[yaddatrance]

My machine is a Shizuoka B3-V w/ a Fanuc 6M-B control. A traditional bed mill with 2 gears and 3 modes (High - Neutral - Low)
The gear is pneumatically engaged (up for high gear, and middle for neurtal and down for low gear)

The machine has been running solid for the past year, but yesterday night I had a weird issue pop up. While running a small batch of parts, it wouldn't spin up anymore.

I opened up the spindle inspection window and did some testing via the manual switches and dials.

I've discovered the problem is that it will not successfully engage the high gear from neutral. The spindle motor slowly rotates like normal, and I hear a very slight hiss from the pneumatic cylinder, but nothing happens and the motor just keeps rotating slowly continuously. Normally after the spindle rotates for a half second, it goes hiss, then you hear the clunk of the high gear engaging and the hiss stops, the actual spindle rotates a bit and after a half second the spindle and spindle motor stops rotating.

I can go to low gear from neutral, and I can go to high gear from low, and I can go to low from high.

What I say probably makes little sense so I took a video.



I'm hoping someone has any idea where I should start looking! I've been through this machine quite a bit, but never poked too deeply into the spindle outside of checking the brushes and oil.

[yaddatrance]

Damn, I found the problem.



I took off the tacho-generator and this little gizmo was in there... 2 were ok, 1 was cracked and the last one was floating loose on its pins... Of course I dropped it and broke the cracked one off too.

Took it to a microscope and it reads on the inside channel: SCHMIDT-KUPPLUNG GmbH - CONTROLFLEX PG15M-5

Any idea where I'd find a replacement? Tried my usual suspect places and turned up nothing. Emailed Zero-max who is listed as their US distributor, maybe they'll get back to me?

[yaddatrance]

Heard back from zero-max. They referred me to motion industries, left them a message. Lets hope they get back to me.

[yaddatrance]

For anyone who runs across this thread with the same question: a sales rep for zero-max gave me the sub partnumber for the plastic "frog" insert for the Control Flex Coupling It is P/N: S015000 (for the C016P coupling). Motion Industries had some at a warehouse so I'm in luck!

[yaddatrance]

Fixed. Phew...