Me Again

[flemingswoodworks]

Hello everyone..
here's my new problem after trying to fix my old problem...
after taking everything apart over and over,I know everyones been through it
before...first the fine lines I never solved what the cause was, I had problems with my FFC cable, the machine went a little crazzy and started to move on its own and got a power error than went dead,,,so I replaced the ffc cable with a new one and it's still dead..do these machines have a fuse on them somewere?maybe I shorted something out I checked the LED dial turned back and forth and no display...I have power in the outlet that the machine is plugged into and yes the card is pluged in proper.
Thanks Will

[Digitalwoodshop]

Did you get the FFC Cable installed the correct way? It can be installed with the plastic side where the contacts are.....

Does the Z move any? Can you read encoder data form the Z? If Yes then cable installed correct.

The power supply could be bad?

AL

[flemingswoodworks]

completly dead

[TerryT]

If I remember correctly.... didn't you remove the FFC cable while power was on? I think you may have fried either power supply or computer.

[flemingswoodworks]

no I wiggled it and got a power flux and it started going up and down back and forth...I turned off the power and it would not fire back up

[unitedcases]

Maybe the power supply? That's pricey.

[flemingswoodworks]

how pricey is it?

[unitedcases]

300 plus shipping with a 100 dollar rebate if I remember correctly. I went through two before I was smart enough to ground the machine out.

[flemingswoodworks]

Ouch......

[unitedcases]

A valuable lesson to be learned here, always ground your machine.

[flemingswoodworks]

it would be nice if you could use a PC power supply

[unitedcases]

Yes it would.

[Alan Malmstrom]

How would one ground their machine I wonder? I mean I know I could run a wire to a metal conduit in the basement but where would I wire up the machine?

Why doesn't the machine have a gound in the first place?

Alan

[gashawk]

Normal grounds just run back to the same ground in the circuit breaker box. Maybe you have had a power surge, as turned on in a lighting storm. Most circuits have a burnt smell afterwards. Check for continuity.

[unitedcases]

Here is how I did mine, with instructions from Al of course. Staring at the machine on the keyboard side, look at the right side sandpaper belt. Now you have the 2 screws holding it in place on the non-keypad side. I loosed the first screw and tied a ground wire to and ran that ground wire directly to the center screw on a plug outlet. I would take a pic but I am at work.

[Alan Malmstrom]

That's all the info I need about running a ground wire so I don't need pictures. Thanks!

Alan

[flemingswoodworks]

I now have power and think it might be the circut board attached to the back of the Z-assembly that the Zmotor plugs into, when I unpluged everything that plugged into it than pluged them back in I got power again but noticed that as soon as I pluged the top plug in(Z-motor) it got real hard to move up and down by hand when I unpluged it it would move freely this is with or without the power on...any thoughts

[mtylerfl]

I now have power and think it might be the circut board attached to the back of the Z-assembly that the Zmotor plugs into, when I unpluged everything that plugged into it than pluged them back in I got power again but noticed that as soon as I pluged the top plug in(Z-motor) it got real hard to move up and down by hand when I unpluged it it would move freely this is with or without the power on...any thoughts

Hello,

One thing we learned at the CW 2011 Conference was that the cable connectors (automotive-type) can develop a little "slop" over time where they plug into the circuit board. This sometimes caused an erroneous diagnoses of a bad power supply (intermittent power, or total power loss were the symptoms), when in fact, the power supply was still good...it was the connectors that had lost their full grip in the receptacle.

It is an easy fix...

Place the machine on its side and remove the bottom metal plate. Locate the wires (shown in photo) and use a zip tie to bind the two cables together and "tighten" the grip the connectors have in the receptacles. I do not know if this really has anything to do with your particular problem or not, but it won't hurt to do it anyway.

I added a couple more photos to show the connector more clearly...see the "brownish" areas? I believe this is caused from some minor arcing of the connector in the receptacle due to the "loosening up" over time. The "zip-tie trick" should eliminate this.

[mtylerfl]

How would one ground their machine I wonder? I mean I know I could run a wire to a metal conduit in the basement but where would I wire up the machine?

Why doesn't the machine have a gound in the first place?

Alan

Hi Alan,

I believe the original prototype machines did have a 3-prong plug, but it was during the UL approval process that eliminated the 3-prong and UL required the machine be double-insulated instead (2-prong plug).

[flemingswoodworks]

ok...back to my problem...now that I have power ...I put these pictures up to show what im talking about...when I plug the top plug in behind the Z-Assemb. it can hardly move up and down. when I unplug it it moves nice and smoth..I can't carve because im getting a stall error..I've had the machine un45131pluged from the outlet(wall) for 2 hours and it does it with no juice to the machine.not sure why being its a electrical connection any thoughts?45130

[mtylerfl]

ok...back to my problem...now that I have power ...I put these pictures up to show what im talking about...when I plug the top plug in behind the Z-Assemb. it can hardly move up and down. when I unplug it it moves nice and smoth..I can't carve because im getting a stall error..I've had the machine un45131pluged from the outlet(wall) for 2 hours and it does it with no juice to the machine.not sure why being its a electrical connection any thoughts?45130


Hello,

Your photos did not come through.

