Shop Sabre retrofit options

[Rippin_Lip]

Hello Everyone, I am posting this here as I have posted ion the PS FB page and had some good suggestions and offers that seem like they will not go through.

Anyhow the search continues for a retrofit option for my shop sabre machine. I bought the machine used and it is an older (2010) table. They don't make them like this anymore.Table is ball screw on every axis and has a single motor on the Y axis in the center running a large ball screw on a belt drive with X and Z running direct off the motor with a coupling. Very heavy gantry! The current control works but the THC will not work on a newer Powermax 45xp, It will only work with the older Powermax G3 series plasma power supplies. I also tried opening a file to test run but the profile did not open in the screen so I'm not sure if that is an issue with the software that created the file for use on a newer machine or a control problem also. So with all these issues, I would like a solution that will have support from the control manufacturer/installer or large community support. Shop Sabre did give me an option and were very helpful as far as they could be. Even with their option I would only be receiving a computer with some boards and updated software but still have an old control that may fail at any time and would still have no full support without paying the tech support yearly fee or lifetime fee. To have their option plus a year of support I would be dishing out around $7,000. I have talked with David at CandCNC and they have given me a great solution package that would include new motors but I would be installing myself. I do like the idea of the Linux run system. I am leaning towards this solution at the moment but will consider others, especially ones that would provide onsite install.

[tcaudle]

To have someone show up , retrofit an older existing table with new controls would put you past the high end of you budget. A retro fit is not something you can do in a day . Because tables are all different you always run into something unforeseen and paying someone to wait on site for parts or to come back another day can bleed you dry. I can give you the name of a table mfg that uses the CandCNC controls and will show up at your door with a brand new table , set it up , show you how to use it, and haul off your old table for not a lot more than you will spend paying someone to come out and do a retofit of new controls and software. The Shop Saber tables are typically well built as they were designed to do routing but you still have a 11 year old table mechanically . One of my concerns is that the upper speeds are a little low for Plasma. You cannot use the full RPM of the motors and get sharp motion due to lack of torque at the upper end of your motors. Some of taht could be changed suing some different pulley ratios and belts BUT its hard to predict what you need without hands on testing.