[Omnivore]

Greetings from New Zealand.

Just got my X8-2200USB a couple of weeks ago. A few minor problems but it's vastly better than my old cnc (20mm 'curtain rods', 12mm threaded rod, laser cut 16mm mdf, and not improved by earthquake damage). I used Mach3 and CamBam on the old machine, and Fusion 360 on the 3D printer and laser cutter, so it's not too much of a learning experience. I've tested that it can cut aluminium, by zeroing Z at the wrong height and doing a rapid into the bed on my first part :-(, but I'm mostly cutting mdf and Douglas Fir at present.

Problems encountered:
1. 1x Missing gantry bolt.
2. Wrong plug on controller cable (but correct one on water pump).
3. Three times I've had it completely lose X position when it has a large X movement just while the spindle is spinning up. Sure to be interference. Doesn't happen if I ensure X=0 before starting. Need to earth the frame...
4. Spindle slipped down in the mounting while cutting. This is a good argument for a spoilboard that's thicker than 3mm mdf. Just skimmed the bed. Fixed by adding one strip of selotape to side of spindle.
5. Bed is out of level by about 0.3mm across 600mm of X, and about the same across 400mm of Y. 3D printed a clamp for dial indicator on spindle body, shimmed workpiece with a couple of hacksaw blades (0.4mm). Good enough until I shim the gantry.
6. Ran a part, left Mach3 idling for about 4 hours, reran same part and movement was very jerky. All the moves exactly correct, just a gap between each one. Restarted Mach3 and it was fine. Memory leak perhaps? (running on XP machine).

I like this machine!

Omnivore (Charles)
Christchurch, New Zealand

[Omnivore]

RCaffin, back on page 64 of this monster thread, you said "Anticipating this happening, I had made up some temporary thread mills using silver steel and I practiced on soft plastic first". Could you expand on that, please? I've been considering my options for doing this. Lathe turn profile then 4th axis + Dremel cutoff wheel in the spindle? Suggestions welcome.

[dharmic]

Hey Omnivore

Welcome to the club of "oh, that? That's a locating fixture cutout on the bed for the reciprocating #7 gripley. It's MEANT to be there." My old deck has a couple of interesting test cuts in it too

1.
2. Annoying things.

3. Sounds exactly like an earthing issue. Easy fixed.
4. This doesn't seem like something you should be relying on tape to fix. Is the clamp band screwed hard up against the cradle? If so, it might be worth filing or sanding 1mm or so off the cradle face so it's got room to cinch down properly.
5. Is that all? You got a good one. Now measure it in the middle before and after you put a 10kg weight on it to simulate cutter down force. Lol. It's going to be over a millimetre. It's why I retrofitted a solid aluminium bed..
6. That jerkiness usually (for me) comes if I've been stuffing around in the general settings and have switched off the lookahead / trajectory planning. Restarting resets the settings unless you've saved them so I'm guessing you inadvertently killed trajectory planning but it came back on restarting Mach3.

They're not a commercial machine, but they ARE pretty good for the bucks and plenty good enough for home / light shop duties, right?

[Arc-Light]

Loving my X4-800L CNC, I have a question, does anyone know if there is a G-Code to tell the CNC to let the spindle reach full speed before progressing to the next step? I often find it starts cutting before the spindle is at full speed. I can trick it by moving it away from its start position so that the spindle reaches speed before the first cut, but I'm assuming there's a better solution, either with a G-Code or other method? Many thanks!

[Mmpie]

Loving my X4-800L CNC, I have a question, does anyone know if there is a G-Code to tell the CNC to let the spindle reach full speed before progressing to the next step? I often find it starts cutting before the spindle is at full speed. I can trick it by moving it away from its start position so that the spindle reaches speed before the first cut, but I'm assuming there's a better solution, either with a G-Code or other method? Many thanks!

After your S***** M03 command, on the next line put in ‘G04 X**’

G04 being wait and X being seconds, so G04 X2 would wait 2 seconds before moving to the next block.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Arc-Light]

After your S***** M03 command, on the next line put in ‘G04 X**’

G04 being wait and X being seconds, so G04 X2 would wait 2 seconds before moving to the next block.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Fantastic Mmpie, many thanks, this will be a big help!

[dharmic]

You can also (if you're using Mach3) set the start/stop delay on the spindle settings page. That way you don't forget

[Mmpie]

You can also (if you're using Mach3) set the start/stop delay on the spindle settings page. That way you don't forget

Aye, a much better solution.

Could also be the acceleration time setting in your VFD needs a tweak to get up to speed a little quicker.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Arc-Light]

You can also (if you're using Mach3) set the start/stop delay on the spindle settings page. That way you don't forget

Perfect dharmic, I like the one step solution. I am using Mach 3 so I'll dig around and find that setting, many thanks!

