PoKeys? any good? Rebuilding my machine electronics from scratch.

I have been on here several times trying to get my Shopmaster conversion that was put together by a friend to work correctly. I have gone through several things and never gotten a reliable machine.

It has been running LinuxCNC and I know nothing about Linux so troubleshooting has been difficult.

I want to go to a Windows based system, probably Mach unless there is a better choice I havent found. The guy i talked to at CNC4PC is recommending a PoKeys57 and M16 board to run the system, but when asked other questions I dont get real answers. Im still learning what all these parts do, and these are pricey parts, i dont want to waste more money.

My machine is a Lathe and Mill, I want to add an encoder and turn threads eventually, I have a Mist coolant fogger, home limits, E-stop, Want to add a stepper to raise the "gantry" in the future. Running Gecko drivers right now to 3 steppers.

Are the PoKeys system the way to go? Is the M16 and PoKeys57 board the best way to go? Researching i found a PoKeys57cnc that seems to be all in one, is he not recommending it only because they dont have it, or is it limited somehow?

Thanks for any help/advice

I'm using pokeys 57E an M16 on my lathe. The M16 is a beautiful card. It has everything a lathe needs. Works perfectly with the 57E.

I also use a 3 channel encoder for threading and CSS.

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Quote:

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Originally Posted by Azalin

I'm using pokeys 57E an M16 on my lathe. The M16 is a beautiful card. It has everything a lathe needs. Works perfectly with the 57E.

I also use a 3 channel encoder for threading and CSS.

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Any chance you have a wiring diagram and setup info for your encoders, i plan to do the same. CNC4PC said i could setup two profiles, one for lathe and another for mill. I suspect that would be in the Mach3/4 software?

I'm using Mach4.
When you install the plugin provided by cnc4pc all the settings you need will be installed too. Spindle encoder, motors, e-stop, limit/home switches. cnc4pc also provide wiring diagram for steppers, encoder, switches, VFD, etc.. Only thing you need to pay attention is the pin out for the encoder in the manual. It's wrong. Getting mine to work took me some time. I informed Arturo from cnc4pc about the wrong pin out. He said he'll fix and replace the pdf but I don't know if he did.

I've printed the whole PDF and scratched all wiring diagrams for my future builds. Feel free to ask if you need them.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Azalin

I'm using Mach4.
When you install the plugin provided by cnc4pc all the settings you need will be installed too. Spindle encoder, motors, e-stop, limit/home switches. cnc4pc also provide wiring diagram for steppers, encoder, switches, VFD, etc.. Only thing you need to pay attention is the pin out for the encoder in the manual. It's wrong. Getting mine to work took me some time. I informed Arturo from cnc4pc about the wrong pin out. He said he'll fix and replace the pdf but I don't know if he did.

I've printed the whole PDF and scratched all wiring diagrams for my future builds. Feel free to ask if you need them.

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I would love to seee them, see if i can wrap my head around what im gettin myself into before dumping more cash into this thing! Thank you!!

Hi,

This is my version of page 15.https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...bc5c162f29.jpg

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Thank you, do you have a picture of how your encoders are set up on your spindle? I had a piece of laminate formica laser cut for the encoder wheel, havent quite figured out how to mount the encoders though.

Sorry, I use a 3 phase line driver output rotary encoder.https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...c23325d6fe.jpg

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Ahh, okay, nice setup! I will have to look into those!