[bridgeport13b]

Hi I have a gecko g540 that I bough on an impulse buy as well as a everlast 80amp plasma with machine torch, anyways I want to build a cnc plasma table with a primary thc but after some reading people say the gecko g540 is not a good option for plasma because it doesn't have enough inputs? Please tell me if I can overcome these drawbacks to make a g540 work with thc.
Thanks
Richard
Thanks
Richard

[flyinwilly]

It's easy if you have a second parallel port in your PC or if you use a smoothstepper.

If you have (or can add ) a second port, just buy a second breakout board (like a C10) and this will give you all the inputs you'll need. If you have a smoothstepper, it will give you the equivalent of 3 parallel ports. Just add the C10 to one of them.

I would recommend using the ethernet smoothstepper and the C10 (or another BOB).

Willy

[neckro23]

The thing with the G540 is that it only has four inputs, which isn't quite enough if you need both THC signals (one up, one down) and limit switches (3 axes).

Not really a problem if you're using a self-controlled THC (like the Proma THC SD) or if you're DIY enough to tap into the DB25 pins yourself.

(I'm using one successfully myself, but I haven't added THC or limit switches yet!)

[bridgeport13b]

Hi what are the db25 pins and could you explain what a smoothstepper is as well as bob, I am new to this and not sure where to start.
Thanks

[flyinwilly]

The BOB is a breakout board. It takes the pins from the parallel port of the PC and gives you terminals to wire your inputs and outputs to. It is connected to the PC by a DB25 cable. Like the previous poster said, the G540 only has 4 extra inputs and most THCs use 3 so you only have 1 left for everything else. The C10, wired to a second parallel port or the smoothstepper, will give you an extra 10-15 inputs. The BOB also optically isolates the PC from the the table noise generated by the plasma.

The Smooth Stepper is a device which eliminates using the parallel port(s) in the PC. It is connected by USB or Ethernet to the PC. I would use ethernet version for the plasma table. It also eliminates the dependency on the PC to generate a smooth pulse stream to the stepper drivers (G540).

Willy

[OlfCNC]

You can use a UC300ETH motion controller, it has THC control and has about 80 in and outputs in 5 ports.
You can connect your G540 to one port and can use the other 5 ports for other things.

[bridgeport13b]

Well thanks for the help, I though I bought something I will regret haha. I'm happy there is a solution. What size motors would you all go with?

[bridgeport13b]

You can use a UC300ETH motion controller, it has THC control and has about 80 in and outputs in 5 ports.
You can connect your G540 to one port and can use the other 5 ports for other things.

Hi is there other board sother than what you posted just want to touch base with all the different boards.
Thanks