[vladoportos]

Hello all,
I have my classical Chinese CNC 6040 for some time now, and it works fine ( I do break bits sometimes but much less frequent since I figured out that my spindle was turning the wrong way hahahah )
I know the basics, I know how to 2.5D cut, or cut out stuff as I need, but I would love to make some changes to the CNC and learn more thing like how the hell to use the 4th axis ( lathe ), how to use the "touch" zero thingy...

But first some safety. I would love to add homing and limit switches... any ideas how to wire them ( I know where they should be ) and set them up in Mach3 ?

Here are some pictures of controller ( I guess the switches should be wired into it?)
Imgur: The most awesome images on the Internet
Imgur: The most awesome images on the Internet
Imgur: The most awesome images on the Internet
Imgur: The most awesome images on the Internet
Imgur: The most awesome images on the Internet
http://imgur.com/zagnpVW
The whole thing: http://imgur.com/FgOkzyH
Regards, Vladimir

[CitizenOfDreams]

For desktop-size machines many people do not use any limit switches, relying on software limits and hard stops. A router like that is not powerful enough to hurt itself if it tries to move beyond the physical limits.

Now homing switches are quite useful. With those you can reference the machine and set software travel limits.

Wiring the switches is straightforward - the first contact goes to the breakout board input, the second one goes either to the common or to the positive bus, depending on the board.

Sometimes you do not have enough spare inputs on the breakout board. In that case you can wire all three (normally closed) home switches in series and connect them to the same input.

Configuring the switches in Mach3 is very easy. Setting up homing and travel limits is a bit more tricky, but it's not rocket science ether. Just go to the config menu, it's pretty self-explanatory.

[vladoportos]

I said it wrong, by the "where thy go" I wanted to say that where there should be located on the machine no idea where to wire them to exactly.

[CitizenOfDreams]

You mean, where to mount the switches physically? Anywhere they fit, as long as the switch:
- Gets pressed at the end of the axis travel;
- Does not get destroyed if the axis moves past the switch for any reason;
- Does not get in your way.

Homing switches can be installed either at the 0 position of the axis or at the opposite end.

Here is an example, the switch is just stuck in the right place with a drop of glue.