Air scribe mounting and offsets

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djreiswig
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Air scribe mounting and offsets

Post by djreiswig »

I have an air scribe mounted on my 4x8 Bulltear table. I'm using an SMC air slide mounted off the side of my Z to raise and lower the scribe. It is mounted with a small angle bracket in the pocket that is milled in the Z plate.
scribe mount.JPG
The issue I run into with this mounting location is that I am unable to scribe on the entire width of a 4 foot piece of material. If I have the material centered on the slats, I have an area of about 6" on the left side that the scribe can't reach(it crashes into the limit switch). To be able to scribe in this zone, I have to slide the material to the right almost to where the side of the gantry carriage hits it. If I swap the bracket to the other side, I would run into the same problem going the other direction. I've been looking for ideas on how others have mounted scribes. I know Bulltear has a Jeweler air scribe, but it appears to be mounted much like mine. I don't think it would be able to cover the entire width either. Ideally it would go in the same place as the torch, but for ease of use, I would like to keep it fixed to the table and not have to swap the torch on and off. Any ideas besides getting a wider table?

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2014 Bulltear (StarLab) 4x8
C&CNC EtherCut
Mach3, SheetCam, Draftsight
Hypertherm PM65
Oxy/Acetylene Flame Torch
Pneumatic Plate Marker, Ohmic, 10 inch Rotary Chuck (in progress)
plasmartist
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Re: Air scribe mounting and offsets

Post by plasmartist »

I had the same problem with my first slide build. The only option you have is bringing the scribe closer to the torch. Pictures can be deceiving, but from your picture it looks like there is room mount the slide closer to the torch. You might even consider building a new scribe mount that places it out front of the slide
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djreiswig
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Re: Air scribe mounting and offsets

Post by djreiswig »

Thanks for the suggestions. I think I'm going to rotate my slide and make a new bracket for the scribe to get it closer to the torch. I still don't think I will be able to get it to cover the entire width of the sheet. I considered trying to modify the torch mount and put the slide behind the torch, but then I would lose torch travel on my long axis. I don't think there is any way to get both tools to cover the 4 foot width. I'll get it closer, so at least I don't have to worry about hitting the gantry when I slide the sheet over to reach the near side.
2014 Bulltear (StarLab) 4x8
C&CNC EtherCut
Mach3, SheetCam, Draftsight
Hypertherm PM65
Oxy/Acetylene Flame Torch
Pneumatic Plate Marker, Ohmic, 10 inch Rotary Chuck (in progress)
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SegoMan DeSigns
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Re: Air scribe mounting and offsets

Post by SegoMan DeSigns »

Someone shared a mag break away mount file for the torch do one for the air scribe so they could be interchangeable.
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djreiswig
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Re: Air scribe mounting and offsets

Post by djreiswig »

I would like to have both usable at the same time as I usually use the scribe to mark and then cut out the parts. Having to stop and change tools would be cumbersome.
2014 Bulltear (StarLab) 4x8
C&CNC EtherCut
Mach3, SheetCam, Draftsight
Hypertherm PM65
Oxy/Acetylene Flame Torch
Pneumatic Plate Marker, Ohmic, 10 inch Rotary Chuck (in progress)
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SegoMan DeSigns
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Re: Air scribe mounting and offsets

Post by SegoMan DeSigns »

The change over would not take that long, have a holder in place for the tool not being used. JD Squared has that on their Z axis. The only other option is to modify your gantry to give it more travel.

Check out the 16:00 mark here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_cont ... IWc-PS_k5I
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djreiswig
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Re: Air scribe mounting and offsets

Post by djreiswig »

I did some redesign tonight and cut my offset in about half. I think that is probably the best I can do. I mostly use my scribe for marking bend lines or drill points. I scribe these marks on the part and then cut it, and then go to the next part. Exchanging tools would be very time consuming. I still need to do a calibration, but I think it will work better. I'll post a picture when I get back to my computer.
2014 Bulltear (StarLab) 4x8
C&CNC EtherCut
Mach3, SheetCam, Draftsight
Hypertherm PM65
Oxy/Acetylene Flame Torch
Pneumatic Plate Marker, Ohmic, 10 inch Rotary Chuck (in progress)
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djreiswig
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Re: Air scribe mounting and offsets

Post by djreiswig »

Here's a pic. I could make the bottom bracket a little longer but it gets kind of close to my flame torch.
Scribe 2 small.jpg
I also added the end lock to the top of the slide so I don't have to worry about accidentally ripping the scribe off if I run the table around with the air turned off. I tried to do that a couple of times before, and it's not on a breakaway. :o

You currently do not have access to download this file.
To gain download access for DXF, SVG & other files Click Here

2014 Bulltear (StarLab) 4x8
C&CNC EtherCut
Mach3, SheetCam, Draftsight
Hypertherm PM65
Oxy/Acetylene Flame Torch
Pneumatic Plate Marker, Ohmic, 10 inch Rotary Chuck (in progress)
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