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I am just about finished with my conversion, I used the CNC Fusion kit #5, Gecko 540 and Keling 182 oz motors with Mach3. Its been a bumpy road but everything is working now and I'm happy but, I would like to turn on the spindle and adjust the speed from gcode or mach3. Is the CNC4PC C6 spindle control switch/relay the best way to go? What all do I need and can this be accomplished by the average guy with very little electrical expertise?
Thanks for any and all advice...
Jack
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Hey Jack, It's pretty easy to hook up the C6 just make sure to use a separate power supply for it I used a wall wart from walmart, if you share a ground with the system it will blow the C6 and possibly the motor controller too. be sure to read thru the pdfs from cnc4pc. check out cnc4pcs forum on yahoo to see some tips from others that have done it too. http://groups.yahoo.com/group/cnc4pc/?yguid=135324360I have a couple videos you can watch on how to set it up. spindle control preview C6 Setup and DemoHoss
Gosh, you've... really got some nice toys here.-Roy Batty
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I was told that I could get the required voltage right from mach3 thru my 4th axis output of my Gecko 540 and use a separate relay to turn it on and off, but then if I ever want to use the fourth axis for my little rotary table I wouldn't be able to do it. I just want to make sure that the C-6 board is the best, easiest, most dependable way to turn on the spindle and get the speed up the desired rpm. While I'm at it, while configuring a new post processor in BobCad it said turn make a tab for "Spindle ON Clockwise" "Spindle ON Counter clockwise" and "Spindle OFF" will a sieg x2 motor run in both directions and do I need that option?
Jack
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If you have the g540 you should be able to use it's 0-10V output to control the X2 controller in place of the potentiometer, the same thing the C6 does. It still needs an input voltage and a couple folks are testing it with using the 12V from the X2 controller, no need for a separate supply like the C6. I have never seen anyone post about using the g540 YET, but I think TXFred will be the first soon. Keep an eye on his thread. http://www.cnczone.com/forums/showthread.php?t=90242You can't use a relay to control the X2 controller, it has safety features built in that require the pot to be turned back to 0 before turning it back on. A relay can turn it off but the spindle wont come back on unless the pot is cycled back off first. the C6 ( and g540?) replace the pot so it's like an invisible hand turning in on/off for you at the speed you want. The X2 doesn't have reverse. Not much use for it in a little mill. Hoss
Gosh, you've... really got some nice toys here.-Roy Batty
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My first attempt at spindle control, I hooked a relay up to the
spindle motor wires
then turned the motor on with the pot to the speed i wanted. when i
deactivated the relay the motor shut off
when i reactivated it the motor came back on at the speed that was still set
with the pot.
worked for a few more times then it overloaded the controller and pop, no
more controller.
the electronics in them are sensitive and they dont care to have the motor
pulling full current instantly
guess thats why they made it so the pot has to be turned to start from 0 and
go up.
Hoss
Gosh, you've... really got some nice toys here.-Roy Batty
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I ordered a C6 board today and I understand that I also need a 12 volt power supply when I go to get one what amperage should I look for? I have a couple around here from old electronic toys but they are 100 0r 200 milli-amps, that doesn't sound like enough to run the motor on a Seig X2 motor.
Thanks
John
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The PDF from cnc4pc says it only needs 12VDC@200mA input. I think the one I used was for an old laptop, nothing high power. The C6 is not running the spindle motor, the stock X2 controller is still powering the motor just like before. The c6 is just replacing the potentiometer which gives the X2 board a 0-10 Volt input signal. The motor is still getting power from the X2 board. Be sure to read the PDF from cnc4pc thoroughly, it tells you how to check the pot for the correct connections. http://www.cnc4pc.com/Store/osc/product_info.php?cPath=25&products_id=58
Gosh, you've... really got some nice toys here.-Roy Batty
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I now have the C6 board in front of me, I have a regulated 12 volt power supply and I am pretty sure that positive and negative wires go to connection X1 on the board. Based on the PDF printout page 4.
