[Jim Beyer]

It a nice machine when it works right. Problem we have been having is when the sub spindle comes up and grabs a part for a cut off, the machine will alarm out stating that the spindles aren't aligned. If you lower the clamping pressure to the subspindle enough (around 180 psi), you would get the alarm. But the part spins in the sub spindle collet. It does leave marks and we've verified this by marking off the part to the collet before the cut off happens.

There is an alignment test that we've performed were you clamp one piece of bar stock in the main spindle and another piece in the sub spindle, mark them off, sync the spindles (m77) and then run them and check the position of the marks to each other after the spindles are stopped. Those marks are always in the correct position.

But for some reason, when both spindles are grabbing the same piece of material, it will either alarm out or spin in the sub spindle collet. The collet has taken a beating because of this and is leaving marks on the parts.

Any ideas out there?
Jim

[cnc-fred]

Are you moving from X0.0 on the sub spindle before moving up to the part in Z? And are the lights on, on both the C+ and C- buttons on the operator panel? They will be on when M77 is active.

[Jim Beyer]

cnc-fred, thanks for your response. Yes, the sub spindle is homed out in the x axis before it makes the move in the z axis. And both the c+ and c- are lit when the m77 command is active.

We did have a technician come in and check out the machine. He performed the alignment test three times and on the third try, he found one of the parameters incorrect. He changed it and it's worked fine since. And no, I don't know which parameter.