PM-45M-CNC Setup and Configuration with Mach3

Buffer run empty only happens to me when I have a huge program with the 4th axis(rotary). It is caused by the video display of my computer not being fast enough to update the screen and send the pulses in a timely manner. If I disable the Mach3 tool path display it works fine. This is a known problem as are the other two you mentioned.

Ray
 
Ray, this is brilliant. I think the tool path display is a waste of monitor space anyway. I'll have to see if I can disable it in the MachMotion screen set I use.

thanks
 
Here's an updated version (Draft II) of the Software and Driver Setup manual and an additional draft document covering Homing and Setting Limit Switches. There are two documents because of their large byte size. The first document is just cleaned up a little with no changes to the technical content.

Please let me know if this stuff is helping you folks so I can get some idea if I'm knocking myself out for nothing... Comments and suggestion for content and to improve readability are welcome.


Once again, I'd like to thank a nameless person for proofreading the latest doc... Once we get beyond "draft" status, I'll put editor information in there. I'm going to keep these in "Work Instruction" format as I hate pedantic manuals with all kinds of headings, titles, lists of figure -and all that crap. Beef. I want beef -no fluff.


Ray...

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Thanks for the installation guide for the PM-45-cnc. So here is my problem I bought a PM-45-cnc second hand from a guy that use it very little. He bought it from an auction.He set the machine up and it work for what he needed it to do. When I got the machine it would not home or continuous jog. It steps jogs and runs g code just fine. When I continuous jog it just clunks not loud. When I try to ref any home it the same. I have and still make part on it daily . The past owner (2 owner Im 3) had the same problem. I have went the all the install guide all my setting are the same as what it says. Except for the driver. The only driver that I could find for the jcn-40 was ver 1.42 and that is what is installed. I have see here that some machine are wired a little different. Could it bee that i need to switch some pins around? or could it be the diver ver. if so could you give me a link to the ver in the guide. or email to me?
 
Joehardee, One thing I can think of to check is what your maximum RAPID speed is. Possibly it is trying to go too fast for the steppers to keep up and so they just don't do anything. As for the control board and driver, that has been a weak point of this mill. Once working it seems to work OK but the documentation is a challenge to understand and it does not look like they have or likely will release an updated driver. Both GarlyL and myself have replaced the motion controller that came with the mill with a Smoothstepper board with great success so that might be an option. The fact that you can use the mill implies that the basics are working. When you try to do a continuous JOG are you using the keyboard or the pendent that came with the unit? What if you slow the override down to 50% or 25% will it still not continuous Jog? I assume that when you do a continuous JOG it does not move but MACH3 reports that it is moving, correct? If so, what is the IPS that MACH3 is saying it is moving when you do a continuous JOG? I bet with some patience we can figure this out.
 
Joehardee, One thing I can think of to check is what your maximum RAPID speed is. Possibly it is trying to go too fast for the steppers to keep up and so they just don't do anything. As for the control board and driver, that has been a weak point of this mill. Once working it seems to work OK but the documentation is a challenge to understand and it does not look like they have or likely will release an updated driver. Both GarlyL and myself have replaced the motion controller that came with the mill with a Smoothstepper board with great success so that might be an option. The fact that you can use the mill implies that the basics are working. When you try to do a continuous JOG are you using the keyboard or the pendent that came with the unit? What if you slow the override down to 50% or 25% will it still not continuous Jog? I assume that when you do a continuous JOG it does not move but MACH3 reports that it is moving, correct? If so, what is the IPS that MACH3 is saying it is moving when you do a continuous JOG? I bet with some patience we can figure this out.

ok by the maximum rapid speed are you taking about in motor tuning? or is there some other setting some were else. I have tuned the motors down as low as 10 velocity and .5 on acceleration but have no change on jog. all it dose is change the sound of the clunks .I have an imach pendent it works the same as the keyboard. I even removed it and the dll for it to see if it was the cause. Yes mach3 dose report back that it is moving. it reports back .o10 for each hit of the key and the unit/min for flash .26 for a second.
 
Joehardee, what happens if you hold down the movement key when in continuous jog mode (or continuously spin the dial on the pendent? Does the DRO show it moving (not 0.010 but continuously) even if the table is not? Do you get the same response in all three axis? If you look at the hand wheel when you try to do a continuous jog, does it move at all like a little movement when you here the Clunk? If you can issue a G0 movement command and a G1 movement command then I don't see how it could be a Motor tuning issue. I guess you could re-install MACH3
 
Joehardee, what happens if you hold down the movement key when in continuous jog mode (or continuously spin the dial on the pendent? Does the DRO show it moving (not 0.010 but continuously) even if the table is not? Do you get the same response in all three axis? If you look at the hand wheel when you try to do a continuous jog, does it move at all like a little movement when you here the Clunk? If you can issue a G0 movement command and a G1 movement command then I don't see how it could be a Motor tuning issue. I guess you could re-install MACH3

let me try to reword this, when I am on continuous jog (yellow light on the tab flyout screen) the dro only moves if i keep hitting the jog direction. It wont move if I hold down. ctrl + jog key is the same. The pendent reacts the almost the same with spinning of the dial. If I have it on velocity mode and turn very slow it will move. It will not move on Continuous mode. If I send G0 it rapids fine. i reinstalled mach today with the same results. thats what is strange about this is that it all works but the continuous and homing the machine. it runs any g code i send to it and performs great. if you have any other ideas let me know. how much was the smooth stepper upgarde?
 
Hey guys im in the middle of doing the PDMX and stoomth steppper. I have a dumb question. where did you guys ground to the pc at? Im refereeing to the ground buss on the xyz stepper out. the one that Grayl has label ground to computer
 
I just ran a wire to the back side of the computer case, but I should mention that was just a guess on my part.
 
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