[dharmic]

FWIW, if you end up finding yourself playing with a CAM Post processor for your machine, Mmpie's approach might be better. My approach has a couple of downsides. It applies to the stop as well as start, so if you shut down the spindle at the end of the job then want to manually move it, you have to wait. Nothing major but it is an annoyance. I have a small laser (3W?) I can hang off my spindle and run from CAD, and yeah - that's annoying, waiting for the spindle delay when the laser comes on before it moves.

So if you're playing in POST land, might be worth investigating the adding of a dwell code after your M3 - that way you don't have to remember but it only affects spindle startup, nothing else.

[Arc-Light]

FWIW, if you end up finding yourself playing with a CAM Post processor for your machine, Mmpie's approach might be better. My approach has a couple of downsides. It applies to the stop as well as start, so if you shut down the spindle at the end of the job then want to manually move it, you have to wait. Nothing major but it is an annoyance. I have a small laser (3W?) I can hang off my spindle and run from CAD, and yeah - that's annoying, waiting for the spindle delay when the laser comes on before it moves.

So if you're playing in POST land, might be worth investigating the adding of a dwell code after your M3 - that way you don't have to remember but it only affects spindle startup, nothing else.

Ah good to know! Hmmm, life is best with options! : )

[Mmpie]

RCaffin, back on page 64 of this monster thread, you said "Anticipating this happening, I had made up some temporary thread mills using silver steel and I practiced on soft plastic first". Could you expand on that, please? I've been considering my options for doing this. Lathe turn profile then 4th axis + Dremel cutoff wheel in the spindle? Suggestions welcome.

I started writing a reply to this the other day and never finished it.

I have seen other people using some commercially available single point thread mills, I’ve never looked for them really, but you can get these micro ID lathe tools, (I have a simturn AX system but there’s a few different brands doing the same stuff). They’re like little carbide bars with built in tool tips, could easily put one of the single point threading tools in a collet and use it for thread milling.

But your idea of sticking a dremel wheel in the spindle is brilliant, wish I’d thought of that!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[NickB00]

Hey dharmic I set my startup delays for 10 secs on the spindle setup page but when I start a job they do not work? Yes I pressed the apply button, the spindle starts and it goes into the work straightaway without a delay. I have broken a few bits because of this. I should not have to change the G-Code as it should work from the setup page. Anything else I can try?
Nick

[NickB00]

Same prob I am having with my X4-800L, I have setup delays in the spindle setup (under config tab) but its not working?
Great little machine though!!

[Mmpie]

What cam and post processor are you using? I never had this problem with my X6 using the mach3mill post in Fusion. I can’t remember what the post does off the top of my head but I know using the fanuc posts on my lathe and mill it adds a G04 in after any spindle speed change.

If using fusion editing a pause into the post should be pretty easy, it’s all JavaScript and relatively straight forward to figure out how it works and edit bits, the long part is searching through it all for the correct place to add it.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[dharmic]

Hey Nick: that's a little weird, I wonder if it could be working for me because I chucked the YongNuo USB controller in the black box and replaced it with a UC400-Eth? Doesn't seem likely, but you never know.

I'll be on my machine later today, if all goes well. If I remember I'll grab some screen shots of the spindle and general setup panels for you to compare against.

[Sterob]

Hey dharmic I set my startup delays for 10 secs on the spindle setup page but when I start a job they do not work? Yes I pressed the apply button, the spindle starts and it goes into the work straightaway without a delay. I have broken a few bits because of this. I should not have to change the G-Code as it should work from the setup page. Anything else I can try?
Nick

Have you looked at shortening your spindle acceleration times in your VSD? My default times were both 10 seconds. I changed mine to 1 sec with no ill effects.

[NickB00]

Thanks that will be helpful.

Hey Nick: that's a little weird, I wonder if it could be working for me because I chucked the YongNuo USB controller in the black box and replaced it with a UC400-Eth? Doesn't seem likely, but you never know.

I'll be on my machine later today, if all goes well. If I remember I'll grab some screen shots of the spindle and general setup panels for you to compare against.

[NickB00]

So your spindle got to full speed in one second? Thats another approach I suppose. So how do you do this and what is a VSD?

Have you looked at shortening your spindle acceleration times in your VSD? My default times were both 10 seconds. I changed mine to 1 sec with no ill effects.

[Mmpie]

So your spindle got to full speed in one second? Thats another approach I suppose. So how do you do this and what is a VSD?

VFD.

Change parameter P0-009. 1 second sounds a little fast to spin up to 24k but have a play with it and keep an eye on the amps it’s drawing on startup as you decrease the accel time.

Here’s a link to the manual

https://www.docdroid.net/NYibeDM/now...00.pdf#page=39


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk