New member, sweet find at the auction, and a massive gantry

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Brand X
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Re: New member, sweet find at the auction, and a massive gantry

Post by Brand X »

I just think is you try to run 400 ipm rapids it will show it's ugly head.. Right now 300 top speed (when I want it) is there with fairly lightly loaded springs.. I was just screwing around with some motor turning one day, and found it out with mine. I did not want to crank the springs down anymore to make it work.. It's set fine for what I do, and really don't care for super fast rapid on certain moves anyway.. Production runs cutting in a factory, is a whole lot different from cutting at reasonable speeds,jogging..in a home shop. Way easier on the machine too..



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Simko
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Re: New member, sweet find at the auction, and a massive gantry

Post by Simko »

SeanP wrote:You're making a fine job there, I tried to keep the gear rack in line with the pinion best I could as well, yours looks perfect, not had any bother at all with mine trying to jump out, I don't have much pressure set on the spring, no calculations with mine though,,,just guessed the spring size :)
Less chance of any back lash being sprung I would have thought.
Thanks Sean. I agree that I think it will be fine with the spring. Can't wait for my CandCNC electronics to get here and start moving this thing around.
Steve

Homebrewed plasma table in the works, NSK linear rails, 3.2:1 belt reduction, CandCNC Plazpak 1A with DTHCIV Ethercut, Hypertherm 85, CommandCNC and SheetCAM
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Re: New member, sweet find at the auction, and a massive gantry

Post by Simko »

I got my CandCNC Plazpak delivered today....

Just a little constructive criticism. The product looks fine, but the packaging leaves much to be desired. There was a ton of empty space in the box and all of the motors, cables, and the control box were just sloshing around in some peanuts.

I should have it connected up on the bench this weekend to make sure everything is ok. I'm sure everything is fine, but when you come home to see a box with $4,000 of electronics looking like this, it's a little concerning.
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Steve

Homebrewed plasma table in the works, NSK linear rails, 3.2:1 belt reduction, CandCNC Plazpak 1A with DTHCIV Ethercut, Hypertherm 85, CommandCNC and SheetCAM
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exapprentice
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Re: New member, sweet find at the auction, and a massive gantry

Post by exapprentice »

Hi Steve

You mean to say you can actually wait until the weekend :o I couldn't,
Go on get out there and get going ;)
I am sure I am not the only one who wants to see your beast up and running :D
With all the work you put in so far its like watching a movie, come on and get her going :roll:
Good luck and this isn't even the start of things to come :!:
enjoy the ride
Best Regards to all
Exapprentice :D
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10'x5' DIY table / PM 45XP + M/C Torch - Trying to add 4 axis Tube cutting :(
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Brand X
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Re: New member, sweet find at the auction, and a massive gantry

Post by Brand X »

I had welding machines shipped that way? Moronic and always ugly results. I crate my stuff and use foam board, aluminum/steel plate to protect the tightly packed contents. double boxed too. It's the only way it survives United Package Smashers. Most Welding machines are now packed well, but they still get wiped out a lot of the time.. Problem with Peanuts and loose contents, box get torn, and stuff does not make it there.Also will float to the bottom of the box, and takes a beating from riding there.. Post office was laughing at me on one box I picked up.. What a joke that was.. Thermal 400 MST with packing peanuts..

Got to run, my Hypertherm 65 is Showing up by UPS today.. ;) I hope I did not just shoot myself in the foot on being so smart.. :mrgreen:
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acourtjester
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Re: New member, sweet find at the auction, and a massive gantry

Post by acourtjester »

Brand X you be happy with the 65 :) :D
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Brand X
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Re: New member, sweet find at the auction, and a massive gantry

Post by Brand X »

acourtjester wrote:Brand X you be happy with the 65 :) :D
Probably., but it was shipped upside down.. :lol: Made it in one piece..

I made some cuts, and it works fine. I cut so long with the cutmaster's I can get it to do exactly what I want it too..(mostly) It's learning curve is way longer then the hypertherm by far.. (Like 12 years worth) The voltage is a bit lower then the book on .190 ms 45 amps similar to the cutmaster at 50 amps. plugged right in the the connector I had, and started cutting right way..(50-1) MY Esab cutting voltage matched perfect with the book, and also was a great machine too..(but dicey reliabilty on the early model ones..) I come from a bit different perspective then most Hypertherm users.. I was just comparing the Esab 90 amp nozzles, and the 65 one I have here. Looked at them side by side with my friends 85 machine a while back too. Quite interesting to say the least.. Lets put it this way,, Esab also knows a few things about making a cutting machine work. The 65 will be a better fit for me overall,and I was able to recoup all my money out of the A-120, so win-win.. I do prefer the whip on a SL-60/100 hand torch, just more flexible overall. The 60 is quite nice.. Every machine has advantages, that's for sure. Even if it's just a little bit here, and there.. The thing about the 85/65 is it's been out quite a while, and it's a excellent power supply with a very good torch. More balanced in many ways. 8 year newer torch design. show itself in a wider sweet spot, like the more modern Esab torch does too.(over the one torch) kind of sorry Esab went with the one torch cutmaster line, when they had some option not too.. That was a straight $$ deal, and nothing else.. :roll: Moved on, and got a real nice machine anyway.. :lol:


