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My X-Carve when cutting will be in the process and the all of a sudden go off path. As it is cutting it will just go off path within the circle. If I jog the machine on the X/Y axis it seems to move just fine. I set the machine up to act like it was cutting and it was making strange noises. When the machine is moving on the Z axis it is looks like it is jumping. The image is the one I am using . As it cuts the circle, it just starts cutting straight down either axis. .
If the Z axis is jumping something is probably loose. V wheels or the 2 screws that connect the router mount to the Delrin nut.
Did you just assemble the XCarve or has it been running fine and then it started happening?
Also what are you cut settings? you may be cutting to fast or to much
Russell
I’m with Russell on this one, Most likely a loss of steps is either from running too deep/too fast OR loose components (V-Wheels or even Belt Tension)
Thanks Ken! Haven’t had it very long, so it just shows me how quick it can guck up! I am getting ready to do another cut to see what is going on with the cut going off path on the X/Y Axis! I will post that one on here when I do!
Mike
It also looks like (at exactly 14 second mark) that the lead screw itself is lifting and dropping, this shouldn’t happen, that nut on the top can be tightened to remove that slop at well.
Cleaning and relubricating the Lead screw may also be in order, but I would also work for play in the vwheels since you’re already in maintenance mode…
I prefer to use a dry ptfe lubricant on that lead screw as it doesn’t gunk up with sawdust the way liquid greases do… but to each their own…
I work with aluminum, cutting out robot parts. I have been hardening my machine for several years to take the stress of milling aluminum (screw drive x, y and z axis). This is the extreme of what you are doing in wood. Three things have helped me with this kind of issue.
Slow down the feed rate. At some point crowding the bit to an extreme will cause all kinds of erratic things to happen if the bit does not break.
Square the machine before you start milling. I read this in another post, and I tried it. Take the entire x-axis bridge right into the front stops. Adjust it so that both sides of the y-axis are completely up against the stops. You are now square. If one side is just a little bit out of sync with the other, eventually the difference will appear in your work.
Finally, if you are milling aluminum you must get the rpm of your tool down to around 10,000 or less. I use a super-pid controller (www.SuperPID.com - Super-PID Closed-loop Router Speed Controller) great product, shipping is challenging. You can compensate for high rpm normally by increasing the feed rate, but that only works if you have a enterprise level CNC. If you have an x-carve you must lower the rpm or you will melt the aluminum you are attempting to cut; your bit becomes gummed up with aluminum and you are done.
An x-carve, no matter what you do, will not replace a $30,000 CNC. I bolted mine down to a very heavy table, stiffened everything, installed screw feeds on all axis, upgraded my stepper motors, use MeshCAM to develop the g-code and have a super-pid controller to control the RPM of my dewalt 611. With the other steps I indicated, I can finally cut a perfect bearing trace in 1/4" aluminum. But it is a slow process.
