Re: Need help with rough cut
Hi,
It looks like you hit on the problem. Any vibration of the machine will show up in the cut edge.
A good 'Vibration Sensor' is to attach a long (12 inch or longer) ty-wrap to the top of the torch lead, and do not cut off the end.
Any vibration the torch sees will be easily seen on the end of the ty-wrap. I attach one to each machine I rebuild to help align everything.
It works real good.
Another trick to see if your pinions are aligned properly (Perfectly parallel to the rack). is to put a piece of white paper into the pinion while it is running slowly.
When it comes out of the back side you can see the contact points of the teeth and rack.
If it is a uniform pattern, everything is good.
If the angle of the pinion is off, you will see dark spots where the teeth contact and light where the teeth are not touching.
Also make sure the pinion is at the right tension. too much and it will cause wear like you are seeing, and it will wear out the thrust bearings on the motor/gear reducer.
Not enough and it can skip, or change the part size from partially pulling out from the rack. (It changes the pitch diameter of the gear).
Hope this helps.
Alan Bradford
www.plasmatechnologies.com