I had to mess a bit with my THC setting, but it's pretty much settled down now.. Remember, I am use to cutting quite a bit higher then the .060 no room for error there. Seems stable, so happy at the few cuts I have done..
ovrrdrive
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Re: New member, sweet find at the auction, and a massive gantry

Post by ovrrdrive »

BrandX I'm glad to see you got a PM65... Now when I get mine running (hopefully this month) I'll be able to bug you for setup. lol
Brand X
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Re: New member, sweet find at the auction, and a massive gantry

Post by Brand X »

I think the book will be close for most things.. Many here know way more then me about the Hypertherm machines.That's for sure.. One thing that is common between brands is... when problems happen,like Bevel/Dross/air supply issues/etc.. The fix is generally somewhat the same. Very glad I used the other machines a lot.. I cut for the least bevel, as that is my thing, Others might go for least dross, smoothest cut face,smallest kerf, and on, and on.. Sometimes you just got to pick one... :lol: I do know I will run the 45 amp stuff the most, and other small amp nozzles when they come out.. 8-)

My air supply is working excellent, no codes, and super clean dry air.. I just have copper line, to a Van-air small tower deliquescent dryer, LA-mans final filter. Going to shorten the hose to the Plasma today. only needs to be 3 ft long.. What I like is the Van air need services maybe once a year(if that) with briquettes, and just add More. Have the original pail from 18 year ago, when I bought the Van air, and compressor.. I turned nice driers down over the years,and glad I don't have to plug one more thing in.. :lol:
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Simko
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Re: New member, sweet find at the auction, and a massive gantry

Post by Simko »

Well... It looks like we have a problem :(

I hooked everything up and when I hit the E-stop in CommandCNC the motors started twitching. Not all of them at once, but once would twitch for a little bit then another one, then it would stop, then a different one would twitch. After a few seconds it calmed down.

I jogged each motor in both directions and everything seemed to work fine besides for the twitching that you could distinctly hear while jogging. I smelled something coming from the panel and when I got down to turn off the unit I touched one of the motors and got what felt like a pretty strong static shock.

I shut everything down and unplugged everything and decided to take a look under the hood.

I saw two wires melted and decided to call it quits until I can get in touch with CandCNC.

I did a ton of research and I didn't see any kind of issues like this from CandCNC , how is it I get so lucky :(
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Steve

Homebrewed plasma table in the works, NSK linear rails, 3.2:1 belt reduction, CandCNC Plazpak 1A with DTHCIV Ethercut, Hypertherm 85, CommandCNC and SheetCAM
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Brand X
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Re: New member, sweet find at the auction, and a massive gantry

Post by Brand X »

Yes,
that sucks.. They will get it handled, but still a bummer!!!! So close too...
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acourtjester
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Re: New member, sweet find at the auction, and a massive gantry

Post by acourtjester »

I'm not sure but it looks like both wires in the picture are hooked to the metal chassis????
Did you hook the power supply negative to the case ground???
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Simko
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Re: New member, sweet find at the auction, and a massive gantry

Post by Simko »

acourtjester wrote:I'm not sure but it looks like both wires in the picture are hooked to the metal chassis????
Did you hook the power supply negative to the case ground???

They are both chassis ground wires. The control panel came pre-wired. All I did was plug in a standard computer 120v plug, a couple Cat-5 cables, and pre-wired motor plugs.

Something inside the panel must be shorted. It had to have happened during shipping because when I called them the day before it shipped, they said they were doing final tests and a burn-in on the unit.
Steve

Homebrewed plasma table in the works, NSK linear rails, 3.2:1 belt reduction, CandCNC Plazpak 1A with DTHCIV Ethercut, Hypertherm 85, CommandCNC and SheetCAM
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exapprentice
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Re: New member, sweet find at the auction, and a massive gantry

Post by exapprentice »

Hi Steve
Very apatd words you used there!
"Final test's and a burn in on the unit"
I am sure CandCNC will get it sorted, it must be a real bummer so close and so frustrating when all you want to do is crack on and play.
You must be twiddling your thumbs and overwrought with the anxiety.
Time has now stood still while you are waiting for normal business hours to resume.
I really do feel your anguish and hope all goes well with getting it sorted.
Keep the faith we are all with you ;)
Best Regards to all
Exapprentice :D
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Simko
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Re: New member, sweet find at the auction, and a massive gantry

Post by Simko »

OK, here is the update...

CandCNC has been great through this process. I dropped the unit off at UPS for 2-day shipping from Pennsylvania to Texas on 3/7 and they received it on 3/9 at the end of the day. The problem was diagnosed/repaired/tested on 3/10, and the unit is shipping back to me today (3/11) as 2-day shipping.

