CAD/CAM/CNC
Sneak Peek
Here is a sneak peek at a brand new Taig CNC ready mill running some 185 oz/in steppers with a new control I am testing and evaluating. There will be a few updates before I can discuss the new features. Here it is running a 3D carving program at 50 IPM. Short micro moves on the Z axis are creating the crunching sound. Sweet music to a CNCer.
Here is the complete test layout.
Flight of Fancy
I had a long hiatus (about four weeks paid time off) away from my regular employment, creating time to take a good long at the route I should be heading with my at-home workshop activities. What I do for the rest of my life should be something I really enjoy. I have been making small wax carvings by hand and machine.
I have come to a personal decision about my capabilities in creating precision miniature wax carvings. The results of my experiments have shown that even with my PN, I am capable of detailed hand carving but not in the speed and degree of accuracy that I would like to perform. I suppose that is because I have spent most of my life being very accurate with dimensions and machine tools and maybe six months wax carving by hand. Duh?
My plan at this point is that I am going to continue putting effort into perfecting my CAD/CAM creative effort but not abandoning the hand work. I have discovered both to be very enjoyable. To those of you who follow my “in the shop” ramblings about machines and machine software, you will see that machine carving will continue.
Everything I do in my CNC interests is scalable. That means the effort and skills to do small scale carvings are the same whether one inch high or twenty four inches high. The size of the tool bits and the machine just change.
I am totally blown away by what I can do with small machines and tiny milling bits. This is where I have spent most of my time and money. I presently have what I need as far as the machines capable of doing the detailed work. I will be writing a lot more about how they work and how… Continue reading
G-Wizard Update
No, this is not a user update report on the software program G-Wizard. It is still a great CNC must have application. I just did a new update to my personal copy that I have been using for more than a year with several previous updates. Look here for the original REVIEW. G-Wizard just keeps getting better. What I want to mention is just a little quirk in this latest upgrade.
I ran the new update without deleting the existing program on my computer and got the install error message as is described on the G-Wizard update page. It has to do with some new security files that are incompatible between versions.To actually install the update (after downloading) I had to manually delete my old version using the windows control panel. No big deal and this process and reason is clearly explained on the download page so I won’t describe it further here.
My only hesitation was if I deleted the old version using the control panel I might loose all my settings. I was confident Bob Warfield (CNC Cookbook and designer of G-Wizard) would have warned me about that so I didn’t hesitate very long. I also know windows seldom if ever does a truly complete “clean wipe” deletion. I am sure that is by design, just for reasons such as this.
The update was otherwise quick and painless and I was presented with a new looking calculator screen. There is also a huge increase in the program speed. All my old setups returned and now we are running at a new and faster full speed ahead.
Keep the good stuff coming Bob!
Taig Wrench CNC
I shot a video this weekend showing a Taig spindle wrench being milled on my Taig CNC mill.
For best viewing go to YouTube and view in HD full screen 720p. WOW! I used my Sony Alpha NEX-5 With it’s HD wide screen video ability. The raw full HD footage is spectacular but I had to edit down to 720P for YouTube. Here it is much less than that (around 360p). I don’t like the handheld movement and focus changes but it was easier than working around the tripod. I need to use the tripod… 🙂
Here are some stills. I had enough aluminum to make 9 wrenches on this run.
This wrench was actually one of my first projects with the Taig mill many years ago. I was using different software and controller but the results are the same. I also put a label on the handles of the original wrenches. I may do something similar on these new ones.
http://thehobbyistmachineshop.com/cms/projects/taig-wrench-set
This size wrench is just the right size and the soft aluminum (compared to steel) prevents damage to the spindle and collet nut. My originals show a little wear but are still going strong.
Enjoy the video for now!
Update 5/3/15
Today I just cut 6 more of these wrenches. I checked out the proper feeds and speeds in CNC Cookbook GWizzard and got each cut time down to 6 minutes, 40 seconds. Now running 19 IPM feed at 10600 RPM, plunge 10 IPM and DOC is .0377 or seven round trips. Big chips and a beautiful cut.
Smoothstepper a Champion Again!
Once a real smoothie, then a stumble bum, now a VERY smooth stepper again. One tiny software update can change what became a chunk of lead back into pure gold. I don’t know what made the step controller a forgetful POS but I very pleased it has found its feet again.
I suspect it may have been Microsoft fooling around with the USB ports. It is always easy (fun?) to poke at a large and favorite target like MS. But perhaps it could be whomever wrote the USB driver code for Smoothstepper, left out an unneeded (at the time) refresh timer that was in the USB spec for critical devices all along.
It doesn’t matter. There is a fix and seems to be working perfectly. I am extremely impressed again with the very smooth operation. I just finished a six (6) hour run of continuous spiral micro machining of a round dome shape with lettering. That requires all three axis working very hard. I used three tools which means two tool changes with Z axis reset. It went flawlessly! Yes, my trust in the software and Smoothstepper is back.
Lesson Learned: When a new problem appears, I must think about what was just changed. A software update? If I can do a restore, I could see if the problem disappears. Always check web sites for bug reports. I may not be the only one with the problem. I never believe solutions I read from other users. They may be correct but there is a LOT of bad advice in forums. I look for official sources. They don’t respond first or very often. I look for official software updates.