a different machine but the same software and steps (also youâre probably working in inches).
Also, donât be too aggressive with your cuts - although you can achieve 1200 IPM rapids, the faster you go the lower torque youâll get, so may end up losing steps in your cuts⌠start out conservatively and work your way up to eliminate variables.
yeah thanks lol I just found a video using a dial indicator that would be more persice than a ruler correct?
A dial indicator wonât tell you x/y movement though, right? You want to do the calibration step over as large a distance as you can accurately measure for finest granularity.
true alright yeah I am going to try this out really quick and see what happens hopefully I donât mess something up cause I have a job coming up on a 700.00 piece of material lol
thats partly why I am trying to make sure the machine is more accurate I got 1 shot at this lol
Yeah thatâs a big one, and may identify your problem⌠youâll know right away when you do it if itâs not moving the exact distance you told it to, and thatâs bad, but easily rectified thanks to this automatic tool.
Following that, youâll wanna make sure your rack and pinion tension is tight-enough-but-not-too-tight (whatever that means, right?), you make sure youâre getting fluid perfect grip and motion.
Iâm no expert though, and still learning, I hope this helps you get on your way. Aside from that, I would recommend checking out the CNCRP forums where the staff and others with the machines go back and forth a bit more on these specific machines. http://www.cnczone.com/forums/cnc-router-parts/
okay that was easy!!
so I calibrated the x, y, and z axis and all of them were dead nuts accurate so thats not the problem lol
x and y I measured over 6 inches and z I measured over 3 inchs
and yeah i contacted Cory over at CNCRP to see what he thinks he is pretty knowledgeable in this area
I really need to find a way to accurately find the center of a circle that I cut and measure the run out around the edge so i know how far the machine cutting out of wack
The only thing left that I can think of is getting your motion smooth. If youâre on the VCON system then make sure you have everythigng tight but not so tight that it itâs significantly inhibiting motion. Make sure your v-wheels holding the gantry carriage arenât too tight, but also that they donât have any space/stutter over their motion that would allow for any ârattleâ (I guess?).
Finally, make sure your rack and pinion is tightened appropriately using this adjustment bolt:
Oh yeah, do your calibration over a larger distance if you can⌠if you are only losing a fraction of an inch per 18 inches of movement, you might not really see it in a 6 inch test. Use a 3 or 5 foot ruler since you have an 8 foot bed. Even use a tape measure if thatâs all you have now at least for a sniff test.
yeah i am on the latest version of the machine with the Linear rails as pictured above I donât have the v-con stuff.
I have adjusted those and the machine moves extremely fluid and never has any binding
I just noticed that when I cut 2 circles about 20" in diameter in HDPE no matter what I did they would not align on the edges. I was anywhere from .010 to .030 in different spots and I am just not sure what is causing that
I also cut some different diameter circles out of mdf the other day and those would not line up either its really pissing me off because my X-carve will cut parts 2 of the exact same part that will line up perfectly along the edges.
I guess 1 thing to check as well is the runout of my spindle but that shouldnât make it off .010 to .030" thats quite a bit I would defiantly be able to see and hear that in the spindle