Mach3 stopping occasionally
My equipment consist of Grizzly 6x26 knee mill that was converted to CNC several years ago using Mach3 with 3 Nema 34 3.5 amp motors controlled by Gecko G540 running on a 48 volt transformer. Everything was working for years sometimes hours at a time cutting complex parts.
Lately it has started acting up on me and by that I mean it will be moving along and all of a sudden it stops randomly, at least one of the motors stops turning.
I can continue to jog but I have lost position and I have to start over. Things I have checked:
Gibs readjusted and both X and Y slide freely, I thought it might be binding up but it never stops at the same place
Installed all new shielded motor cables with a 3.5K resistor on each connector
New shielded cable on each of the Home switches
Operating on Windows7 with nothing else that I know of running, screen savers etc.
Running at 25000 htz
Motors tuned for a conservative speed, Velocity of 30 and Acceleration of 5 but nothing that I change seems to make a difference.
It seems like it is getting a stray signal from somewhere that's causing a momentary hiccup that's driving me crazy.
I am stumped and don't know what else to change or look for
I am open to any and all ideas
Thanks
Jack
Re: Mach3 stopping occasionally
Is there anything else running on that computer? Was it optimized for Mach3? When I had problems like that, it turned out to be Windows Update, which interrupts everything to call home when it feels neglected.
Re: Mach3 stopping occasionally
Thanks
Years ago there was a list of things that could/should be turned off in windows but I haven't been able to find it. I did remove the latest security update but maybe I let one slip past me.
This computer is not connected to the internet I had it connected to be able to try Fusion 360 but decided it was to difficult for me to learn so I got rid of it.
Jack
Re: Mach3 stopping occasionally
Thanks for the Help
This morning I went into Windows 7 and removed all of the security updates that had been installed. This computer which is only used to operate the CNC Mill is never connected to the internet, so I
don't think that I need them anyway.
I also turned OFF any items that weren't absolutely necessary for Win7 to function and now it seems to be working like it used to.
I have had it running for several hours now, and so far not one hiccup or stall or stoppage of the motors.
Time will tell if I fixed it, Thanks for the help!
Jack