The trucks will be hard to move when the machine power is on. Can be moved easily without power. If the Z-truck is hard to move after power is off, then I would suspect the bearings either need adjustment or one or more are gummed up with sawdust. Let us know your progress. You may want to consider calling CarveWright Tech Support if you can't nail the problem within a reasonable amount of time. They can walk you through various steps and ask questions along the way to help you.

[flemingswoodworks]

4513345132strange i can see links to the photos.....it def has to do with the plug on the back ..when its unpluged it moves like butter like it always did.when I plug it back in it hardly moves..Ill put the pics on photobucket and upload the link in a fewthanks Will

[mtylerfl]

4513345132

Still not working - make sure you are not selecting "inline" when posting photos - see if that does the trick for you. (Use Advanced/Manage Attachments)

[flemingswoodworks]

http://i96.photobucket.com/albums/l181/flemingswoodworks/1.jpg

http://i96.photobucket.com/albums/l181/flemingswoodworks/2.jpg

[mtylerfl]

...when I plug it back in it hardly moves...

Hello,

Is the CW power switch turned off? If so, and the truck becomes hard to move after plugging in the Z-truck, you may have power getting to it somehow. Definitely call CarveWright if this is the case.

[flemingswoodworks]

its in the off position and UNPLUGGED from the wall thats why im so confused im baffled by this

[mtylerfl]

its in the off position and UNPLUGGED from the wall thats why im so confused im baffled by this

Ok, time to CarveWright Tech Support ASAP.

[flemingswoodworks]

I think it's Haunted :)

[mtylerfl]

I think it's Haunted :)

<grin> I can't figure it out - if you have waited a while after power is unplugged and switch turned off, the juice should have dissapated and the truck should move freely (provided no mechanical issues exist). There is a capacitor - perhaps that is "holding" the juice??? My only experience with that is when I tried to remove a picture tube from an old 19" color TV. I discharged the juice with my body when I grabbed either side of the picture tube and the end of it touched my chest when lifting it out. Not sure what happened - I came to on the floor with two people standing over me asking if I was alright. So - I know some "things" can hold power for a long time - I am sure the CW can't hold THAT much power though!

[flemingswoodworks]

damn good thing you came out of that OK...Thanks for your help..It is appreciated
Will

[mtylerfl]

damn good thing you came out of that OK...

Yeh, right after that I found out I could name the capital of every state in the union. And, it stayed with me - I often entertain at parties with that suddenly acquired skill. I'll give you a couple examples...

What is the capital of Arizona?... "A"

What is the capital of Hawaii?... "H"

What is the capital of New Hampshire... "N"

[Kenm810]

Just reading along with this Thread--- and Noted your acquired skill MT,

It kind of reminds me of the way I keep all my Hand Tools
in Alphabetical order on my work Bench --

A - Hammer
A - Screw Driver
A - Nail Punch
A - Wood Chisel
A - Crescent Wrench
A - Etc, Etc, Etc, Etc

Capacitors - back when I was in School for Electronics they were called Condensers -- "Cans" for short
We used to put a charge on them and stick them up through the bottom of the lab bench stools
for the new guys in class -- they gave a whole new dimension to the terms Reach for the Sky and Airborne!

[mtylerfl]

That's good, Ken! LOL!

[flemingswoodworks]

you guys crack me up

[TerryT]

Ah, good ol' electronics class. We would plug the caps into the wall outlet then holler "Think Fast" and toss them at someone. They would catch them in their hand and then their hair would stand up when they yelled! I think that is how they invented Capacitor start motors?!

We also would mount an aircraft mag in the drill press and throw a loop over the door knob just before everyone arrived for class.

Then there was...........

[flemingswoodworks]

I think I know what my new problem might be...the new ffc cables that I got seem to have less pins on them than my old one..I think I ordered the wrong size for mine

[mtylerfl]

I think I know what my new problem might be...the new ffc cables that I got seem to have less pins on them than my old one..I think I ordered the wrong size for mine

Aha! I believe you found your problem! (Where was Al when we needed him - he's the one that usually mentions to check that!)

[gregsolano]

Yes, they probably sent you the 14 pin which is for the newer machines. Older ones had 18 pins. You will have to exchange it. Pics courtesy of Al.

45153

[flemingswoodworks]

Aha! I believe you found your problem! (Where was Al when we needed him - he's the one that usually mentions to check that!)
Yes Al know's alot about these machines I've gotten alot of helpful info from him over the last few years on this forum

[flemingswoodworks]

Yes, they probably sent you the 14 pin which is for the newer machines. Older ones had 18 pins. You will have to exchange it. Pics courtesy of Al.

45153and this was 100% my fault I orderd the 14 pin figuring thats what I needed..errrrrrr