The problem was determined to be a missing insulating cap on a bolt on the top of the transformer. The bolt was contacting the plate that the Gecko drives mount to.

Here is an excerpt from the repair report:
PROBLEM FOUND:
- Missing plastic cover on top of big transformer.
- Burnt ground wires, motor #4 moves by itself intermittent.

ACTION TAKEN:
- Add plastic cover to transformer, replaced ground wires, Front panel, ezplug stepper cards, gecko drivers, MTA-150, ubob and table I/O card, also all ribbon cables and calibrate the motors.
- Tested every component on the unit everything is working the way it should.
- Did a final test torch, arc OK, up/down, inputs, outputs, motors, hub adm. Etc.
- Verified everything is working properly.
Steve

Homebrewed plasma table in the works, NSK linear rails, 3.2:1 belt reduction, CandCNC Plazpak 1A with DTHCIV Ethercut, Hypertherm 85, CommandCNC and SheetCAM
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Re: New member, sweet find at the auction, and a massive gantry

Post by SeanP »

That's good news, quick service there!
Hope it all goes well this time.
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Simko
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Re: New member, sweet find at the auction, and a massive gantry

Post by Simko »

Working on the e-chain today. I got the gantry e-chain pretty much done. The China e-chain that I got from E-bay is actually pretty good once it is put together, but it doesn't like being disassembled and reassembled too many times. It's much easier to break than the IGUS chain we use at work which is probably 10x more $$$. I will probably thread the wires and torch cable through the chain rather than opening every crossbar.

OK.. I'm off to mount to channel to the table frame... 8-)
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Steve

Homebrewed plasma table in the works, NSK linear rails, 3.2:1 belt reduction, CandCNC Plazpak 1A with DTHCIV Ethercut, Hypertherm 85, CommandCNC and SheetCAM
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Brand X
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Re: New member, sweet find at the auction, and a massive gantry

Post by Brand X »

Very nice..looks like you could drive that Jeep on to you tables, and not have it deflect at all.. Bet your table runs pretty smooth with the way you have it put together..One of the better/best retrofits done..
Simko
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Re: New member, sweet find at the auction, and a massive gantry

Post by Simko »

Ready for paint now... I spent about an hour scraping all the double stick tape off that used to hold down the UHMW sheet. I got most it off, just fighting with the adhesive residue. Acetone is just turning it into a sticky mess, but it eventually comes off.

Other than that, the table is all ready for when the electronics come on Tuesday :)
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Steve

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Simko
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Re: New member, sweet find at the auction, and a massive gantry

Post by Simko »

Brand X wrote:Very nice..looks like you could drive that Jeep on to you tables, and not have it deflect at all.. Bet your table runs pretty smooth with the way you have it put together..One of the better/best retrofits done..

Thanks Brand X! :mrgreen:
Steve

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Brand X
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Re: New member, sweet find at the auction, and a massive gantry

Post by Brand X »

Finish it off a bit..

https://8020.net/shop/12271.html
Greolt
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Re: New member, sweet find at the auction, and a massive gantry

Post by Greolt »

That is really looking good.

But it looks like you bought the wrong cable chain.

Any reputable manufacturer will have a range of bend radius for each size chain.

Get the bend radius that suits your application.

Are you running the plasma power cable through the chain?
Simko
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Re: New member, sweet find at the auction, and a massive gantry

Post by Simko »

Brand X wrote:Finish it off a bit..

https://8020.net/shop/12271.html
Definitely!
Steve

Homebrewed plasma table in the works, NSK linear rails, 3.2:1 belt reduction, CandCNC Plazpak 1A with DTHCIV Ethercut, Hypertherm 85, CommandCNC and SheetCAM
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Simko
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Re: New member, sweet find at the auction, and a massive gantry

Post by Simko »

Greolt wrote:That is really looking good.

But it looks like you bought the wrong cable chain.

Any reputable manufacturer will have a range of bend radius for each size chain.

Get the bend radius that suits your application.

Are you running the plasma power cable through the chain?
Thanks. When you are being cheap and buying things on EBAY, you can't be choosy 8-)

With that said, the Powermax 85 torch cable is about 3/4" and has a 3" bend radius according to Hypertherm. This chain has an internal size of 1"x2" (should be big enough for the cable) and has a bend radius of just under 3", but since i am not trying to make the chains parallel I thought it would be OK. The gantry has 12" between the chains and the table has 16" between the chains.

I guess we shall see how it works. If not, I'm only out $100. :oops:
Steve

Homebrewed plasma table in the works, NSK linear rails, 3.2:1 belt reduction, CandCNC Plazpak 1A with DTHCIV Ethercut, Hypertherm 85, CommandCNC and SheetCAM
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acourtjester
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Re: New member, sweet find at the auction, and a massive gantry

Post by acourtjester »

Running the plasma cable with the other cable may not be the best way. I and many others use a boom that has the plasma came separate your choice.
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