Newbie helping a friend out.

[anthonydejesus421]

Hey all thanx for welcoming me to the forum. My girlfriends best friend's father purchased a a Wright CNC plasma cutter with a Mach 3 controlled set up and he has been ripping his hair out because of this thing. He says the customer service is horrible and it's been one thing after another with this machine. He asked for my help to see if i can figure out how to help him use it because he isn't computer savy. So I followed the PDF manual on how to zero it out and the carriage just stopped working. The XYZ read out from the computer says its moving when I try to jog it but the carriage remains locked and wont budge unless i power the machine down. Can anyone out there help me figure this out. I would really appreciate the help. Thank you.

[acourtjester]

The DRO in Mach 3 do not have feedback so they will show movement but the motors will not run unless they are configured correctly. It being locked up is normal when power is applied to the motors. It is not hard to configure Mach 3 but you need to know some of the things about the electronics. Do you have any info about how it needs to be configured (manual, connections for the electronics)? Was the system working when you received it and stopped working or did it not run from day one? How many motors are on the table? Are you able to do screen shots of thing in Mach if asked to do so, and how to attach them to here for us to see? There is plenty of help here but you need to be the eyes on the table. You said after you tried to zero things out it stopped moving what did you change?
Here is a simplified drawing of the controller hookups and how signals are directed.

[anthonydejesus421]

acourtjester thank you for your reply!!!

Do you have any info about how it needs to be configured (manual, connections for the electronics)?
I found a general set up/insatalltion manual in PDF form that covers installation and a brief overview of the software's that came with his initial package (Sheetcam,QCAD and Inkscape) as well as a basic tutorial of how to zero the XY and Z. I combed through the instructions to see what I potentially did wrong. I double checked the connections to ensure that the motors were properly connected and they were. I did not go through the manual for the torch yet.

Was the system working when you received it and stopped working or did it not run from day one?
Yes the system was working. Im not sure how well since he has been struggling to make test cuts but he powered it up for me and showed me how to move the X,Y and Z. I moved to them to the tracks edge to see what the softlimits were. There were none and I ran the Y of the track but I carefully meshed the gears togehter and she moved ok with no problem. Then my Z didn't want go up or down and a short time after that everything stopped moving altogether.

How many motors are on the table?
3 motors XYZ

Are you able to do screen shots of thing in Mach if asked to do so, and how to attach them to here for us to see?
I should be able to screenshoot the control, transfer and upload them from my laptop. He was told not to connect the PC to the internet for fear of viruses. I guess that's what the manufacturer told him. I asked him how would updates be handled? He said he was told that for any updates a Flashdrive would be sent out to customers when needed. It sounds sketchy to me.


You said after you tried to zero things out it stopped moving what did you change?
Correct. I did not change any settings. I check the jog toggle switch and that's it. All I did was clean off the bearings, wipe down the rails where the rollers sit and moved the XYZ around and I made sure to check for any wires I may have bumped. The cutter has been sitting for a while now and everything had at least 1/4" of dust on it. I tested the softlimits and the Y ran of the track. I meshed the gears together again with no problem then nothing would move. It worked fine for 10 minutes after that then nothing. A big problem is that so many of his buddies tried to help him and figure things out that I have no idea what was done/changed. No records or notes were taken. I called Wright CNC and emailed them as well and I got nothing back so far.

[acourtjester]

Ok it sounds like a standard setup, most likely the only software the will get updated is SheetCam. I have mine on my in house computer which is hooked to the internet, it will update automatic but they have not done that in a while, They have all the know bugs worked out.
But I would load it on a computer that is on the internet to be sure you have the latest. I use the development version it is better.
Something that that is out there and may not be a help is the Pendent (while running Mach 3 click on the TAB key) and the pendent will come on see attached image. Now the top arrow shows the step and continue light you want it in continue. Also the cycle jog step should be set to the largest value (100.00). These setting will affect the amount the motor goes when the arrow key is pushed. At the lower part you see the % box that needs to be 100 too, this has to do with the speed the motors move with the arrows. don't think they are wrong just check. Next check the pins for the step and dir under the config drop down, then Ports and Pins see attached image you step and dir pins may be different but that should be in the manual. When you have power on can you move any of the axis motors??
This is a start for you to check. Inkscape and QCAD are free but work very well, don't know of any real un-dates needed.

pendent.JPG (89.9 KiB) Viewed 272 times

[anthonydejesus421]

Sorry for the late response.

Ok sounds good! I'm gonna try it when I go over there Sunday. Just doesn't make sense that his setup would be this difficult unless everyone changed something trying to figure it out. I kinda just want to purge the whole thing and start from scratch but I don't know what he was told to change by service. But I will give it a go and update you. Thank you I appreciate your time.