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Are hydraulic motors used on gantry-style machines?
If so, is it possible to drag hydraulic tubing back and forth like that?

From what I remember, that stuff tends to be pretty inflexible.

Thanks for the info. Though I'm still not sure how (or how well) a hydraulic CNC would work.. at least now I've got some terminology to get me started on the reading.

Aside: advantages of using...

Runner, thanks for the quick reply.. but I'm still confused on the bit
that lies between the PC and the PF control valve.

Perhaps its my limited experience.. I've built a pretty decent plasma...

Greets all.
Curious more than anything else, but how are hydraulics (motors, pistons, etc) interfaced to CNC controls?

Is it all encoder feedback?

How does a CNC hydraulic press, or tubing...

ShayArnett,
If youre still having trouble.. try exporting as PLT
and then open in sheetcam as PLT of course.

its worked better for me than DXF
-anthony

now that i've built my table, and have been cutting with it for a month or more now, i'd like to go back and figure out what my *exact* cost was.. i kept all my receipts. :) i have a nasty feeling i...

when i first built my plasma table, i didn't have the thc.
if you want to go low-tech, you'll at least need
some way to raise and lower the torch to get it out of harms
way. not to mention, its...

i dropped the current limiting resistors on all 3 geckos to the next lower value. the table still seems to running acceptably.

do gecko g210s already have auto current reduction? if so, how do i...

they are in fact the "new" H-series (compact double stack) SanyoDenkei.
they only have 4 wires. the nameplate says 6-300V / 6A

I'm using Gecko 210s with the proper current set resistor (for 6A),...

i have two sanyo-d 6amp steppers driven with gecko 210s

built the table in the house to test it and though the steppers warmed to the touch, they never felt hot.

moved the rig into the shop and...

dfranks,
the only real differences i see between a plasma and a router table are
1. rigidity. plasma torches don't (shouldn't!) push down on the material while they
work.. that means there is no...

Are you using a breakout board between your PC and your drives?
Mach2 has a ChargePump feature that will send pin 17 high only when
Mach2 is running.. use pin17 as your Enable signal.

of course...

will be adding a THC to a plasma table soon and only need a small stepper to do the job. another gecko may be overkill. anyone have leads on a reputable supplier of inexpensive stepper driver...

the accuracy seems good. haven't cut anything critical yet.
lines meet up, circles close, that kind of thing.. the 40mm wrench measured
41.6 mm but that was my mistake, overestimated the kerf...

well, not techincally a THC.. but it seems to be working well for piercing.

i already had the torch mounted on a slide (Z), but no Z drive/stepper.
i installed a small air piston with a needle...

David,
as a matter of fact, cut my first pieces today. really wishing i opted for the THC.
here's a "wrench" i cut.. heck, it was easy to draw in a CAD.
...

will my fuses miss it too?

curiosity more than anything, as my table seems to be running fine:

i'm running two 6amp steppers via two Gecko 210's.
they're each wired with 270k resistors ie, 6A.

when i measure the...

i'm told mastercam has quite the learning curve. is it overkill to use for 2D plasma cutting?

-anthony

apples,
sanyo-denkei 5Nm steppers, about $100 ea, and two gecko g210s.
-anthony

Les,
craziest thing is going on:
1. Mach2 will not toggle my torch despite M03/M05 lines
2. Mach3-Plasma will toggle my torch (same SheetCam code) but won't move my motors
3. Mach3 (again,...

David,
I've actually already run the 'pen test' and a 600mm diam circle closed on itself!
i could've cried when i saw it happen.

i haven't put the dial indicator on yet, but from a tape...

no THC on this table yet.

i just posted some pics in the Plasma forum.

locost: haven't check on the diagnostics page, but LED on my breakoutboard (output for 'spindle') does turn on at the...

thanks all. i'll see what i can do re: a movie. i'm on dialup and the upload will probably take longer than building another table.

i'm still in the tuning stages. the thing will move faster,...

here it is.
i can't convey the sense of satisfaction from watching it move on its own.

still dry running, no torch attached yet. two axis, X/Y. 500oz-in steppers with timing belts. gantry...

I just tried Plasma1 with better results (at least the file ran to completion).
still, my virtual torch is turning on at start of run and turning off at end of run.

no real torch control....

I have Mach3 up and running. smooth sailing so far.

Mach3-Plasma, however, won't move my steppers. with the same settings, seems like signals are crossing (the wrong LEDs light up on my...

Al,
would you have any links to an exploded view / parts break-down?
I'd like to get a look inside.

-anthony

have continued experimenting.. choosing "Mach2" as the post processor gets things
moving, but my torch relay doesn't trigger when the actual cut begins

am using one of the output's on...

my plasma table is all setup and wired, I'm using the demo versions of SheetCam and Mach2.

I've imported a DXF drawing of a really big 'washer'. 10cm diameter with 5cm hole in the center. just...