I disconnected wires P1 and P2 in the X2 control box and ran wires from P1 and P2 to X4 on the C6 board. What do I do with the disconnected wires P1 and P2 that are inside the X2 box? I am so close but else do I still have to connect? I did the set up in Mach3 spindle settings and all of that, I still have to figure out how to get the signals from the Gecko 540 to the C6 but I might be able to figure that out.
I could sure use some help, I'm electronically challenged
Thanks
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"What do I do with the disconnected wires P1 and P2 that are inside the X2 box?"
Tape the ends of them real well so they can't make contact with anything or each other.
I believe you'll have to use Output 1 and Output 2 on the g540 to connect to the C6 Input Signals (X2)
Hoss
Gosh, you've... really got some nice toys here.-Roy Batty
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I now have the X2 mini mill spindle controlled by Mach3 using the Gecko 540 utilizing the VFD settings. I returned the C6 board to CNC4PC it is working now with just the Gecko 540. I still have to tweak the spindle speed but at the moment I have no way of knowing what the exact maximum speeds with the belt drive (Little Machine Shop) but as soon as I get a tach I should be able get it figured out. But the main thing is, Mach3 will control the X2 spindle with a Gecko 540.
Thanks everyone for the help, God knows I need all the help that I can get.
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Good to hear, it seemed that the g540 should be pretty easy to use since it outputs the same range as the c6. I looked at the g540 xml they provide and they seem to use PWM control in Mach 3 instead of Step/Dir the c6 uses. Good job, now we know.  Hoss
Gosh, you've... really got some nice toys here.-Roy Batty
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Well done, John. And thanks for posting. I see a number of new builds using the G540 and I think many are trying to do what you just proved.
With spindle control directly from the G540 figured out now, does that setup provide Mach3 with info for spindle speed display? I'm not sure if I'd need a C3 board other than for threading where signal pulse is required for accurate indexing. Does Mach3 know if you have a high or low gear ratio (or pulley ratio if you are running a belt)?
Thanks! -4ist
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Hey John, do you think you could post a simple sketch of how the g540 is connected to the X2 board? What gets connected to what?
thanks, Hoss
Gosh, you've... really got some nice toys here.-Roy Batty
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John,
After connecting the G540 to your X2 spindle control board, does Mach3 know the speed of the motor? How do you set the spindle speed in Mach3?
Thanks,
-4ist
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I did get the Gecko G540 to control the spindle of my X2 mini mill but I wasn't the one to figure it out. I had a great deal of help from my friend Phil and he explains how to do it here: http://pminmo.com/g540-vfd this explains how to hook everything up so that even I could understand it. Thanks Jack
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I was not so successful with this setup. his site is a little confusing on the hook up. He has the G540 next to the Spindle Board. On the g540 he has position 9 as the VFD+, position 8 as VFD GND, and 7 as the VFD OUT.
If you look at the manual for your 540, position 8 is out and 7 is gnd.
I hooked it up both ways, and it trips trips my GFCI receptacle i have my control box plugged into. It doesn't blow the fuse though.
I have to be over looking something here.
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Could be a different Rev board than he used, believe they are on Rev 3 now for the G540.
Hoss
Gosh, you've... really got some nice toys here.-Roy Batty
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I managed to make a little progress that confused me even more. On his site he says that you can leave P1 & P3 hooked up and just remove P2 from the board. Not that you MUST leave them hooked up. I hooked them back up and everything was good. One slight problem my spindle fault light is on. So i tried to reset it by turning the pot off and back on again and then POOF blew the fuse?! I'm not sure where to go from here.
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find more tips and info for hooking up the g540 spindle control here. http://www.cnczone.com/forums/benchtop_machines/137855-spindle_control_problems_x2_g540.htmlHoss
Gosh, you've... really got some nice toys here.-Roy Batty
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